The Green Bay Packers took an early lead and never looked back as they beat the Miami Dolphins 30-17 at Lambeau Field Thanksgiving night. Jordan Love threw for 274 yards and two touchdowns while Josh Jacobs gained 117 yards from scrimmage to pace the offense. On defense, the Packers kept the Dolphins in check until the outcome was out of reach. The win increased the Packers record to 9-3 on the season while the loss dropped Miami to 5-7. Here are 10 things we learned in the Packers 30-17 win over the Dolphins in Week 13:
Ten Things We Learned from the Packers Win Over the Dolphins, Number One: The Only Turnover of the Game Was Huge
There was just one turnover in this football game, but it had a big impact on the outcome. The Dolphins forced a Green Bay punt on the opening drive, but Malik Washington muffed the punt by Daniel Whelan and Robert Rochell fell on the loose football at the Miami nine-yard line.
Three plays later, Love found Jayden Reed for a three-yard touchdown pass and the Packers took the lead.
Green Bay never trailed after that. After Green Bay scored on their next possession to lead 14-0, Miami was forced to play catch-up football.
The fact that the Packers didn’t turn the ball over for the second consecutive game is very promising as we head into December.
Number Two: Josh Jacobs Shined Again
If you look at his rushing statistics, Jacobs didn’t look like he had an impressive game. He gained just 43 yards on 19 carries and his long run of the day was just 11 yards. But the former Raiders star made defenders miss, scored a touchdown and kept the Dolphins defense honest.
He also did damage as a receiver, catching four passes on four targets for 74 yards. His big play was a 49-yard gain on a short pass where Jacobs broke tackles and evaded defenders. This play set up a very important field goal that helped put the game out of reach for Miami.
Jacobs remains the catalyst for the Packers offense, and he came up big again for Green Bay on Thanksgiving night.
Ten Things We Learned from the Packers Win Over the Dolphins, Number Three: Jordan Love Was Smart with His Decisions
Love completed 75 percent of his passes while throwing two touchdowns and no interceptions. The best part of this game for Love was his decision making. He picked his spots on the long plays and hit on a few of them. When the big downfield passes weren’t available, he threw short to his tight ends and backs and some of those plays turned into big gains. Even the ones that didn’t were important because they kept the offense in manageable down and distance situations.
Love only threw one or two balls that were dangerous and one of those should have been caught by Dontayvion Wicks and was almost picked off.
After the game, Love got his long-awaited turkey leg that he was denied after beating Detroit on Thanksgiving a year ago.
The decision making by Love needs to be strong down the stretch with important games coming up in Detroit and Minnesota.
Number Four: The Run Defense Was Strong
The Packers held Miami to just 39 yards rushing on 14 carries which is a 2.8-yards per carry average. When you consider that the Dolphins running backs had long runs of 13 and 12 yards and Tua Tagovailoa scrambled for nine yards, that means the Dolphins gained five yards total on their other 11 running plays.
The Packers recorded nine tackles for loss against Miami, an impressive statistic.
Yes, the Packers 14-0 lead after the first quarter played into the strong run defense, but the Green Bay got penetration at the line of scrimmage and did a better job of staying in their lanes to keep contain.
The Packers need to continue to play well against the run down the stretch and this was a good effort in that regard.
Ten Things We Learned from the Packers Win Over the Dolphins, Number Five: The Defense Got Pressure on Tua Tagovailoa
The Packers got good pressure on Tagovailoa throughout this game. Green Bay finished with five sacks with Quay Walker, Kingsley Enagbare, Lukas Van Ness, Brenton Cox, and Kenny Clark each recording one. The Packers were also credited with six quarterback hits in this game.
For Clark, it was his first sack of the season. Walker was more effective on the blitz and Van Ness and Cox are starting to come around and put more pressure on quarterbacks since the trade of Preston Smith.
The defense did play a softer style after establishing a large lead and that almost cost them, but in the end, there was enough pressure to prevent the Dolphins offense from making explosive plays.
Number Six: Isaiah McDuffie Stepped Up Despite an Injury
The Packers weren’t sure if linebacker Isaiah McDuffie would be able to play but he did and he came up with a strong game. McDuffie tied for the team lead with 10 total tackles on Thursday. He also had one tackle for loss, broke up a pass and forced a fumble.
Better play from McDuffie and Quay Walker was part of the reason the defense held Miami to just 4-of-14 on third downs in this game.
Ten Things We Learned from the Packers Win Over the Dolphins, Number Seven: Pre-Snap Penalties Were a Problem
The Packers were called for seven penalties for 44 yards in this game. Many of them were pre-snap penalties like false starts and offsides that cost the team important yards. One of them nullified a sack by Rashan Gary.
Elgton Jenkins also took an unnecessary roughness penalty that cost the Packers 15 yards and a chance to put the game away sooner.
It will be tougher to overcome these penalties next week against Detroit and the Packers need to clean this up before next Thursday’s game.
Number Eight: Tucker Kraft Was a Beast
Tight end Tucker Kraft was a big part of the offense against Miami. He caught six passes on seven targets for 78 yards. Kraft remains extremely difficult to tackle one-on-one. That allows him to turn check down passes into solid gains that keep the chains moving or keep the team in manageable down and distance situations.
He also is able to punish defenders who can’t relish the thought of tackling him, especially in the open field.
The Packers need to keep Kraft involved in the passing game. He keeps defenses honest and helps Love be productive in the short passing game.
Ten Things We Learned from the Packers Win Over the Dolphins, Number Nine: The Receivers Took Turns Making Plays
As usual, the Packers spread the ball around to their wide receivers. While no wideout had more than four catches in this game, the players who made those catches all contributed to the win. The team was able to thrive despite the absence of the injured Romeo Doubs.
Reed only caught three passes for 24 yards but two of them went for touchdowns. He also gained 23 yards on an end around.
Wicks overcame an early drop to catch his next four targets which led all Packers wideouts.
Christian Watson made only two catches, but they went for 21 and 46 yards and had an impact on the game.
This was a strong all-around game for the wide receivers even if none of their individual stats stand out.
Number Ten: Bring on the Lions
The Packers kept pace with Detroit who escaped with a win over the Bears earlier on Thanksgiving Day. Now, Green Bay travels to Detroit to face the Lions next Thursday night. A win keeps the Packers in the thick of the division race and helps with tie breakers both in the division and the conference.
A loss and Green Bay will only make the playoffs as a wild card.
The Packers will need to play a smart, mistake-free game to beat Detroit on the road. This will be a big challenge on national TV for this team.
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