No team in the NFL is struggling quite like the Green Bay Packers have been the past few weeks. After starting the year unblemished and 6-0, they've dropped three-straight, including a home loss to the previously one-win Detroit Lions. In the latest round of speculation as to why this may be, ESPN Packers beat writer Rob Demovsky suggested that star QB Aaron Rodgers' personal life, meaning girlfriend actress Olivia Munn, may be an off-field issue right now for him and, ultimately, Green Bay. Truthfully, that should be the last of their worries right now.
This team isn't being hampered by Rodgers. Sure, he hasn't looked his usual self in ONE of the last three games -- which, coincidentally, was against the Denver Broncos, who boast maybe the best pass defense in the entire league. But in the other two games of this losing streak, he's thrown for six touchdowns and only one INT.
So for someone to suggest that Rodgers has been the reason why the Packers have struggled doesn't make much sense. Furthermore, to suggest that his girlfriend is a reason for their losses is even more ridiculous, a notion that Munn obviously agrees with.
Playing it fast & loose w/the journalism @RobDemovsky. Your professional skills are lacking... you must be having personal problems at home.
— oliviamunn (@oliviamunn) November 19, 2015
The big issues with the Packers come down to basically two things: the defense and offensive line.
Defensively, this team was brutal against the Broncos and Carolina Panthers, giving up 29 points to team led by a shell of Peyton Manning's former self, and 37 to Cam Newton, basically, because he only has Greg Olsen to throw at. Green Bay's defense is allowing over 370 yards to opposing offenses, ranking 23rd in the league. Their only saving grace is that they've forced 13 turnovers and sacked the quarterback 23 times.
What's happened during this three-game stretch, though, is alarming. They've sacked the quarterbacks ZERO times, and only forced one turnover in each game. When you give up yards like they do and can't end drives by taking away the ball or getting a big sack, you can see how they've struggled so much lately.
As for the O-line, they've just been absolutely brutal.
Rodgers was only sacked 11 times in the first six games. Under less pressure, guys were able to get open more easily, and Rodgers completed 124 of 182 passes (68.1 percent) and averaged 8.2 yards per attempt.
In the last three games, however, he was sacked 11 times, and if Rodgers wasn't as good as he was, it'd probably have been closer to 20. During that time, he completed only 74 of 131 passes (56.5 percent) and averaged just 5.9 yards per attempt. The accuracy issues are directly related to the lack of pass protection, and it's killed this offense.
If this team wants to get back on track and prove to be the Super Bowl contender that everyone thought it was, the defense and offensive line must play better. The question is, do they have the talent on the roster to do so? But that's an entirely other argument.
Overall, this team doesn't need to worry about Rodgers or his love life. Olivia Munn isn't the reason they've struggled, and they don't need any more distractions as they try to keep this thing from unraveling halfway through the season.
