We all know the BIG story going into tonight’s matchup between the Packers and Steelers on Sunday Night Football. Aaron Rodgers has the chance to join Brett Favre, Peyton Manning, Drew Brees, and Tom Brady as the only starting quarterbacks to defeat all 32 NFL franchises. Facing his old team for the first time could only be outdone by having this game take place in Lambeau Field…or if it were the Super Bowl.

The Game…

Each of these teams enter Sunday in 1^st place in their respective divisions. Pittsburgh has a decent lead in their division while Green Bay sits atop the best division in football, the NFC North. A loss for either team isn’t brutal as it’s an interconference affair and has almost zero tiebreaking factors for each team. However, keeping the momentum is key and stacking wins is always tough to do in this league – it will be a big/important game for both from that aspect as well as a measuring stick for each team to see where they stand in this extremely competitive league.

While it seems that savvy veteran QBs have wreaked havoc vs. Jeff Hafley and the Packers’ Defense, it’s only situationally. While digging into it deeper, there’s plenty of room for improvement, but the Packers have been able to hold them enough to win 4 of their first 6 games this season, and credit to Love and the offense for forcing a tie when the D got shredded by Dallas giving up 40 points (37 in regulation). Entering this game, Green Bay will see the most-veteran, savviest QB in the NFL; Aaron Rodgers.

Last week the Hafley (and Nate Hobbs) were bailed out by Micah Parsons, who has been nothing short of incredible since his arrival in Green Bay. Parsons had an amazing game (covered in the recap) and will be a focal point of every opposing offense for the remainder of the season. If the Packers can adjust their coverage and play more man vs. zone, the stats say that’ll help the defense as the opposing QB rating when facing man is significantly less than when facing zone, however that could lead to more splash plays which can turn a game upside down. So far, the Packers have shown ways to win close games and be an extremely tough out.

Matchup Matrix

While Pittsburgh is 4-2, their statistical rankings leave quite a bit to be desired…they’re 19^th in total offense and 28^th in total defense. What’s keeping them in games and allowing them to win is the turnover differential, they’ve been able to take the ball away 10 times so far this season (tied for 5^th) and have tossed 5 interceptions, which is uncharacteristic of Rodgers. This doesn’t bode well for Green Bay as they haven’t shown the ability to take the ball away this season (3 total, ranking tied for 29^th).

Should the Packers want to win and control this game, they should be able to move the ball up and down the field and if Love and the rest of the offense can keep the ball from the Pittsburgh D, they should be able to put up some serious points. This looks again like 27 points might be the trick to come out of Acrisure Stadium with a victory.

To assist with the offense, WR Christian Watson has been activated off the PUP list (physically unable to perform) and might make his season debut against the Steelers. Just the threat of Watson’s speed of being on the field will help stretch the defense out, vertically, thus creating more rush lanes for Jacobs and plenty of underneath soft coverage for slant routes and Tucker Kraft, whom needs to see plenty of more targets…he can’t get the ball in his hands enough.

Prediction Time

This has the making of being a close game, and Green Bay just won an uber-close game on the road against a pesky opponent. If Pittsburgh doesn’t get any turnovers (Green Bay is tied for 2^nd in the NFL with only 3 giveaways) I don’t see how the Steelers come away with a victory.

Season: 3-2-1
Overall: 110-71-1

Statistically, Arizona was the better team…all game. In essentially every category the Cardinals beat the Packers:

• 1^st Downs
• 3^rd Downs & Efficiency
• Total Yards
• Penalties
• Time of Possession

The major difference? The field goal drive before half that the offense was able to get into field goal range with only 7 seconds left on the clock. That was a huge momentum stabilizer and put the Packers within a touchdown getting the ball coming out of the half. The 2^nd was the lone turnover in the game. Rashan Gary’s strip sack led to a touchdown and tying the game. This is the prime example of how turnovers can flip a game – putting the lesser-playing team on top. The phrase “the better team lost” applies here as Arizona was the better team on Sunday, but the phrase “(they) didn’t deserve to win” almost never applies as the winning team found a way to score more points, which is the point.

That, and Micah Parsons. The man had 10 QB pressures, 4 tackles for loss, and obviously the 3 sacks. Each sack occurred in a huge situation. The first came on 3^rd & Goal from the Packers’ 8-yard line, holding Arizona to an opening drive Field Goal instead of a Touchdown. The Cardinals opened the game with a 15-play, 59-yard drive that took 7:26 off the clock and set the tone for how they were going to play.

Parsons’ 2^nd sack came with 9:50 left in the 4^th quarter on 3^rd & Goal, again. It kept Arizona out of the end zone once again and they settled for a Field Goal. Giving Arizona a 23-20 lead.

His last sack came on the last drive of the game, on 1^st & 10 from Green Bay’s 26-yard line. It forced Arizona to use a timeout and put them way behind the sticks (making the 1^st down line further than expected to gain with the remaining downs).

