The
Green Bay Packers knew, based on what the
New England Patriots have shown for most of this season, that their offense would see a lot of man coverage.
And their answer for the Patriots was simple and effective: four-receiver sets, with
Randall Cobb as the moveable chess piece aligning all over the formation to counter that man coverage. It was a great plan, to isolate advantageous matchups.
Perhaps the best example came in the second quarter. Cobb lined up offset in the backfield, something the Packers showed on their first possession (they also had receiver
Jarrett Boykin in the backfield on the first possession) and the Patriots stayed man-to-man with cornerback
Kyle Arrington on Cobb. Cobb was lined up offset to the bunch side (three receivers lined up close to each other) of the field. My guess, based on seeing the film, is the Patriots rule is that if a back releases outside, then the outside linebacker peels and runs with him. Cobb was lined up as a back. Outside linebacker Rob Ninkovich ran with Cobb. Arrington couldn’t get through the traffic created by the receivers bunched up.
Then, Cobb’s wheel route against Ninkovich is a big mismatch. He gained 33 yards.