5 things to watch in the Green Bay Packers' Week 5 game against the Los Angeles Rams

GREEN BAY – Here are five things to keep an eye on when the Green Bay Packers face the Los Angeles Rams on Sunday at SoFi Stadium.

Xavier McKinney tries to score his sixth goal in a row with an interception

Most reports about the Packers’ safety and Xavier McKinney’s interception streak only relate to this season. But McKinney has five straight games with an interception, as in his last game with the New York Giants he had two interceptions in a 27-10 win over the Philadelphia Eagles. McKinney has never had a season with more than five interceptions, but with a pick in every game so far, he’s on pace for success. If he has an interception on Sunday, he would join eight other players in tying the NFL record of six straight games with an interception. Throwing deep against the Packers is a risky proposition unless McKinney plays in the box, which he sometimes does. “Sometimes these quarterbacks have confidence in their arm and want to make a play, and maybe the reading gets them to that development,” defensive backs coach Ryan Downard said of teams that throw deep against McKinney. “But he just has great instincts and can cover a lot of areas. His anticipation is so good.”

The Vikings found a weakness in the Packers defense with the screen game

Until Sunday, the Packers defended screens well. But Vikings coach Kevin O’Connell called for some well-timed screens, two of them against former Packers running back Aaron Jones, in his team’s 31-29 win on Sunday. The screens to Jones both gained 12 yards on second down. Overall, the Vikings completed all four screens for 37 yards and two first downs. Because the Packers have their defensive linemen attacking the field, they are vulnerable to screening at times. They may see a good dose of that against the Rams and their all-purpose defender Kyren Williams. “If you look around the league, you see the explosions (completions of 20 or more yards) all over the league right now, not just in our games, and what are people doing to make those big plays? The No. 1 topic on the rise right now is screens. So they’re not easy to defend.”

Packers commit penalties much more often than their opponents

The Packers rank sixth with 34 penalties and seventh with 264 penalty yards. The worst part is how big a difference there is between the impact of the penalties on the Packers and that of their opponents. In four games, their opponents have committed 15 fewer penalties for 117 fewer penalty meters. That means they cost themselves an average of 30 yards per game. They committed 10 penalties in two games (Weeks 1 and 3) and committed 18 penalties for 143 yards in the last two weeks. “I think the most important thing is that you have to be aware of your problems,” coach Matt LaFleur said. “And certainly we got a lot of penalties before the snap. So for me it’s all about focus and you have to be able to really try to put our guys in uncomfortable situations in practice to make sure they’re ready.” And the in-game penalties? “Things are going to happen within a game but you just want to make sure the fundamentals are to the standard we need so that the guys respond correctly,” he said.

The passing attack should have good running and passing options

Although they won’t have receiver Christian Watson and possibly tight end Luke Musgrave, the Packers will want to stress the Rams’ secondary. The Rams rank last in passing yards allowed per game and 21st in passing yards allowed per game. They hope to get cornerback Darious Williams back from a hamstring injury, but if not, they will be without three safeties. The Rams took coverage penalties, primarily from their starters, and allowed opposing teams to complete 72.6% of their passes. They are missing future Hall of Fame defensive lineman Aaron Donald, who retired after last season, and linebacker Ernest Jones, who was transferred to Tennessee. They are tied for fourth with fewest sacks and are tied with the Packers and Houston for third-most passing touchdowns allowed (eight). They only have one interception. When it comes to run defense, they allow teams 5.0 yards per carry and have given up five runs of 20 or more yards, tied for the third-most in the NFL. If there’s one game where the Packers’ offense turns heads, it’s this one.

Sean McVay will defeat Matt LaFleur after four straight losses

The Packers will play the Rams in their stadium for the first time since Matt LaFleur became coach in 2019. LaFleur beat one of his mentors, Sean McVay, all four times and won by an average margin of 13 points per game. All meetings took place in November or later, which is not ideal for a warm weather team. LaFleur first worked with McVay in Washington when they were on Mike Shanahan’s staff and reunited when McVay hired LaFleur as his offensive coordinator in 2017. “Sean is like a brother to me,” LaFleur said. Speaking of brothers, LaFleur’s younger brother Mike is McVay’s offensive coordinator. For LaFleur, the novelty of having to play against those close to him has worn off, but the offseason bragging rights are on the line. “To be honest, I don’t even really think about it,” LaFleur said of connections. “I mean, it’s just the next game. And you know, this league, I think the longer you’re in it, the smaller it gets because you get to know everyone. And so inevitably you’re going to be competing against someone you really care about, usually every week.”

This story has been updated to add more information.

Xavier McKinney tries to score his sixth goal in a row with an interception

The Vikings found a weakness in the Packers defense with the screen game

Packers commit penalties much more often than their opponents

The passing attack should have good running and passing options

Sean McVay will defeat Matt LaFleur after four straight losses

Related Posts

Leave a Reply Cancel reply