The Packers signed Kicker Lukas Havrisik to the 53-man roster.  They signed OT Brant Banks, who was a street free agent after the Titans waived him after renting him for a week, to the practice squad while releasing DE Deslin Alexandre from the PS to make room.  The Packers did not elevate anyone from the PS.  OT Anthony Belton, Kicker Brandon McManus, and DE Devonte Wyatt were inactive due to injury.  Kamal Hadden was a healthy scratch. 

OFFENSIVE LINEMEN:

After a slow start, the offensive line started to lean on their defensive opponents to get the run game going.  I thought Jordan Morgan really showed up in the run game.  The Packers gained 153 yards on 33 carries for a 4.6-yard average.  They allowed 4 QB hits and 1 sack.  The line did not look dominant but they were good enough.  The Bengals stud Edge player, Trey Hendrickson, left the game in the second quarter and did not return. 

 PFF indicates that the Packers allowed 17 pressures total.  Some of those pressures should be attributed to Love and some to other groups.  Rasheed Walker gave up 4 hurries and in my view was fortunate not to see a couple of flags.  Tom gave up 2 hurries and did not seem 100%.  The pocket did tend to collapse.  For context, Trey Hendrickson had 4 hurries in just 26 snaps (43%).

RUNNING BACKS:

Josh Jacobs finished with 93 yards on 18 carries for a 5.17-yard average and a touchdown.  Jacobs added 57 yards on 5 receptions.  For a while, Jacobs, Love's legs and a mite from Matthew Golden were the whole offense.

QUARTERBACKS:

Love completed 19 of 26 (73.1%) for 259 yards (9.96 yards/attempt) and 1 touchdown with 1 interception due to a terrible decision.    He had a passer rating of 101.3.  He gained 26 yards on 7.  He does most things well and has a big arm.  He just makes a dumb decision or two most games. The interception was a terrible decision.  Love made the correct decision to slide short of the first down at the 2:10 mark in the fourth quarter.  After watching a replay, I think a 240-pound linebacker named Demetrius Knight would have put a big hit on Love had he dived for the first down.  It is a long season.  That made us watch Coach LaFleur use his timeouts down the stretch, which often leads to tension in a lot of fans.  I know I called in for a prescription refill of my blood pressure medication. 

That said, Love plays hard and fearlessly.  He usually makes the big plays when they are required.  Love is outstanding when given a clean pocket.  I thought he was the player of the game.  PFF indicated that Love had 3.02 seconds per drop back.  

TIGHT ENDS:

Tucker Kraft caught both of his targets for 43 yards and a big 24-yard touchdown.   Musgrave caught 1 of 2 targets for 7 yards.  Kraft is such a weapon but the current state of the offensive line requires the tight ends to do quite a lot of blocking.   Kraft is playing a lot of snaps.  Only Sims played on special teams.  

WIDE RECEIVERS:

Golden caught 3 of 5 targets for 86 yards with a long of 35.  Golden shows good hands and is starting to look very good.  The next step is to add volume to his statistics, and I think that will come.  Doubs caught 5 of 9 passes for 55 yards.  He continues to be reliable.  Wicks caught both of his targets for 15 yards before leaving the game with an ankle injury.  He did not return but he was missed.  Nobody else did much.  Melton had 1 carry for 3 yards.  Savion Williams also had a carry that went for 3 yards.  The return of Watson and Reed cannot come too soon.

The Packers scored 27 points, which often puts a team in the top 5 or so in the league.  On the other hand, it was against Cincinnati.  Moreover, it was against a Bengal team that lost Trey Hendrickson for the bulk of the game.  27 points is still 27 points, so I would give the offense a solid C grade.

DEFENSIVE TACKLES:

I noted last week that I am not a fan of the defensive tackle room.  Wooden had 2 tackles (1 solo) and got some a good initial grade from PFF, though they did not credit Wooden with a hurry.  Stackhouse had 1 tackle.  Stackhouse played early and then was replaced by Brinson almost entirely.  Brooks and Brinson had no statistics but they each had 2 hurries.  The Bengals gained 55 yards on 16 carries (3.44 yards/carry).  The Bengals gained just 56 total yards in the first half but they came alive in the second half with 212 yards.  Flacco avoided mistakes but I am glad Joe Burrow was out.  Maybe Burrow deserved more praise than he got last year.  To be fair, Flacco threw some very precise passes on back shoulder throws to Chase and a bullet on a slant to convert a 3rd and 5 for a first down.

DEFENSIVE ENDS:

Parsons had 3 solo tackles and 5 hurries.  LVN added 2 tackles (1 solo) with a sack before he left with a foot injury.  No bones apparently were broken but Van Ness will undergo an MRI Monday.  Enagbare had 2 solo tackles and Gary added a solo tackle.  Gary had 4 hurries, per PFF.   Sorrell had 1 hurry. 

The Bengals got the ball out so quickly for most of the game that the Edge players just did not get home much.  PFF indicates that the Packers had 17 pressures from all sources.  The Packers were allowing short passes which made it seem too easy for the Bengals but the Packers only allowed 18 points, which is a good result, after all.  

LINEBACKERS:

Cooper had 11 tackles (4 solo) with a tackle for loss.  Quay Walker had 8 tackles (5 solo).  Walker gave up a touchdown pass though his coverage was not bad.  McDuffie had a solo tackle.  The Packers played nickel most of the game (4.91 DBs per paly on average), so they pulled Mcduffie off the field.  Hopper had a personal foul penalty on special teams.  The linebackers did a good job and showed their speed by limiting gains to the flat very well, particularly in the first half, but the Packers were allowing short completions over the middle, which will likely skew their stats and grades.       

DEFENSIVE BACKS:

Oh, the beauty of having an elite wide receiver.  JaMarr Chase ate against the packers, finishing with 94 yards on 12 targets and 10 receptions including a touchdown pass.  He caught passes even when he was not open, including on his TD catch.  Having a wily, veteran quarterback helps.  Nixon allowed 6 of 10 targets to be completed for 49 yards and a TD, which works out to a 105 passer rating allowed, per PFF.  At least 2 completions to Chase came even though Nixon had great coverage.  The results were frustrating but I thought Nixon did a nice job overall.  Otherwise, Flacco just avoided mistakes and did not hurt the Packers.

Evan Williams had 7 tackles and Nixon, McKinney and Bullard each added 6 tackles.  Nixon had 2 passes defensed and Valentine had 1 pass break up.  Valentine allowed 2 of 3 passes to be completed for just 7 yards.  When Bullard went out with a concussion, Hobbs moved to the slot and Valentine entered the game.  

SPECIAL TEAMS:

Whelan punted twice for 91 yards and Havrisik made 2 field goals and all three extra points.  There were no major mistakes on special teams.

Photo courtesy of Marc Hoffman of USA Today Network.

RB: 1.05

TE: 1.48

WR: 2.48

DT: 1.71

DE: 2.29

LB: 2.09

DB: 4.91