Week 9 is here, and the Green Bay Packers season has been disappointing, to say the least. There are plenty of reasons why the Packers have been so disappointing this year, but let’s look only at player performance to avoid repeating myself. Don’t get me wrong, not everyone has been stinking it up on the field, but there are a few guys who are really hurting the team with how bad they’ve been playing. On the flip side to that, a handful of guys are having breakout years and are flying under the radar. I’ve picked 3 players that have been terrible considering their expectations and 3 players that have been killing it for what we expected coming into the year.
The Good #1: Quay Walker
Last year Quay Walker had a bumpy ride. Unsportsmanlike penalties seemed to take away from a very solid year, and I’m glad things have only gotten better for him. He’s only had one bad penalty all year (in a game we had no chance of winning), but outside of that, he’s been elite. This year, Walker has 66 tackles, 1 interception, 3 passes defended, 5 tackles for loss, and 1 touchdown. All of this has been done in 7 games and he still leads the team in tackles after missing the past 2 weeks due to injury. He posted 19 and 17 combined tackles this year against Detroit and Atlanta, which soared above his career high from last year at 13. He’s been one of the few bright spots on the defense this year, and the Packers will have an elite linebacker for years to come if he continues to perform like this.
The Bad #1: Jaire Alexander
Coming into this year, I claimed that Jaire is a dark horse for the Defensive Player of the Year award. Clearly, that is not the case at all. Outside of being hurt for a majority of this year, when he does play it seems like he isn’t capable of playing at his typical elite level. He’s allowed 17 receptions on 26 targets, a passer rating of 115.7, 2 touchdowns, 3 interception drops, and 8 yards per attempt. This is in 5 games that he’s played. In those 5 games, he has posted the worst start to his career in all statistical aspects except for passes defended. He’s been a huge letdown so far this year, but one game that sticks out is the Minnesota game. He couldn’t guard KJ Osborn or Jordan Addison for the life of him. Hopefully, Jaire can turn it around this year and get healthy for the rest of the year.
The Good #2: Devonte Wyatt
Devonte Wyatt has been having the quietest breakout season in recent memory. I loved that we got him in 2022, as he was one of the guys I thought fit Green Bay perfectly. Although he didn’t play much last year, he did a solid job when he did get in. This year he has 20 tackles, 4 tackles for loss, 4 QB hits, 2.5 sacks, and 15 pressures. Wyatt has definitely developed well sitting behind Kenny Clark and Jarran Reed for a year. He should be an extremely solid piece for our defensive line for the foreseeable future. I don’t know if he could ever come up to the level of a top 5 or top-10 defensive lineman in the league, but still, he would be an extremely consistent player for Green Bay.
The Bad #2: Christian Watson
Christian Watson took the League by storm last year with being a touchdown merchant. This year, up until the Lions game, he has been pretty mediocre for Green Bay. I don’t completely blame him because the offense has been atrocious for a good chunk of the year. I do blame him though for not being as aggressive as he was last year. Watson doesn’t seem to get jump balls even though he has a near 40-inch vertical and is 6 ‘4. Adding to that, there is virtually no connection between Love and Watson at all, as Love has thrown half of his interceptions when targeting him. I do still have faith in him and believe that this is just part of the growing pains this team is going to have to work through. Everyone needs to be patient with Green Bay wide receivers because we all called for Davante to get cut after year two.
The Good #3: The Rookies
Before I start, I want to give Gute some credit. His previous draft classes have been really mediocre as a whole. This year though? Absolute banger of a draft. Jayden Reed has stepped up into our wide receiver one spot after Watson fell off a cliff. Wicks is looking like no one can guard him, constantly getting open. Musgrave was on pace to break the rookie receptions record for the Packers before his injury. Van Ness has shown flashes of pure dominance when he has been able to play. Karl Brooks and Colby Wooden have been phenomenal rotational pieces for our defensive line, continuously getting pressure or stuffing the run. Tucker Kraft has slowly improved and now with Musgrave out for the foreseeable future, he’s primed for big weeks to end the year. Anders Carlson has been serviceable for us but has missed more PATs than I would like. Last but not least, Carrington Valentine has been a stud for this Green Bay defense. Before the season started, there were rumblings of this 7th round corner locking down everyone he guards. I made the hot take that he breaks out and takes Stokes’s spot on the roster, but he in fact took Rasul’s spot. He has 6 passes defended, a 61.3 passer rating when targeted, 13 receptions on 33 attempts for 209 yards, and 0 touchdowns allowed. I have no idea how the Packers hit a 7th round pick so far out of the ballpark but I’m all here for it. Valentine looks like a mini-Jaire out there and had his breakout game against the Rams just like Jaire did. He still has a lot to learn but I am ecstatic and pumped to see what his ceiling is.
The Bad #3: Josh Myers/Jon Runyan
Josh Myers and Jon Runyan, are probably the two most inconsistent players to ever grace the football field. I am so much more disappointed in Runyan than Myers because Myers already stunk last year, but he got even worse. Runyan was a very solid piece for us on the offensive line but it seems like he forgot how to play football. His PFF grade has dropped by 10 points from last year, he has 6 penalties and has let up 2 sacks. In his contract year, I expected him to play at the same level he did 2 years ago so we could have some stability for this young offense. That hasn’t been the case, and sadly I think that his time in Green Bay is over unless he comes back for dirt cheap. Josh Myers on the other hand will always be a mind-boggling move for Green Bay. They picked him over Creed Humphrey who is an all-pro caliber center. Myers has been nothing better than mediocre for us, not horrible to where needs to be benched, but not good enough to be a consistent player. He’s let up 3 sacks and 3 penalties this year, and although that may seem okay, the film shows a different story. I swear this guy cannot block for the run or any screen pass. He pulls horribly which puts him in bad situations to make a meaningful block. The worst part is that Stenavich believes Myers is playing the best football of his career. It’s actually so mind-boggling how he could think that. I mean he’s watching the same game as us, right?
