The Minnesota Vikings are set to take on the Green Bay Packers in Week 1 of the NFL season.

Most of the focus is on how Kyler Murray will end up meshing within Kevin O’Connell’s offense. It’s one that has piqued the interest of many individuals in the NFL. The Sean McVay/Kyle Shanahan tree has never seen a quarterback like Murray play for them. It creates interesting variables that we will be very intrigued to see what happens.

On the other side of the field is a Packers team that has been consistent under head coach Matt LaFleur, but hasn’t been able to get over the hump. Week 1 will also see multiple stars out for the Packers, and they highlight the questions surrounding Green Bay.

With Josh Jacobs on the commissioner exempt list, what does the running game look like?

It will inevitably be running back by committee, but MarShawn Lloyd is the top guy. He has explosiveness and speed, even though his vision is a little shaky. Chris Brooks is more of a third-down back who excels in pass protection and blitz pick-up, so he should play a lot of snaps against Brian Flores’ defense. The Packers also traded for Kaleb Johnson, but they will likely elevate veteran Pierre Strong from the practice squad after his solid preseason.

More important than the running backs themselves would be the run-blocking, which was a problem last year. But that aspect of the game was exactly why they chose Jacob Monk to start at right guard, and if Matt LaFleur can scheme up some running lanes, the backs will probably be fine.

Can the Packers rush the passer without Micah Parsons?

If you are asking about the edge defenders specifically, the answer is probably not. Lukas Van Ness showed some signs of development last year, so he might be able to create some pressure. But Van Ness and Barryn Sorrell are more likely to be edge-setters, and here’s where we enter the second part of this answer. Jonathan Gannon is much more likely to use his edges as glorified run-stuffers, and they will try to create actual pressure from the interior guys. The Packers have Devonte Wyatt, Javon Hargrave, and Karl Brooks, all interior defensive linemen who are excellent at generating pressure. Training camp also showed Gannon’s willingness to send more bodies if needed, and the Packers have the safety talent to make up for that down the field.

Is cornerback the biggest weakness on the roster?

Can anyone hang with the Vikings’ receivers? I would say guard is materially weaker than cornerback at this point, and the biggest reason for that is Brandon Cisse. You might not want to rely so much on a second-round rookie to stop guys like Justin Jefferson and Jordan Addison, but Cisse has been everything the Packers could’ve hoped for so far. He’s been solid against the Packers’ top guys throughout training camp, and was also good in preseason against some high-end starting receivers.

Keisean Nixon is not a great cornerback, but as a CB2 he is passable. The problem last year was that they didn’t have anyone to play over him, so Nixon became a de facto CB1. If Cisse can step up, the cornerback room would fall into place with Javon Bullard in the slot, while Carrington Valentine and Benjamin St-Juste are viable backups.