The Falcons walked into Lambeau Field on Thursday night, spotted Green Bay a touchdown, and then scored 27 unanswered points. Final: Atlanta 35, Green Bay 14.
It was the Packers’ first home-opening loss since 2012, and it was not close after the first quarter.
Bijan Robinson and Drake London Made History
Robinson carried 29 times for 194 yards and two touchdowns, adding 19 receiving yards. London caught nine passes for 194 yards.
That is 407 yards from scrimmage between two teammates, and they became the first pair of teammates to each post at least 190 yards from scrimmage in a road game since 1976.
Twenty-nine carries is a workload that tells you exactly what Atlanta’s game plan was. They decided to run at Green Bay until Green Bay proved it could stop them, and Green Bay never did.
The Packers Could Not Run the Football at All
Seventeen rushing yards. That is the entire Green Bay ground game for the night.
When your rushing total is 17 and your opponent’s lead back has 194, you are not playing the same sport. Atlanta outgained Green Bay 498 to 328 and converted six of ten third downs.
Jordan Love threw 53 times for 312 yards with two touchdowns and an interception. Fifty-three attempts is not a game plan. That is a quarterback trying to dig his team out of a hole by himself.
Michael Penix Jr. Answered the Question
Penix threw an interception on the opening drive and then settled into the best stretch of football of his young career. He finished 18-of-25 for 256 yards with a touchdown and that one pick.
Efficiency is the story there. Twenty-five attempts in a 35-point road win means the offense never needed him to carry it, and he did not force anything trying to.
For a young quarterback in a hostile building on a short week, that is close to the ideal performance.
The 27-0 Run Decided Everything
Christian Watson caught an early touchdown as part of a seven-catch, 96-yard night, and Green Bay led 7-0. Then Atlanta scored 27 straight points and the game was over before the fourth quarter started.
Runs like that do not happen to good teams at home in September. Something is wrong in Green Bay, and it starts with an offensive line that produced 17 rushing yards against a defense nobody has been afraid of.
Both Teams Sit at 1-2
Atlanta’s record does not reflect how they looked on Thursday. This was the most complete performance either of these teams has put together this season, and it came on the road on three days of rest.
Green Bay has a much harder conversation ahead. Losing a home opener by three scores while gaining 17 yards on the ground is the kind of result that forces a coaching staff to rethink an entire approach.
What It Means Going Forward
If Atlanta has found the formula of feeding Robinson 25 plus times and letting Penix work off play action, this team is going to be a problem in the NFC South.
Green Bay has ten days to fix a running game that does not exist. That is not enough time, and the schedule is not going to wait.
A longtime sports reporter, Carlos Garcia has written about some of the biggest and most notable athletic events of the last 5 years. He has been credentialed to cover MLS, NBA and MLB games all over the United States. His work has been published on Fox Sports, Bleacher Report, AOL and the Washington Post.