Green Bay Packers head coach Matt LaFleur explained why their offense appears to be out of rhythm this season. The Packers offense struggled yet again in a 24-10 Week 8 loss to the Minnesota Vikings on Sunday. In Week 1, the Packers offense looked fantastic against the Chicago Bears.
But they’ve now returned to earth. The Packers haven’t scored 20 points since losing to the Detroit Lions in Week 5. The Packers have now failed to score 20 points in four of their last seven games.
In the fourth quarter, the Packers had two chances to score touchdowns in the red zone against the Vikings. However, they failed to convert, which is why the Packers are now 2-5 at the trade deadline.
In his news conference following Sunday’s loss, LaFleur addressed the Packers’ offensive difficulties. According to Zach Jacobson of Heavy, LaFleur stated that the Packers have been unable to implement their game plan because they have been in horrible third-down situations:
“You don’t even get into what you work on all week and what you plan for, you can’t even get into your normal rhythm,” he says…“That’s what’s disappointing. You put all this time and effort into something, you come up with a plan and you don’t even give yourself a chance to execute it.”
To generate short distances on third down, the Packers must establish a running game. On Sunday, the Packers averaged 4.3 yards per carry against the Vikings. However, they weren’t consistently producing enough productive ground plays, and most of it was due to the offensive line.
Penalties from their linemen also destroyed the offense. This season, the Packers were intended to rely heavily on their offensive line. They’re a major reason why LaFleur isn’t getting into his game right now.
