At first glance, the Green Bay Packers Week 18 game against the Minnesota Vikings was meaningless. The outcome wouldn’t impact the Packers playoff seeding or opponent and the game was more or less a formality before the playoffs start this Saturday. But despite outward appearances, there are three things Packers head coach Matt LaFleur accomplished in Week 18 which can help the Packers in the playoffs and beyond:
Three Things Packers Head Coach Matt LaFleur Accomplished, Number One: Resting Key Players
The most obvious thing LaFleur and the Packers accomplished was resting key players. After Christian Watson suffered a torn ACL in last season’s final game, the Packers weren’t going to take any risks this time around.
Some players were nursing injuries. Running back Josh Jacobs, for example, had played the last few games with a nagging knee injury. Jacobs got the week off to help him be as healthy as possible for the playoffs.
Starting quarterback Jordan Love was active for the game but didn’t play. LaFleur indicated that if Clayton Tune had been injured and Love was forced to enter the game, he would not have been allowed to throw a pass. That was designed to minimize the possibility of injury and keep him healthy for the playoffs.
By resting as many starters and key players as possible, LaFleur gave the Packers an advantage over the Bears who will be the Packers opponent in Saturday night’s playoff game.
The Bears opted to play their starters in their season finale and still lost the game. None of them will be as rested as the Packers players who were held out of action. In essence, LaFleur created a semi-bye week for his players by treating this almost like a preseason game.
Number Two: The Packers Got a Good Look at Some Young Players
The Packers also managed to get a good look at some younger players and backups, plus one newly signed player.
Barryn Sorrell, Collin Oliver, and Brenton Cox all showed promise as edge rushers. Jacob Monk did a good job run blocking at center.
Rookie wide receiver Matthew Golden had little chance to show what he could do without a quarterback that could throw the ball downfield.
Meanwhile, newly acquired Trevon Diggs proved in just 30 defensive snaps that he tackles better than Carrington Valentine. Diggs will likely see action in the playoffs due to the injury to Nate Hobbs and could take snaps away from Valentine.
Even those young players who didn’t do a good job against the Vikings gave the coaches and GM Brian Gutekunst an idea of what their future potential is by getting some game action. This could help determine who Gutekunst invites to training camp next year and who he moves on from.
Three Things Packers Head Coach Matt LaFleur Accomplished, Number Three: The Players Got a Mental Reset
The Packers entered their regular season finale on a three-game losing streak. The team held two-possession leads in the first two games before being embarrassed by the Ravens in the third.
But by treating the final contest as a glorified exhibition game, the Packers got to reset their mental mindset.
When LaFleur decided to start Tune and to give untested players extensive playing time, the entire team knew that winning this game was less important than just escaping it without additional injuries.
Ultimately, the Packers lost because they could not move the football. The Vikings knew the Packers couldn’t pass effectively and so they concentrated on stopping the run. Green Bay narrowly averted a shutout by kicking a field goal on the game’s final play.
Now, after a game which was not as intense mentally or physically for many players, the team can regroup. Remember, the Packers bye week was all the way back in Week 5. LaFleur created a pseudo-bye this week which his team desperately needed.
Whether any of this will ultimately help the Packers defeat the Bears Saturday night remains to be seen. But the Packers did accomplish some things by treating Week 18 the way they did and hopefully, they will benefit from that decision.
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