Good Stat, Bad Stat: Numbers from Packers’ win over Patriots
By Jerry Tapp
A look at the good and bad stats from the Green Bay Packers’ win over the New England Patriots.
The Green Bay Packers upped their record to 3-1 with a 27-24 overtime win over the New England Patriots on Sunday.
Here are a few stats (good and bad) that helped define the contest.
Good stat: Rashan Gary had a sack for the fourth consecutive game (in fact, he had two sacks in the contest).
He now has five sacks in the Pack’s first four games. The Green Bay record for most consecutive games with a sack is a five held by Kabeer Gbaja-Biamila and Tim Harris.
Gary will look to tie the record in this Sunday’s contest in London versus the New York Giants. The NFL record is 11 straight games with a sack held by Kansas City’s Chris Jones in 2018.
Bad stat: Aaron Rodgers had another interception this week, this one a pick-six. He now has three interceptions in his first four games and interceptions in back-to-back games for the first time since Games #9 and #10 in the 2020 season.
His last game with interceptions in three straight games was the first three games of the 2017 season. His career-high is six straight games; that happened in Games #10-#15 in 2008.
Good stat: The Packers had 199 yards rushing in the game led by Aaron Jones’ 110 yards. In the last nine games that they have run for 190 or more yards, they have won all nine.
Bad stat: The team had two turnovers for the third time this season and now have seven turnovers after four games. Last year they had only 13 turnovers in 17 games. They had two or more turnovers in just three games in 2021, the same number already for this year.
Good stat: Green Bay tallied 443 yards of total offense in the game against the storied New England defense. The Packers are 17-3 in their last 20 games when they get 440 or more total yards in a game. The most total yards in a game for the Packers since 1970 (NFL expansion) is 580 on September 15, 2013, in a 38-20 win over Washington.
Bad stat (maybe): Since 2018 in games at Lambeau Field, the opponents have scored first in the contest 14 times. Ironically, the Packers have won all 14 of those games. In the 21 games played since the start of the 2021 season, the opponents have scored first 13 times.
The Packers are 10-3 in those games. That means they are 6-2 in games they have scored first since 2021.
Good stat: The Packers had a pair of 100-yard performers in the game: Aaron Jones had 110 yards rushing on 16 carries, and Alan Lazard had 116 yards on six catches.
Green Bay is 13-1 in games where Jones has 100 or more yards rushing; they are 3-0 when Lazard has 100 or more yards receiving. They are also 8-1 in games where Lazard has five or more catches.
Bad stat: For the second time in their first four games, the Pack did not score in the first quarter. Since the 2008 season, Green Bay is 39-32 (.549) in games when they are scoreless after the first quarter.
They have been better over the past few seasons… they are 12-3 (.800) since the start of the 2020 season when they are scoreless after the first quarter.
Good stat: Rookies Romeo Doubs and Christian Watson each scored a touchdown. That was the first time two rookies have scored a TD in a game for the Packers since Aaron Jones and Jamaal Williams did it on December 3, 2017, in Green Bay’s overtime win over Tampa Bay.
Bad stat: Four of the Packers’ 12 drives ended in less than three plays (two were three-and-out with a punt, and two were turnovers).
Good stat: The Packers “D” allowed New England to score on only three of their 11 drives. Four of the 11 drives were three-and-outs for the Pats. New England had only one drive of eight or more plays on the day.