Green Bay Packers fourth downs and young secondary: First reactions

The Green Bay Packers opened the 2016 regular season with a 27-23 win in the 90-degree heat of Jacksonville.

Hard fought is an understatement; gritty, persistence, determination and a bit of luck here and there were enough to send the Packers back to Green Bay with the win. Battling the heat, the Packers also ran into a sturdy defense on the other side of the ball that made things very difficult for Green Bay.

Showing moments of spectacular play, the Packers also had moments of inopportune penalties and utter failure in the defensive backfield.

In the end, it came down to the Packers defense. With less than a minute to go, the Jaguars were driving deep inside Packers territory and faced a fourth down with a yard to go. Previously, Green Bay had failed to stop the Jags on four other fourth down tries in the ball game.

Yes. three times …

But that was until the fourth time.

That time it was different. On a receiver screen to the right side, Damarious Randall made first contact and was followed by a cavalcade of Packers defenders who stuffed the play and provided the Packers the win.

It surely was far from easy for the Packers and opens the door to the doubters who are going to question whether this team is for real.

I’ll say one thing … this Jacksonville team is for real. They will win some games with an offense that is wide open and creative and a defense that will come to play.

Jacksonville had 20 first downs to the Packers’ 18; quarterback Blake Bortles was 24-of-39 for 320 yards, one touchdown and an interception in the first quarter.

WR Allen Robinson had six receptions for 72 yards, but there was some good news on the defensive side of the ball as the Packers held running T.J. Yeldon to just 39 yards on 21 carries.

The secondary is a work in progress. Giving up a net of 300 yards is not something to jump off the bridge about, especially in this pass-happy league, but this unit does need work and experience.

With so much youth, a team like Jacksonville will provide significant challenges for this Packers unit. However, their talent is also evident. While burned several times in Florida today, this defensive backfield is a gutty group; this win will go a long way in helping these guys to continue their season-long progression.

The Packers finish the first week of the season with a win that sets them up for another big matchup in Minnesota next week.

More from Lombardi Ave

This article originally appeared on