GREEN BAY, Wis. -- At the time, in the minutes shortly after the Green Bay Packers hung on for a 27-18 win over the Cincinnati Bengals Sunday, coach Matt LaFleur said it would be "irresponsible" to make any kind of statement about why his defense had trouble finishing the game.
He needed to watch the film first.
But it wasn't just that film and that game. It was the game before and the game before that.
As good as the Packers (3-1-1) have been to start games -- they're the only team in the NFL that has led by double digits in every game this season -- their late-game defensive struggles have revealed an early-season weakness in defensive coordinator Jeff Hafley's unit.
With time to rewatch what happened in the late stages against the Bengals, and with the chance to put it in the context of his team's second-half struggles in the 13-10 loss to the Cleveland Browns in Week 3 and the 40-40 tie with the Dallas Cowboys in Week 4, LaFleur said he and Hafley continue to study the defense's issues ahead of Sunday's game at the Arizona Cardinals (4:25 p.m. ET, Fox).
"That's something Haf and I we're kind of like just nitpicking, like why is it happening?" LaFleur said. "Because if you look at the scoring differential, I just looked at it, I think in the first quarter throughout the course of the season, we've scored 24 points and the opposition scored zero. And then it's the same, I mean, there's a big discrepancy in the second quarter as well, but the second half I think we're minus-6 on the season."
That doesn't begin to tell the story.
In their opponents' past 12 possessions in the second half or overtime -- starting with the middle of the fourth quarter against the Browns in Week 3 -- the Packers' defense has allowed six touchdowns, four field goals and one missed field goal while forcing only one punt.
"Well, Cleveland, let's be honest there, they were inside the 10-yard line or maybe inside the 5, so it's really been the last two games," LaFleur said.
Indulge LaFleur and throw out the Browns game, in which Jordan Love's fourth-quarter interception gave Cleveland possession at the Packers' 4-yard line, leading to a gimme touchdown that tied the game at 10-10, and it still looks rough. In their opponents' past eight second-half or overtime possessions, the Packers have allowed five touchdowns, two field goals and a missed field goal.
"We're just like, 'Why is that happening?'" LaFleur said. "Are we running out of gas? Obviously they got the ball to start the second half, they go on that 18-play drive or whatever it was, ate up damn near 10 minutes on the clock or whatever it was. I don't know, does that gas you out? Does that make you more tired? Do we need to roll more guys in the first half?
"The hard part, the first half was a bunch of three-and-outs, so guys feel fresh and then you put them in there. So there's things we talked about in regards to, are we well-conditioned enough from practice? Did our guys do enough on the bye week? All that stuff has kind of been floated around, trying to figure out why this is happening, because certainly we're trying to find solutions."
Over the past three games, the Packers have allowed 18.3 points per game after halftime, second most behind the Ravens. Counting only fourth quarters and overtime, Green Bay's 13.7 points per game allowed is the most in the NFL. Yet overall, the Packers rank 10th in fewest points allowed per game (20.4).
"It's about discipline man," cornerback Nate Hobbs said. "It's about not giving a f--- how many plays you're out there. Not giving a f--- about none of that, bro. It's lining up and doing the same thing you did last play and not getting bored, not letting fatigue take over. It's just depending on each other and trusting each other."
A takeaway or two would help. The Packers, who have only two takeaways all season (both interceptions), are one of only three teams without a forced turnover after halftime. The others, the Dolphins and Jets, have a combined 1-11 record.
"Just the first half, it just shows who we are," defensive end Micah Parsons said. "Like we've been trying to figure it out. We've been showing glimpses, but how can we just do it for a complete four quarters? We held up our end of the bargain, we held them to under 20, so I'm just happy we got a win. But we want to get to that point where we get teams under 14, 10, hold them to that range all game."
