Aaron Rodgers believes a little tough love will help Packers rookie wide receivers Christian Watson and Romeo Doubs make "the jump" into fully-fledged NFL performers.
The Green Bay quarterback saw Watson's early drop of a would-be touchdown prove costly against the Minnesota Vikings as the Packers began with a 23-7 loss on Sunday.
That Week 1 blow could prove a bellwether of the Packers' season, following the trade of All-Pro wide receiver Davante Adams to the Las Vegas Raiders.
Rodgers appeared frustrated when second-round pick Watson beat veteran Patrick Peterson but let a perfectly placed deep ball slip through his fingers, scuppering the prospect of bringing the Packers back to level terms at 7-7 early in the game.
Speaking after the game, Rodgers said that Watson knew there would be "growing pains" as he looks to become established at the top level.
With time to think since the game, Rodgers said on Wednesday the Packers have "got to be patient",
"The most important thing we're going to be harping on is the preparation and the fundamentals and the little things," he said.
"The jump happens when you don't become a robot anymore. You understand the 'why' and the 'what' – why are we doing what we're doing and what are we trying to accomplish? And it takes a while for anybody."
Rodgers does not believe there should be too much leeway, though, and says any player should be given it straight, in an appropriate way, if they fail to come up with the goods.
"There's going to be mistakes. So, hold them accountable and prepare and communicate as well as we can, but it's not throwing to older guys out there," Rodgers said.
"It's young guys who are very talented, who are going to make some great plays by not actually knowing what they're doing sometimes, and there's going to be times when they don't make the right reaction and just having patience with that because, I think, by the end of the year, they'll have it figured out."
That bodes well for the future, if Rodgers' vision plays out, and Packers coach Matt LaFleur is trusting his QB to nurture the relationship with 23-year-old Watson and 22-year-old Doubs.
The Packers tackle the Chicago Bears in Week 2.
LaFleur said Rodgers would likely want to try again with some of the plays he attempted on Sunday.
"That happens every game, right?" said the Packers coach. "But I think he's done a great job of demanding the urgency from those young guys, yet putting an arm around them as well at the same time."
David Montgomery hat-trick lifts Detroit Lions over Green Bay Packers
Three touchdowns from running back David Montgomery lifted the Detroit Lions to a 34-20 victory over the Green Bay Packers.
Montgomery found the endzone twice in the first half and again in the fourth quarter to clinch the visitors’ third win of the season.
The Packers were able to impact the scoreboard early, gaining a 3-0 lead with a field goal from their opening drive.
However, they had to wait a long time between drinks from there, as the Lions hit back with three touchdowns and two field goals to take a 27-3 lead into half-time.
Green Bay were able to stem the tide in the third quarter, holding Detroit to nil while picking up a touchdown through wide receiver Christian Watson.
They inched closer at the start of the fourth thanks to a nine-yard touchdown run from quarterback Jordan Love, but their comeback bid was officially ended when Montgomery picked up his third touchdown with six minutes remaining.
Love finished with 246 passing yards to go along with a touchdown and two interceptions, while Detroit quarterback Jared Goff threw for 210 yards, a touchdown and an interception of his own.
Philadelphia Eagles turn up the Hurts on Tampa Bay to remain unbeaten
The Philadelphia Eagles maintained their perfect start to the season, proving too strong for previously unbeaten Tampa Bay.
Quarterback Jalen Hurts led his team to a 25-11 win as he masterminded a game-deciding drive that lasted nine minutes.
Hurts threw for 277 yards and scored a touchdown while running back D’Andre Swift racked up 130 yards on 16 carries.
The Eagles are 3-0 for the second successive season and join Miami and San Francisco as the only unbeaten sides.
Cincinnati quarterback Joe Burrow shook off a calf injury to throwing for 259 yards to beat the Los Angeles Rams 19-16 for the Bengals’ first win of the season.
Burrow, who picked up the injury in pre-season and aggravated it against Baltimore last week, only returned to training on Thursday.
Running back Joe Mixon’s 14-yard touchdown run in the third quarter gave the AFC North champions their first lead of the season.
Logan Wilson intercepted Rams quarterback Matthew Stafford twice and he was sacked six times.
Chargers wide receiver Williams out for season with torn ACL
The Los Angeles Chargers will be without star wide receiver Mike Williams for the remainder of the 2023 season after an MRI confirmed he tore his ACL in Week 3, NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport reported Monday.
Williams went down in the third quarter of the Chargers’ 28-24 road win over the Minnesota Vikings on Sunday after recording seven catches for 121 yards and a touchdown.
Williams entered Monday’s action ranked 12th in the league in receiving yards (249), tied for 12th in targets (26) and tied for 13th in catches (19).
Since being selected seventh overall by the Chargers in the 2017 NFL Draft, Williams has 309 receptions for 4,806 yards and 31 touchdowns.
Los Angeles lost its first two games by a combined five points before defeating Minnesota.
The Chargers went 10-7 last season and returned to the playoffs for the first time since 2018. They led by 10 points after three quarters in the wild-card round at Jacksonville before the Jaguars rallied for a 31-30 victory.
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