Green Bay Packers coach Matt LaFleur explained the myriad reasons for the run defense disaster against Derrick Henry and the Baltimore Ravens on Saturday night, pointing to “misalignments and missed assignments” for the “baffling” performance defending the run.
Henry rushed for 216 yards and four scores, powering a Ravens run game that produced 307 total rushing yards on 53 attempts in the 41-24 win at Lambeau Field.
Some of the things LaFleur said about the run defense on Sunday:
— On overview of the run defense after watching the tape: “There’s a lot of reasons for that. Certainly, we have to coach our guys a lot better. There was way too many mistakes in regards to misalignments and missed assignments. And when you do that against a good football team, you see the results. That was probably the most disappointing thing after watching the tape, it’s just how many times we weren’t playing the right technique or weren’t in the right position to make a play. And when we did have opportunities, when we were in position, there was some moments where we played really good run defense. But it was just too hit or miss. Stuff we’ve been calling since the preseason, throughout camp, throughout the course of the season, that — whether it’s a check or not getting the right adjustments. You can’t do that, knowing what type of back we were playing. If you give this guy a head of steam, he’s a tough guy to bring down. And he proved that last night.”
— On some players not playing as hard as possible on Saturday: “Yeah, there was definitely some moments last night where it wasn’t up to the standard. That hasn’t been the case. When you look at the totality of the season, our defense has played with a certain style of play that you can hang your hat on. There was certainly moments that it did not meet the standard.”
— On why missed assignments are happening in Week 17: “That’s what was so baffling. That hasn’t been a trend, that hasn’t been something that has really happened throughout the course of the season. For it to show up in that game, was really bothersome.”
— On what specific issues were happening against the run: “All of the above. When we’re calling a line stunt, some guys moving the right way, some guys are moving the wrong way. When we call certain fronts, if we expect a guy to line up over the center and be a zero-technique, he has to be a zero-technique. It’s all intertwined. Everyone plays off one another. When you don’t do that, it just puts everyone at risk. And that’s what happened in the game.
— On how the Ravens played up front: “You have to give Baltimore credit. They played hard. They played more physical than us. And they moved us. They moved us off the line of scrimmage. They controlled that game. I don’t recall seeing a 300-yard rushing performance. That’s tough. That doesn’t happen very often in the National Football League. They ran the ball, what, 50 times or whatever it was? It wasn’t up to the standard.”
LaFleur said “there is no hiding from the tape.”
The tape was ugly. Per PFF, the Ravens produced 192 yards after first contact and forced nine missed tackles in the run game. Baltimore averaged 5.8 yards per carry, had six runs of at least 10 yards and generated 22 first downs or touchdowns on the ground.
This article originally appeared on Packers Wire: Matt LaFleur explains Packers’ run defense disaster vs. Derrick Henry, Ravens
Reporting by Zach Kruse, Packers Wire / Packers Wire
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
