The Green Bay Packers reached uncommon depths in Thursday's 35-14 home loss versus the Atlanta Falcons, drawing boos in Lambeau Field and looking like a last-place football team. People expect more from this franchise, even in the face of injury-related adversity. Matt LaFleur admitted that the squad needs to take a “long, hard look” at itself, but that examination period will apparently not include a coaching change on the porous and undermanned offensive line.
“I’m not even going to respond to that question,” the Packers head coach said when asked about the topic, per The Athletic's Matt Schneidman. OL coach Luke Butkus, the nephew of Hall of Fame linebacker Dick Butkus, has been a member of LaFleur's staff since the latter's arrival in 2019. Fans are probably not so sympathetic to their friendship and working relationship, however. They demand immediate improvement in the trenches.
Jordan Love had his share of rough moments against the Falcons, but he encountered overwhelming pressure for extended stretches. The O-Line floundered yet again this season, and although wide receivers Matthew Golden and Christian Watson both had big statistical showings, the team produced a meager 17 rushing yards and lacked consistency on offense. A stable offensive line can ease Love's burden and potentially yield more cohesion.
When evaluating Butkus' performance through the first three games of the campaign, it is important to remember that right tackle Zach Bako-Bewele recently suffered a season-ending knee injury. Left guard Aaron Banks was also unavailable for this NFC matchup. The wall is bound to crumble when it loses a couple of key bricks, but there were already clear cracks on this O-Line.
Although Love was sacked only once on Thursday night — seven times in the first two games combined — it is painfully obvious that Green Bay does not have sufficient blocking. Does that fall on Luke Butkus? Matt LaFleur does not seem to think so, or he is not willing to provide an answer to that question.
Nevertheless, the Packers (1-2) must shore up their protection for a Week 4 meeting with the also-underachieving Tampa Bay Buccaneers (0-2).