Green Bay Packers coach Matt LaFleur provided some clarity on the coverage breakdowns that led to the two touchdown passes from Detroit Lions quarterback Jared Goff on Monday night.
Goff threw a first-quarter touchdown pass to Quintez Cephus and then tossed a second-quarter touchdown pass to T.J. Hockenson. Issues with the coverage were at least partly to blame for both touchdowns, and both involved rookie Eric Stokes.
On the first, Stokes and Kevin King weren’t on the same page. Stokes, lined up wide, stuck with the slant route inside, while King, who was playing the slot, thought there was a switch on and stayed inside. The breakdown had two players on one receiver and left Cephus wide open, and Goff found him after he went through his progression and got to the backside of the play.
LaFleur said a lack of experience for King in the slot contributed to the breakdown. The Packers have specific rules for switching within quarters coverage based on where the defense is on the field. The rules change in the red zone. At that spot on the field, a switch wasn’t supposed to happen and King should have stuck with Cephus.
“We have to work it more, and put our guys through those situations more so we don’t have that,” LaFleur said.
A lack of pass-rush allowed Goff to get through the entire progression.
“They were working the right side of the field and came all the way back across,” LaFleur said.
The Packers actually had the perfect coverage called for the play. The quarters look took away everything on the right side but the breakdown busted the coverage on the left.
“It should be dead when we’re playing that coverage,” LaFleur said.
On the second touchdown, LaFleur said it was on the cornerback – Stokes – to “fall off” the coverage and help the linebacker in coverage against Hockenson. De’Vondre Campbell was trailing in coverage but never got help from Stokes, who got lured inside. Goff put the ball over the top in the perfect spot and Hockenson made a great catch. Again, it was quarters coverage.
LaFleur said he was generally happy with the pass coverage overall despite some issues rushing the quarterback.
And there’s a bright side here. Mistakes of inexperience are easier to correct than mistakes of ineptitude.
The Packers have some issues to clean up in coverage, but Stokes is still learning on the fly, and it appears King – who played 22 snaps in the slot – will be training at a new position inside. Experience for both should help eliminate the breakdowns.
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