Packers Notebook (vs. Titans)

New punt returner

After Amari Rodgers fumbled on a punt return in London against the Giants, a play that wound up swinging the momentum, Green Bay Packers special teams coordinator Rich Bisaccia said he wasn’t going to “****can” Rodgers over one play.

After Rodgers fumbled on punt return against Dallas, a play that also swung the momentum, Rodgers finally was benched.

“It sucks for Amari,” coach Matt LaFleur said. “I feel for him, obviously, because he’s a guy that works his butt off on a daily basis. I know he wants to go out there and excel and that was a tough break.

“Obviously, it was a critical turnover that we can’t have, that’s something we talk about all the time: The ball is everything, and when you have it in your hands, you hold it for everybody in this organization, and we can’t put it on the ground, especially when we’re in a situation in a tight ballgame, going to get the ball at midfield. I thought he had a decent return, and we coughed it up. We can’t do that.”

The decision poses a real conundrum for the franchise.

General manager Brian Gutekunst didn’t just use a third-round draft pick on Rodgers in the 2021 draft. He gave up a fourth-round pick to trade up to select Rodgers.

About 1 2/3 seasons later, Rodgers’ career looks like a lost cause. As a receiver, Rodgers has been a nonfactor. Even with veteran slot receiver Randall Cobb on injured reserve and the passing game a weekly struggle, Rodgers has been an afterthought on offense.

His lack of impact on offense would be OK if Rodgers was providing impact as a returner. He hasn’t made much of an impact on special teams, either. After the fumble against Dallas, Rodgers had four fumbles. That was tied with Denver running back Melvin Gordon for most fumbles by a nonquarterback.

During his brief career, Rodgers had eight receptions, seven fumbles and zero touchdowns.

“I really like Amari Rodgers,” Bisaccia said. “Jersey No. 8 has put himself and put us in some bad situations. So, you have to coach the man first, and then coach the player. We have to go through both of those things when these situations arise.”

Ford tough

Necessity, as the saying goes, is the mother of invention. Similarly, necessity forced a big chance in the secondary.

With starting cornerback Eric Stokes out following season-ending surgery, defensive coordinator Joe Barry found opportunity. With former first-round pick Darnell Savage struggling at safety and cornerback Rasul Douglas not making much of an impact in the slot, Barry moved Douglas into Stokes’ spot at corner, slid Savage into the slot and inserted Rudy Ford at safety.

That hardly could have worked better against Dallas. Douglas allowed only one catch and Ford made two big-time interceptions. The first interception took at least a field goal off the board for Dallas. Both interceptions were turned into touchdowns by the offense.

Would Barry have made those changes had Stokes not been injured on the opening series at Detroit?

“That’s a good question. I don’t know,” Barry said. “I like to tell you guys all the time that I think options are very good, definitely when it comes to defensive personnel. Of course, losing Eric and losing Rashan (Gary) are huge losses for us, but it was cool that we were able to, in a roundabout way, get Rudy on the field and he stepped up in his opportunity, which was great to see.”

A Pleasant addition

On the Monday before the Packers played at the Lions, Detroit fired its secondary coach, Aubrey Pleasant.

Last week, LaFleur added Pleasant to his staff as a consultant. They’ve worked together in Washington in 2013 and with the Rams in 2017.

“He’s a really knowledgeable guy when it comes to the game, and I thought he could bring a different perspective to our offensive staff just seeing it through the lens of a defensive coach,” LaFleur said. “He’s a guy that I’ve always really respected how he works. I think that perspective has been helpful, not only game-planning but also to really see ourselves, how a defensive coach might break us down and see us, so we hopefully can stay as unpredictable as possible.”

A native of Flint, Michigan, Pleasant was a starting safety at Wisconsin in 2008.

“He’s going to do a lot of self-scout work for us,” LaFleur said. “We were watching a bunch of tape together today, just talking coverage and trying to figure out different rules. I think that’s always an important part to it from when you’re game-planning is you always want to try to figure out how are they coaching these guys on the other side based on whatever coverage and how you best attack somebody.

“Because you’re always trying to manipulate whatever it is you’re going against and maybe pull somebody out of a window so you can open it up for somebody else.”