Packers young tackles show some moxie

Sep 19, 2017 - 5:46 PM GREEN BAY, Wis. -- The Green Bay Packers have one of the best offensive tackle tandems in football with rising star David Bakhtiari manning the left side and steady Bryan Bulaga on the right.

Both Bakhtiari (hamstring) and Bulaga (ankle) missed Sunday's game in Atlanta because of injuries. And that left the Packers scrambling.

Kyle Murphy, a sixth-round draft pick in 2016 with one career start, stepped in at left tackle. Justin McCray, an undrafted free agent in 2014 whose most extensive playing time since then came in the Arena Football League, got the start at right tackle.

Amazingly, both men held up well in Green Bay's 34-23 loss to Atlanta.

Two turnovers by quarterback Aaron Rodgers and a defense that showed little improvement from its performance against the Falcons in the NFC Championship Game eight months ago were far more damaging than the young tackles.

"I thought Kyle Murphy did a heck of a job," Packers head coach Mike McCarthy said. "Frankly, I want to say, from the middle of the second quarter on, I didn't help him anymore. For Justin McCray to go out there and play out of position, I thought he showed a lot of fight."

The Packers did what they could to help out their inexperienced tackles. McCarthy called more three-step drops than usual and tried having Rodgers get the ball out quicker.

That was all the help Green Bay's young tackles needed.

"We just rolled some different combinations and those guys, they did everything they can," McCarthy said. "That was a medical decision and we lined up and played."

The most damaging play came early in the third quarter. The Packers were in a 24-7 hole and McCray went low to try cutting Falcons standout end Vic Beasley Jr. off the edge.

McCray whiffed, Beasley went right around him, and a panicked Rodgers tried throwing the ball away. Rodgers didn't get the ball back to the line of scrimmage, however, and Desmond Trufant returned the live ball 15 yards for a touchdown.

The Packers were never in the game again.

"It was a smart play to start the second half on the forced fumble that you have to scoop up and take back," Falcons head coach Dan Quinn said. "(Trufant) was aware. It was a great way to have him back in that kind of performance tonight. So, we're really pumped for him."

Aside from that, Green Bay's tackles fared OK in a tough environment.

This type of setting was nothing new to Murphy, who started his final two seasons at Stanford and faced several national powers along the way.

Murphy, a limited athlete who got stronger in the offseason and improved dramatically from 2016, passed Jason Spriggs as Green Bay's No. 3 tackle.

Spriggs would have gotten the call at one of the tackle spots Sunday. But Spriggs also suffered a hamstring injury in Week 1, meaning McCray was the next man up.

McCray, who went undrafted in 2014, spent that season on the Tennessee Titans practice squad. But the Titans cut McCray in Aug. 2015 and he spent a year out of football before playing in the Arena Football League.

McCray signed with the Packers on March 29 and he was a surprise survivor on Green Bay's 53-man roster. Sunday night, McCray was asked to keep several of the Falcons' speedy edge rushers away from Rodgers.

"It was a tough challenge, but I'm proud of those guys," Rodgers said. "Justin and Kyle both played really well in a tough situation against their defensive line, loud environment. I'm really proud of those guys. They stepped in and played well."

--The Packers still have no answers for Julio Jones and Atlanta's high-flying passing attack.

In Atlanta's 44-21 demolition of Green Bay in the NFC Championship Game in January, quarterback Matt Ryan threw for 392 yards, four touchdowns and completed 71.1 percent of his passes.

Jones was a force that day, hauling in nine catches for 180 yards and two touchdowns.

Sunday night, Ryan completed 19-of-28 passes for 252 yards, one touchdown and had a passer rating of 108.0. And for the second straight time, Ryan badly outplayed Green Bay's Aaron Rodgers.

The Packers tried a handful of players on Jones and used some zone looks, too. But Jones still caught five passes for 108 yards, while teammate Muhammad Sanu had five receptions for 85 yards.

"We just took what they gave us," Jones said. "They came out in single high, so we made them pay. When we get those opportunities where I'm in single coverage we just try to get me the ball and make the best of it because a lot of teams use two men on me."

The Packers overhauled their cornerback group in the offseason. But despite several personnel changes, the on-field results were eerily similar.

"The last two times we played them there was a lot of double coverage on Julio and tonight that really wasn't the case," Ryan said. "We had some opportunities where he got singled up. Anytime he gets singled up, he's going to make plays for us."

--Falcons head coach Dan Quinn has defeated Green Bay's Mike McCarthy three times in the last 11 months. Quinn also went 2-0 against McCarthy as Seattle's defensive coordinator in 2013-14.

"Give credit to the Atlanta Falcons, an excellent football team, a well-coached football team," McCarthy said. "Dan does an incredible job with his guys."

Quinn took over a 6-10 team in 2015 and has gone 21-13 since. The Falcons have passed Green Bay in that time, highlighted by a win in last year's NFC Championship Game.

McCarthy, now in his 12th season, has a 115-62-1 record during his tenure. But McCarthy will seemingly have to find a way to figure out Quinn and the Falcons if Green Bay is going to wrestle back control of the NFC.

"There is nothing that we have figured out about them," Falcons safety Ricardo Allen said of the Packers. "We are just coming together. At every level, you have to compete as a defensive line, as a wide receiver and as a running back you have to make people miss. A-Rod (Aaron Rodgers) always comes out and plays really well. He is one of the best for a reason. Everyone around you has to be on their A-game."

NOTES: WR Jordy Nelson left in the first quarter because of a quadriceps injury. Nelson had 97 receptions for 1,257 yards and 14 touchdowns last season after missing all of 2015 with a torn ACL. ... DE Mike Daniels left in the first quarter with a hamstring injury. Daniels, arguably Green Bay's best defensive player, had 1.5 sacks, forced a fumble and had five tackles in the Packers' Week 1 win over Seattle. ... OLB Ahmad Brooks, signed on Aug. 30, missed the game with a concussion he suffered in Green Bay's Week 1 win over Seattle. ... T Jason Spriggs missed the game with a hamstring injury. Spriggs, a second-round draft choice in 2016, started two games a year ago, but regressed this summer.