There's no doubt the Packers backed off in the third and fourth quarters. Part of that was a conscious choice by McCarthy to give the ball to Lacy and run some clock. Part of that was the Lions putting together two drives of more than 5:42 in the second half. Those drives ate up nearly 13 minutes of clock. And that was only two possessions. Packers had six possessions in the first half. They only had four in the second.
First, Nick Perry had the game of his life today. He was absolutely phenomenal. His run defense is off the charts because of his strength. Perry finished with 7 tackles, six of which were solo tackles. He had two sacks, one pass deflection and was just unblockable. However, you did see a gaping hole where Matthews typically plays on the other side. Julius Peppers does not seem to be as effective as he was last season. Jayrone Elliott was receiving his first playing time of the season. And don't forget, Datone Jones was gone as well. In total, the Packers were credited for four quarterback hits.
There's no doubt the Packers backed off in the third and fourth quarters. Part of that was a conscious choice by McCarthy to give the ball to Lacy and run some clock. Part of that was the Lions putting together two drives of more than 5:42 in the second half. Those drives ate up nearly 13 minutes of clock. And that was only two possessions. Packers had six possessions in the first half. They only had four in the second.