Reinforcements on offense and defense are key for the Packers to finally reach their full potential
The Green Bay Packers lost to the Minnesota Vikings on Sunday and it certainly felt underwhelming. But they are still 11-5 and have clinched a playoff spot. So there’s a lot to like and a lot to improve. Ahead of the Week 18 matchup with the Chicago Bears, and mainly ahead of the postseason, let’s […]
The Green Bay Packers lost to the Minnesota Vikings on Sunday and it certainly felt underwhelming. But they are still 11-5 and have clinched a playoff spot. So there’s a lot to like and a lot to improve.
Ahead of the Week 18 matchup with the Chicago Bears, and mainly ahead of the postseason, let’s do our Packers Mailbag.
They absolutely are. Christian Watson is not exactly that good of a player to change a unit so dramatically, but the dimension he brings to the offense is unmatched on the roster. His speed, both vertically and horizontally, makes it much more difficult for opposing defenses to cover them, and that’s why he draws so much attention schematically. The offense feels and is much less explosive and efficient when he’s not playing.
Regarding Jaire Alexander, it’s simple. He is an All-Pro player, and when he doesn’t play, they have replacement-level material in Eric Stokes. Javon Bullard is a fine slot piece, but things have been really tough for him in coverage as a rookie.
I don’t think the Packers are necessarily a powerhouse once they are back, but they absolutely put them in a much more favorable position to compete.
Because when you draft in the late 20s every year, you have to look for projects to get high-ceiling players. Yes, it's tough when we are talking about Lukas Van Ness. There's no indication so far he can become a blue-chip player and he was the 13th overall pick. But when we're talking about guys like Jordan Morgan, if the guy has the potential to be a blue-chip player from the get go, he won't fall all the way through the end of the first round. Sometimes it works, like it has with Jordan Love. Sometimes it doesn't.
But when the Packers tried to get players for immediate needs, like Eric Stokes and Quay Walker, results haven't been much better.
It was certainly not a great game from the Packers upfront, but nobody has played well against the Vikings' defense. The variety of pressure packages Brian Flores brings to the table is hard to prevent, and they have better players they than had in 2023. The Packers still have one of the best pass-protecting offensive lines in football, and if wide receivers get open faster against man coverage, the line will look much better.
The Packers have lost to some great teams in 2024, and you are fairly describing what happened against the Lions and the Vikings in some of these games. But the Packers led most of the game against the Eagles in Brazil, they led from start to finish against a really good Dallas Cowboys team in the playoffs last season.
The main thing I would change is this idea of getting the ball first. It works against bad teams in blowouts, but they are not starting fast against good teams, and getting the ball to start the second half is huge in close games.
Getting the ball first worked against the Lions on Thanksgiving last year, and Matt LaFleur seems to think he has to do it every time now to show aggressiveness. That team was worse, they were trying to find themselves. They don't need this approach anymore, at least not every week.
The call wasn't a deep ball to a double-covered Bo Melton. We have to separate calls from execution. Jordan Love reads the play and goes where he thinks he has a chance. And when protection breaks down, he can take a shot or check it down. When he gets a shot downfield, you get very happy.
That's why I advocate for process over results. Yes, I feel like the Packers have been too pound and bomb this season. The passing game hasn't had much underneath options, just checkdowns. But that's a byproduct of Love's style of play, Josh Jacobs' style of play, and the lack of truly elite pass-catchers.
It’s getting too late for the Packers to deny what they have been the entire season after another loss to the Vikings
The fight for the fifth seed is over