Stats Can Lie

While Jacoby Brissett put up a “monster” game, I can make the case that Jordan Love played better. Brissett’s stat line of 25/36 (69.4%), 279 yards, 2 TD, 0 INT, 110.8 rating. However, he failed to get rid of the ball and took 6 sacks, one led to a game-changing fumble (referenced earlier) while Love was 19/29 (65.5%), 179 yards, 1 TD, 0 INT, and a 93.9 rating. Love took 1 sack, missed 2 throws, but when it mattered, he came through. On the final drive Jordan was 2/3 for 22 yards with the 15-yarder coming on 4^th & 2 from Arizona’s 29-yard line. The Packers were well within Field Goal range (having Havrisik nailing a franchise-record 61-yarder right before half). Clutch matters, and Love proved it once again.

Signs of a Good Team?

Green Bay had the yardage advantage of 200 : 23 in the 1^st half only to lead 10-0 at halftime. However, I believe, the Packers are the only team to hold a double-digit lead in every game they’ve played. Aside from special teams disasters and reluctant 2^nd half defense, the Packers could (should) be 5-0.

Speaking of that 2^nd half defense, Green Bay relinquished 18 second half points against Joe Flacco and the Bengals. That doesn’t seem so bad now considering Flacco beat the 4-1 Steelers on Thursday night, and their OL held up against a solid pass rush.

2nd Half Defense MUST Improve

Green Bay has pitched a shutout in the 1^st quarter in all 5 games, and they’ve been the worst defense in the league in the 4^th quarter.

• v Cin – 11 points
• @ Dal – 17 points (incl. OT)
• @ Cle – 13 points
• v Was – 15 points
• v Det – 7 points

That’s 63 points, averaging 12.6 points per 4^th quarter, that’s unsustainable for a team that aspires to win the Super Bowl. Defensive Coordinator, Jeff Hafley, must combat the quick-throw game since opposing offenses realize they can’t sit back and let Green Bay’s pass rush get home. In theory, zone coverage means guys aren’t open quick, but clearly that’s not working in the 2^nd halves of these games.

Offense Seems to be Rolling

Green Bay scored 27 points in each of their 3 home games – that “should” be enough. Jordan Morgan needs to play RG from hereon out, and he’s vastly improved since he’s been playing there consistently. Getting the OL figured out is paramount for the run game, which will help this team in every facet, defense included, by keeping them off the field.

Who Are the Cardinals?

The Cardinals started hot, 2-0, then took the 49ers to the edge losing at Levi’s Stadium 16-15. After Week 3, they had a close battle with (now) 4-2 Seattle and snatched defeat from the hands of victory by dropping the ball prior to crossing the end zone line vs. Tennessee.

As you can see, Arizona is a middle of the road team in almost every statistical ranking, and Green Bay has the opportunity to keep their offense rolling in a dome environment, much like in Dallas. The Cardinals are also terrible at holding onto the football and the Packers need to get on the takeaway train, much like last year. Their offense is too good not to give additional possessions, and this would be a great game for the Packers to increase their takeaways and get some serious momentum rolling.

How Will This Play Out?

The Packers have the advantage in each category, as well as the better QB and Head Coach. If the 2025 NFL season has proven anything, it’s that any team can beat another on any given Sunday. While that’s always been the mantra, it rarely happens. However, the Packers have succumbed to this as they dropped a game against the Browns, inexplicably. Hopefully that along with the tie in Dallas was a wake-up call and motivates this team to finish games. It would be great to see the defense dominate all 4 quarters and restore confidence to the point where us fans were after Week 2. If Love & Co. can establish the ground game early, this would pave a path for the Packers to hang 30+ points again and ideally, cruise to victory.

Prediction Time

Season: 2-2-1
Overall: 109-71-1

Cincinnati Is Terrible

Since Joe Burrow went down with turf toe, the Bengals have become the worst team in the entire NFL. They’re 0-3 with a point differential of -76, scoring 37 points and giving up 113 in that time. If Green Bay is a great team – coming off a bye, at home…should be “easy.”

Cincinnati also has 11 turnovers, and just this last week vs. Detroit (another great team), Jake Browning tossed 3 interceptions, each worse than the last. The Packers must take advantage.

Get Right Game

This is the best opportunity for the Packers to correct all (or most) of their issues that have plagued them so far this season. Coming off a bye after 2 poor team performances, at home, with an chance to implement and gain momentum – against the worst team in the NFL – this is the time!

Cincinnati must be hopeful for Burrow’s return this season as they traded for Joe Flacco this week to buoy the Bengals’ season. Green Bay is all too familiar with Flacco already this season. Although he wasn’t great, he did lead Cleveland to their only victory of the 2025 campaign, and as we all remember, coming at the expense of the Packers.

