Here's the tale of the tape from the Packers' 36-17 win on Sunday at St. Louis:

Riddle me this

The Packers offense is an enigma.

Good or bad, you don't know what you're getting from one play to the next, much less one series to the next. So, no matter how many touchdowns and yards the Packers put up -- four and 402, respectively, against the Rams -- you have to wonder which way to slice the numbers, because they keep making fundamental errors.

Take the protection. Coaches gave the offensive line less help than in Week 2, keeping in extra blockers on only 10 of 28 dropbacks (35.7 percent) and chipping on six others (21.4 percent), mostly to RT Allen Barbre's side.

Barbre was OK for the most part but gave up an awful sack to LE Leonard Little, ducking his head and getting no punch as Little burned him outside. On the next possession, Little got another sack when LT Daryn Colledge gave up pressure and QB Aaron Rodgers failed to step up and/or dump the ball into the flat. Both came on four-man rushes and forced the Packers to settle for field goals.

In 28 dropbacks by Rodgers, Rams coach Steve Spagnuolo dialed up only five blitzes (17.9 percent). The protection flopped on two five-man pressures, with RB Ryan Grant whiffing on WLB Will Witherspoon and MLB James Laurinaitis getting a clean A-gap run to hurry a third-down throwaway. But the Packers picked up three six-man pressures, and Rodgers exploited single coverage on the back end of each for completions of 46 yards to WR Donald Driver, 12 yards to WR Jordy Nelson and 50 yards to WR Greg Jennings.

Driver's one-handed grab highlighted an excellent hands day for the Packers' receivers -- until the Rams pulled within six early in the third quarter and Nelson and Jones dropped back-to-back balls, spurring a second consecutive three-and-out.

The running game could be best summarized by a sequence in the fourth quarter, with the Packers in position to grind clock and seal a win. Backed up to the 6, Grant gained 5 on a well-blocked zone left play and then exploded for 17 on a zone-right cutback behind Colledge, breaking one tackle and carrying two defenders on his back for the final yards.

Yet on the next play, Barbre whiffed on SLB David Vobora, DT Hollis Thomas ran over RG Josh Sitton and Grant went down on a zone-right play for a loss of 1 -- his second carry for loss and eighth for a yard or less. Then, on second-and-11, the Packers caught the Rams in their nickel defense with only six in the box on a draw play. But with open lanes to both sides, backup RB DeShawn Wynn was indecisive, chose neither and ran directly into Thomas for a gain of just 1. Rodgers had to scramble on third down, and the Packers punted.

Inconsistency and imprecision can prove fatal against the NFL's better teams. The Packers offense is battling both.

Long road for Raji

It seemed like high time for the Packers to get their top draft pick into a game, but DL B.J. Raji's performance showed why they'd been waiting.

Raji's game is power, which comes from his thick lower body, and it was obvious he wasn't at full strength for his NFL debut. He missed his only tackle attempt and also was unusually slow off the ball -- evidence of the work he's missed since spraining his right ankle in the preseason finale on Sept. 3.

The Packers have to hope the 23 snaps he played -- all at left end, with starter Johnny Jolly taking several breathers plus three snaps at nose tackle -- will help Raji trust the ankle and play more confidently next week. He did toss around some blockers and drew a holding call against Rams RT Adam Goldberg on his first play.

But until he starts taking a full load in practice, Raji will be fighting an uphill battle to adjust to regular-season tempo. Getting him healthy is just as important as getting him ready to contribute.

Playmakers

* Even though Rams RB Steven Jackson ended up with 117 rushing yards, there were positive signs for the Packers' run defense and the five-linebacker "Big Okie" look Dom Capers debuted to combat him. Of Jackson's 27 carries, mostly on inside zones, 11 (40.7 percent) went for 1 yard or less, including three for loss and four for no gain. He fumbled on another carry, and only two (7.4 percent) were "explosive" gains of 12 yards or more -- the longer a 20-yarder when the Packers brought a fire zone and ROLB Brady Poppinga abandoned his backside gap. Eliminate that mistake, and Jackson has 26 carries for 97 yards (3.7 average). The Packers would take that against a back of Jackson's caliber.

* The Packers also had to be encouraged by LOLB Aaron Kampman's play, and not just because he finally got a sack at his new position (one that forced a turnover and knocked Rams QB Marc Bulger out of the game). Kampman also hit backup QB Kyle Boller twice, broke up a third-down shovel pass for Jackson and on three occasions caused the disruption that let someone else stuff Jackson on a run play.

* NT Ryan Pickett gets a big assist on Jolly's early field-goal block. It was Pickett who got the push on G Jacob Bell, opening the lane for Jolly.

Play breakers

* Capers had to adjust at halftime to account for Boller's superior mobility, which he showed off on key scrambles for 10 and 13 yards on a TD drive just before the break. When the Packers went to man coverage in the second half, they kept a spy on Boller, who scrambled only once for 6 yards.

* The gap was far too wide between S Matt Giordano and LB Brad Jones on the opening kickoff, which Danny Amendola returned 42 yards up the gut. LB Spencer Havner and LB Clay Matthews could have come back over the top to cover the gap, but they followed Giordano outside.

* PK Mason Crosby's extra-point miss was a straight hook. The snap was a little inside but more than workable, as was the hold. So what if Crosby's plant foot sort of stuck in the Edward Jones Dome turf? You don't miss extra points, period. It ruined a day on which Crosby was 3-for-3 on field goals, including a 48-yarder.

Dot ... dot ... dot ...

Capers used “Big Okie” on 35 of 71 snaps (49.3 percent) and only used his regular base defense, with S Derrick Martin in place of ILB Brandon Chillar, for five (7 percent). The rest was nickel. ... In 36 dropbacks, Capers rushed five on five occasions (13.9 percent) and six only once (2.8 percent). ... MILB Nick Barnett was supposed to be on a 40-snap limit; he played 48 before getting the precautionary hook one drive into the fourth quarter. ... The Rams didn't complete a single pass that traveled more than 16 yards beyond the line of scrimmage in the air. The Packers had five.