The Packers did not exactly shut down Aaron Rodgers and the Steelers in their Sunday night road victory in Week 8, but they certainly made things more difficult on him as the game wore on. Rodgers was 24-for-36 passing, with two touchdowns, but was limited on making the big throws, as Rodgers threw for only 218 yards–an average of 6.1 yards per attempt.
It was Rodgers’ worst game since a Week 3 win over the Patriots. And it came with the Packers making a notable change on the defensive back side, with veteran free-agent signee Nate Hobbs finally benched in favor of Carrington Valentine.
It was a move Packers fans had been calling for in the early weeks of the season, as Hobbs–signed from the Raiders this offseason–has struggled to establish himself in Green Bay. Hobbs had offseason knee surgery and missed Week 1, but has struggled since his return, allowing opposing quarterbacks a 121.4 completion rate when he is targeted this season. That number was 87.2 last year with the Raiders for Hobbs.
Packers Played Carrington Valentine Nearly All Defensive Snaps
Valentine, meanwhile, was solid in his performance against Rodgers. He had seen his playing time dwindle over the course of the season, until he was limited to just two snaps in Week 7, before he was given 62 snaps on Sunday, to just four for Hobbs.
Valentine did give up a touchdown to receiver Roman Wilson with 2:16 to go and the game all but decided, but even on that play, Valentine closed quickly on Wilson and knocked the ball out of his hands–only after replay was it determined that Wilson had made the catch.
There’s still plenty of time in the season, but it certainly looked as though the Packers were planning to continue with Valentine as the primary corner opposite Keisean Nixon, keeping Hobbs on the bench.
Carrington Valentine ‘Got an Opportunity’
Coach Matt LaFleur explained the thinking in moving Valentine to a bigger role:
“CV got an opportunity and he went out there and I thought he played really competitively the entire game, and I know even on the touchdown catch, I just loved how he competed for the football. I thought that was big-time, and it didn’t go our way in that, in that moment.
“But I thought all in all, he showed physicality. He was challenging guys. There was just no gimmes. And I thought that was big-time because that’s how we want to play. We may be in a three-deep zone defense but you still got to be sticky in some regards in your coverage. You can’t be just giving up freebies all the way down the field.”
Packers CB Competition Still Ongoing
That sounds like LaFleur indicating that Hobbs was, in fact, giving up freebies too often for the team’s liking. And in fairness to Hobbs, he might just not be fully healthy at this point. Besides which, Nixon also had some struggles in Week 8, so it is possible that Hobbs could get back on the field by outplaying Nixon.
“I think when we look at a lot of these situations, you know, we always talk about how it’s going to be a competitive situation, and it was just that,” LaFleur said. “A lot of it comes down to not only—I mean obviously, everybody sees how you perform in a game—but what nobody sees is what we’re doing on a daily basis in practice. …
“At the same time, it’s going to continue to be a competitive situation because we still have a ton of confidence in Hobbs. All of those guys, Keisean, they’re all gonna be competing for playing time.”
Steelers’ Core Problem Defensively Revealed Ahead Of Critical Week 9 Matchup: ‘Play-Calling The Issue’
The Pittsburgh Steelers have lost back-to-back games and are now sitting at an overall record of 4-3 on the season. In these back-to-back losses, Defensive Coordinator Teryl Austin has led a defense that has given up at least 33 points and over 450 total yards. As a matter of fact, Pittsburgh has given up at least 30 points in four of its seven games this season. This is not your grandfather’s average Steelers defense. It has been historically bad, which is why some are calling for Austin’s job. However, that idea is folly, so says insider Mark Kaboly.
Here is what Kaboly had to say on Wednesday via social media regarding the notion that Austin could get fired soon.
“I don’t see it happening. In my humble opinion, I don’t think the ‘play-calling’ is the issue. I think it is everything else leading up to that.”
As it stands right now, the Steelers are currently ranked 30th in the league in total defense (allowing 386.0 yards per game). This turnover-predicated defense couldn’t stop 40-year-old Joe Flacco from looking like Super Bowl MVP Joe Flacco two Thursday nights ago. Then, Green Bay Packers quarterback Jordan Love dominated Pittsburgh’s defense as he took the field opposite his old mentor, Aaron Rodgers. Keep in mind that this expensive defense also gave up 32 points to kick off the season against the 1-7 New York Jets. If Austin’s defense wasn’t top-10 in sacks (22) and top-five in turnovers forced (10), things would be a whole lot uglier.
Still, the Steelers only allowed seven points to the Packers in the first half on Sunday night. Still, Austin’s defense was a top-half-of-the-league unit last season. While it has been a nightmare for this side of the football this season in the Steel City, it cannot get any worse. Furthermore, Austin has some of that aforementioned success to go off of, which is why it would be a mistake to let the 60-year-old coach go right this very moment.
Steelers’ Teryl Austin Will Have His Chance To Write The Ship
The good news for Austin is that he is going to have an immediate chance to bounce back and try to win back the affection of the fans in Pittsburgh. The bad news is that those opportunities are going to come against some good opponents. Over the next three weeks, Austin, T.J. Watt, Cam Heyward, and co. will face the one-loss Indianapolis Colts, who just happen to be the top offense in the league (385.3 yards per game), the Justin Herbert-led Los Angeles Chargers, and the Cincinnati Bengals, who just beat the Steelers two weeks ago. These matchups won’t be easy at all.
Somehow, some way, the Steelers are averaging 25.0 points per game on offense and are allowing 25.0 points per game on defense. In other words, you do not know what this team is going to do on any given Sunday, Monday, or Thursday. Rodgers (16 touchdowns) is playing at a Pro Bowl level so far. Through seven games, the four-time MVP quarterback has helped the Steelers’ offense record at least 21 points in six of the team’s seven games. Offensive Coordinator Arthur Smith’s unit is no juggernaut, but it would be more than good enough if this defense were playing at even a middle-of-the-pack rate. Again, the change from Austin and the defense has to start now or soon if this team wants to go anywhere down the road. A strong performance against the Colts would be a big momentum boost for the team and the fan base.