Matchup Matrix

While Green Bay’s defense after the Dallas game took a hit in the rankings, they should feast on this Cincinnati offense. The Bengals’ offense ranks either at or near the bottom of the NFL in every category, and while Burrow hid a ton of issues, he’s not there any more and Flacco used to be capable, but he still puts the ball in danger enough to not threaten a good defense – just as he did against Green Bay in week 3.

Speaking of their atrocious offense, they rank last in the NFL in rushing and total offense. Green Bay ranks 2^nd in the NFL, still, in rush defense. The Packers should completely control this game from start to finish – especially if the Packers are the team we all want (and think) they are.

Cincinnati can’t move the ball, or score – couple that with their defense being awful, that’s the perfect recipe for domination. Cincinnati’s defense ranks in the bottom third of every major category – Jordan Love should feast in every facet and put up either gaudy numbers or blow this team out, likely both.

Every team has their challenges – the Packers have theirs, obviously – but Green Bay is in good position all things considered to correct the issues.

Correctable Issues?

Penalties are the main contributor to stalling the offense’s momentum. Almost all of this can be attributed to the offensive line and the lack of consistency they’ve had in their starting lineup. Should RT Zach Tom return, that should solidify the unit and get rookie Anthony Belton off the field – although Belton being injured might do that on its own. With OL uniformity, the ground game and Josh Jacobs should improve to the levels they experienced last season and by doing that the entire offensive unit will be back near the top in efficiency in the league.

The issues on the defense??? Well we covered the egregious holding Dallas committed, or allegedly committed that went uncalled – Micah Parsons is still generating as quick a pressure as anyone in the NFL and we’ve seen Lukas Van Ness take a huge step in progression this season. Should this continue and they stay healthy, this defense is one of the top units in the NFL, if not THE top unit. The injury to Devonte Wyatt can’t go unnoticed and the younger players (Brooks, Stackhouse, etc.) need to step up just from a depth perspective. When Wyatt is on the field, he’s the lynch pin for the defense’s run stuffing. Even when healthy, the Packers will need those rotational players to step up and help out much like TJ Slaton did last season – who ironically is now on Cincinnati.

Prediction Time

Season: 1-2-1
Overall: 108-71-1

What “Should’ve” Been a Blowout

The special teams struck again, up 13-0 and a blocked extra point flipped the game on its head. The momentum – along with DT Devonte Wyatt going out – spun to Dallas’ sideline. Give credit to the offense for weathering the storm and continuing the scoring, especially in the 4^th quarter. Dallas was shut out for a majority of the 1^st half, then scored 35 points in the final 32 minutes…unacceptable.

Love Was Great Outside of 2 Plays

While the strip-sack was obviously not on Love, it still can’t happen. Love wasn’t at fault (Rasheed Walker getting beat in < 2 seconds), he’s got to find a way to feel the pressure and keep the ball. The other play was a missed open receiver (Tucker Kraft, I believe), but the overall stat line was extremely efficient, especially once the OL improved the pass protection. Love’s stat line: 31/41; 337 yards; 3 TD; 0 INT; 118.1 RAT. Had Green Bay pushed it, not necessarily the play-calling, but more the urgency (or lack thereof) at the end of OT, Love might’ve finished with 4 TDs and 350 yards…

Also, while complaining about officiating is a losing take, it was egregiously bad. There were countless holds committed by Dallas that went “unseen” and directly led to 21 Cowboys points. Had just 3 of the egregious holds been called (there were at least 4 against Parsons alone), Green Bay wins 37-16, which is about the expected score, but alas, they weren’t and the Packers still should’ve come out victorious.

Outside of Wyatt

Edgerrin Cooper has his worst game a pro. He over-committed on rush lanes, missed plenty of tackles, and seemed a step slow. I don’t think it was due to injury, but chalking it up (for now) as a bad game. There will be concern if this happens again against an awful Cincinnati Bengals team.

Quay Walker – the other Inside Linebacker – had a solid game, again. He was firing rush gaps and playing very aggressively, making tackles in the open field and seemed to be in the right position at the right time, often.

Where Does Green Bay Stack Up?

The rush defense has stayed steady, which is a great sign, but with Wyatt exiting, the pass defense reverted to the Joe Barry-led defense…not a good sign that 1 player seems to have that large of an impact on an entire unit – the same can be said with Right Tackle Zach Tom on the offense.

We’d like to see this defense get back on track, and likely will against lesser offenses coming up. The main concern is to see if this team can string wins together away from Lambeau Field. Currently the Packers are 2-0 at Lambeau and 0-1-1 on the road. If not for the special teams, the Packers would be 4-0 without having put together a complete game. The tie sure felt like a loss, and it should’ve, but in the grand scheme of things, the Packers are in great shape to accomplish everything they’ve set their eyes on at the onset of the season. Just keep winning and things will sort themselves out.