\u201cWe\u2019ve been kind of hit with some type of curse.\u201d<\/p>\n
Those were Sean Rhyan\u2019s words after the Green Bay Packers\u2019 17-14 victory over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Sunday afternoon. Yes, the Packers got back in the win column. Yes, the team is back to 2-2 and still right in the thick of the NFC North race. Yes, the offensive line looked much better, bolstered by changes at both guard positions and facing a team with a fairly dismal pass rush.<\/p>\n
But when Edgerrin Cooper went down with a non-contact injury in the third quarter, it felt like a massive gut punch for the entire team. Rhyan\u2019s sentiments echo what Packers fans were surely feeling: the likely season-ending loss of yet another essential player on the Green Bay roster.<\/p>\n
Last year it was Tucker Kraft and Micah Parsons, both of whom were playing at an All-Pro level when they tore their ACLs (and Parsons still managed to be an All-Pro anyway). This year, it has been Jayden Reed and Zach Bako-Bewele, both of whom weren\u2019t quite at that level but who were key cogs on the offense. Now it\u2019s Cooper, who has been pushing for All-Pro consideration as well through the first month of the season.<\/p>\n
Cooper was even in the midst of arguably his finest game so far this season. Before his injury, he had racked up 9 tackles, a sack, and an interception, the second of his career. It\u2019s probably no coincidence that on the Bucs\u2019 drive immediately following Cooper\u2019s injury, they put together a 12-play, 89-yard touchdown drive to cut the Packers\u2019 lead to three points.<\/p>\n
Somehow, the defense did just enough to overcome a pair of fourth-quarter turnovers from the Green Bay offense, forcing a punt and a turnover on downs late to preserve a narrow three-point win. But moving forward, the Packers\u2019 defense will be without one of its most dynamic young playmakers, presumably for the rest of the season.<\/p>\n