The Green Bay Packers reached into their bag of tricks before their offense had even settled into Sunday’s rivalry game.
Afterward, Tucker Kraft explained why the unusual opening call made sense, and where Green Bay found the idea.
The Packers started their first possession against the Chicago Bears with a flea flicker that became a tight end screen. Jordan Love delivered the ball underneath to Kraft for a 13-yard gain, giving Green Bay a first down after starting at its own 9-yard line.
It was an early move in what became a 31-7 victory at Lambeau Field. But the play’s appeal went past its novelty. As Kraft described it, the design counted on defenders reacting to one threat while leaving room for another.
Asked about the call afterward, Kraft didn’t mince words.
“Brand new.”
Kraft Explains the Rams’ Influence on Packers’ Trick Play
In a locker room video shared by USA TODAY’s Ryan Wood, Kraft pointed to film study and a familiar NFC offense.
“Film study, seeing your opponents,” Kraft said. “Rams did it with Colby Parkinson last year.”
Kraft with an exceptional breakdown on his play caller dicing them up:
That gave the Los Angeles Rams a place in the explanation for Green Bay’s opening surprise. According to Kraft, the Packers had seen the concept elsewhere before introducing their version against Chicago.
The sequence asks a defense to process several changes in a hurry. First comes the apparent running play. Then the running back pitches the ball back to the quarterback, putting the possibility of a deep pass back into defenders’ minds.
Green Bay used that reaction to create an underneath opportunity.
“When you run a flea flicker and the running back is fast with the toss back, the defense is gonna panic drop,” Kraft said.
The key for Kraft was the defender initially occupied with the run. Once that player recognized the ball had returned to the quarterback, the tight end had a chance to slip away.
“And then my rusher who just went outside is thinking, you know, the play’s over, it was an inside run,” Kraft said. “And then he sees the ball back to the quarterback. My job is to ditch him, get the ball, go make the play.”
Packers Turn Opening Surprise Into Touchdown Drive
The screen helped Green Bay get moving from difficult field position, and Kraft remained involved as the possession continued.
Per the Packers’ game recap, he also gained 2 yards on a third-and-1 sneak. Love later finished the 10-play, 91-yard march with a 42-yard touchdown pass to Christian Watson.
Kraft’s contributions on that drive showed two ways Green Bay could involve him, and that’s slipping him into space through misdirection and putting the ball directly in his hands when it needed a short conversion.
He later supplied a much larger gain, catching a 46-yard pass in the third quarter. Kraft finished with five receptions for 64 yards as Green Bay improved to 3-2.
The opening screen was a modest gain beside that later catch, but it gave Chicago something unexpected to handle. Kraft’s breakdown also describe why the Packers were willing to call it while backed up near their own end zone.
They had a specific reaction in mind, and a tight end who understood how to take advantage.
Packers’ Tucker Kraft Explains Inspiration for ‘Brand New’ Trick Play