Packers front has pass rush opportunity against Tennessee

The Green Bay Packers's defense has created a ton of big plays through two games so far, leading the league with six forced turnovers (really five if you want to discount the end-of-game Hail Mary interception on Sunday), but have largely done so without generating that much pressure. While the team has forced more interceptions than anyone else, they rank a pedestrian sixteenth in pressure rate through two weeks. It's also just that though, through two weeks. The Packers front struggled mightily to get anything done against Philadelphia, with the Eagles posting the second-best composite pass-blocking ratings in the NFL, per Ben Baldwin's pass-blocking metric.

The Eagles present a particularly difficult problem for opposing pass rushers, with both an elite offensive line and a mobile quarterback, who can take advantage of a lack of lane discipline. In week two, the Packers generated a bit more pressure, but they still were primarily pushing the pocket. The interception that Richardson threw to Xavier McKinney was absolutely forced from pressure, primarily by Quay Walker.

Richardson is, of course, a monster athlete. Perhaps the most athletic quarterback to ever play, owner of the perfect 10 Relative Athletic Score.

And despite a lack of pressures, the Packers front did largely keep Hurts and Richardson bottled up on scrambles. Hurts had 13 rush attempts for a paltry 33 yards. Richardson had only four attempts for 37 yards, almost all of which came on the Colts' final drive as he scrambled for 21 yards in one of the very few times the Packers' pass rushers truly lost lane discipline in an effort to pressure the quarterback. If the Packers front's goal was to shut down the scramble game and force the very good athletes to make plays out of structure down the field, they succeeded, with Richardson and Hurts both struggling to varying extents on plays where they had to hold onto the ball (Richardson, in particular, struggled with a -0.23 EPA-per-dropback on throws after 2.5 seconds).

This week will present a much different opportunity and perhaps present more insight to what this pass rush can look like when they're not facing some of the most athletic quarterbacks in the league. Through two weeks, no quarterback has been pressured at a higher rate than Will Levis, the Titans starting quarterback. Levis has been pressured on an obscene 53.4% of his dropbacks, contributing to his dismal -0.41 EPA-per-dropback. Tackle Nicholas Petit-Frere has been a particular problem for Tennesee, allowing eleven pressures in just 77 pass-blocking snaps. While Levis is not a statue, he does not have near the same level of running threat as either Hurts or Levis, averaging only three rushing attempts per game and four yards per carry for his career.

After a relatively quiet first two weeks, this game provides an opportunity for star defensive end Rashan Gary to make a real impact. He ranks 34th in pressures amongst EDGE defenders, but his primary assignment will be across from the beleaguered Petit-Frere. Defensive tackles Kenny Clark and Devonte Wyatt have gotten off to solid starts, particularly Wyatt, in the pressure production department, and will face off against Lloyd Cushenberry, Peter Skoronski, and Dillon Radunz this week, the latter of the two allowing the fifth and seventh most pressures amongst interior offensive lineman in the NFL so far this season. Across the board, only the veteran center ranks well in pass protection.

It will be important for the offense to get out to an early lead like they did against Indianapolis so that the Packers front can hunt the quarterback. If the game state is favorable, this could be the breakout game for the front that was supposed to be the star of Jeff Hafley's show.