Packers Stock Report: Risers, Fallers After Shocking Loss to Browns

The Green Bay Packers took their show on the road for the first time this season when they played at the winless Cleveland Browns on Sunday.

After two big wins against NFC contenders at home, the Packers got more good news when it was deemed that Tucker Kraft and Zach Tom were healthy enough to play. That’s about where the good news stopped in the first half.

Jordan Love was harassed throughout the first half, and the Packers’ offense, which flew so high for the first two games, was held to three points. Love was sacked three times in 13 dropbacks.

For all the attention that was given to Myles Garrett, he was not alone in Cleveland’s first half-dominance on the line of scrimmage. Garrett was one of five players to register at least half a sack.

Thankfully for Green Bay’s offense, the defense was up to the task, at least in the first half, as the Packers took a 3-0 lead into halftime. In the second half, the defenses continued to dominate, but a 14-play, 71-yard drive ended with a touchdown pass from Jordan Love to John FitzPatrick. That gave the Packers a 10-0 lead late in the third quarter.

After the Browns pulled within 10-3 with 3:38 to play. The game turned when Jordan Love threw an interception to Grant Delpit, which the Browns paid off with a touchdown two plays later to make the score 10-10.

The Packers had a chance to score the go-ahead points. After a big pass interference penalty and an 18-yard catch-and-run from Tucker Kraft, Josh Jacobs came incredibly close to fumbling away a chance at a chip-shot field goal. Jacobs fumbled but was ruled to have recovered it on the field, which may have saved his bacon.

It didn’t matter.

After replay review ruled the Packers would keep the ball, Brandon McManus’ 43-yard field goal was blocked by Shelby Harris. That allowed the Browns to get in range for Andre Szymyt’s 55-yard field goal as time expired to hand the Packers an embarrassing 13-10 loss.

Here’s our stock report, starting with the downside of today’s game.

Stock Down: Packers’ Hubris

It did not take long for Rasheed Walker’s words to make waves.

After two big wins to start the season, Walker boldly proclaimed he felt his team could go undefeated.

The Packers are not strangers to this conversation. They acknowledged the idea they could go undefeated in 2011, with players openly talking about getting to 16-0. They lost the next week to the Kansas City Chiefs. They talked in 1997 about going undefeated after just one game. They lost the next week in Philadelphia.

As the Packers learned the hard way on Sunday, this is a week-to-week league. Taking any team for granted will likely get you caught with your pants down.

It’s not quite fair to say the Packers took the Browns for granted – the defensive performance showed the mentality was there – but losing to what is likely to be one of the worst teams in the NFL after talking about going undefeated should be one of the biggest slices of humble pie the restaurant that is the NFL can offer.

The Packers will not go undefeated. That was always the most likely outcome. Losing in Cleveland to a team that could barely field a competitive offense? That’s as bad as it gets.

Matt LaFleur should have plenty of ammo to keep his team motivated throughout the week.

Stock Down: OL Jordan Morgan

Jordan Morgan was the next man up at right tackle after Zach Tom’s return to the lineup lasted all of one play.

In the first half, Morgan was solid in the run game but really struggled in pass protection. He was beaten for a sack and penalized twice in the first half.

Morgan has not played right tackle that we’ve been able to see during his career, but was solid on the left side during training camp and the preseason. He performed poorly at right tackle before he moved to left guard to replace injured Aaron Banks for the second half. To open the second half, he committed a false start on Green Bay’s version of the tush push when Tucker Kraft motioned into the backfield.

Just to top it off, it was Morgan’s man, Shelby Harris, who blocked Brandon McManus’ potential go-ahead field goal. Not a banner day for the former first-round pick.

Stock Down: C Elgton Jenkins

Jenkins was off to a great start to the season, having allowed zero pressures in either of the first two games. That streak ended Sunday, with Jenkins being beaten twice in the first half, one of which resulted in a sack, the other for a pressure that ended a possession.

Jenkins was the pivot man in the team’s first road game, and both he and Jordan Love needed to be better in deciphering Cleveland’s pressure packages to get their passing game on track. This is likely just a blip on the radar for Jenkins, who has otherwise been excellent to start the season.

Stock Down: LG Aaron Banks

Cleveland’s final sack of the first half could have been blamed on either Rasheed Walker or Aaron Banks.

Banks was returning from ankle and groin injuries that made him inactive last week. His Packers debut against Detroit was unspectacular, but against Cleveland’s front, you’re hoping to have all hands on deck on the offensive line.

Banks was beaten badly for a sack on Green Bay’s final offensive drive, and then the injury bug reared its ugly head once again. Banks has been in Green Bay for three weeks, and he’s been injured in two of them. Banks left the game with a groin injury at halftime and did not return.

Stock Down: Passing Game

Green Bay’s passing game had done a good job through the first two games of silencing its critics, piling up 27 points with its quarterback having a passer rating higher than 110 in each game.

This game was a slice of humble pie for the passing game. They could not protect Jordan Love. On the rare occasions they did, he wasn’t able to find anything down the field. Everything was limited to playing around the line of scrimmage, almost out of necessity.

Love’s leading receiver through three quarters was Josh Jacobs, who broke a 31-yard pass on a drive that resulted in a touchdown for the Packers.

Of course, the biggest play of the game was a terrible mistake by Love.

With the Packers leading 10-3 late in the fourth quarter, Love was trying to convert a first down to help put the game on ice. Instead, he hit Grant Delpit right in the chest, which gave the Browns life. Coach Matt LaFleur blamed himself for the call.

Two plays later, Quinshon Judkins was in the end zone, and a game that was fully in Green Bay’s control was now one that was put in danger.

That falls squarely on the shoulders of the $200 million quarterback. Green Bay’s passing game was not anywhere near where it needed to be today. Yes, Cleveland’s defense is really good. It entered the week ranked No. 1 in defense.

You know who else has good defenses? The teams the Packers will need to beat in the playoffs. Green Bay’s passing game still has a lot to prove as the season progresses.

Stock Up: P Daniel Whelan

Perhaps it’s fitting in a game that looked like this one, the punter is leading things off for who is earning high marks.

Green Bay’s offense sputtered throughout the game, forcing Whelan to be busier than he has been through the first three games of the season.

His first four punts averaged more than 50 yards, including a 59-yard punt that backed the Browns up. As Green Bay’s defense dominated throughout the game, field position was a big factor.

Whelan recently received a contract extension, and now his leg is a weapon in games like these.

The Packers have often been losers in the third phase of the game, and there are still some leaky moments in kick coverage. Their punting game, however, is as strong as it has ever been, and Whelan is a big reason for that.

Stock Up: S Xavier McKinney