The Green Bay Packers find themselves 3rd in the NFC North and holding onto the last playoff spot (7th seed) in the NFC Playoff Picture. The offense must find consistency and efficiency – and that must come from Matt LaFleur and Jordan Love. While the offensive line bears the blunt of the blame, and no Super Bowl winner has had a bad OL, if the Head Coach and QB are as good as we need them to be they need to overcome the teams’ main deficiency. While it goes against all the adages of the fundamentals of football – but this is the boat we’re in – but, a pass-first offense is the only path forward. Being able to run the ball is paramount, especially in the Red Zone and to close out games in the 4th quarter, but the pass can set up the run and play-action, which is what this OL needs.
Turning to the opponent, the New York Giants blew a late lead in Chicago last weekend which was Brian Daboll’s last straw. The Giants fired their Head Coach after the collapse against the Bears – much of it coming from their star rookie QB, Jaxson Dart, getting concussed and not being able to return. Now the Giants have an interim Head Coach and are starting their 3rd string QB. Sounds like a recipe for a blowout, however, Jameis Winston is as dangerous as he is entertaining. He’s started 3 games against Green Bay in his career and has fared extremely well vs. the Packers.
While going 1-2, his stat line is:
- 45/68 (66.2%)
- 519 yards
- 7 TD
- 0 INT
- 123.3 Rating
Those are Aaron Rodgers-type stats, for the regular season, however he has yet to see Jeff Hafley and this Packers defense. While Winston can make all the throws, Green Bay needs to generate multiple turnovers and show they’re one of the best teams in the NFL as that confidence has been shattered across, not only, Green Bay fans, but the entire league.
Matchup Matrix
The Packers offense couldn’t ask for a much better opponent in order to get their groove back on track. The giants can’t stop the run, are bad against the pass, and are the 5th-worst in scoring defense. This is a great opportunity to gain over 120 yards on the ground, 300 yards through the air, and hang 40 setting up a “Get Right Game.” Even if the Packers accomplish this, it likely won’t change the feeling of Packer Nation, but will restore SOME confidence in that they can execute efficiently and score points at a high-clip.
Outside of the 2nd half against Pittsburgh, it’s been a rough go. Green Bay has only scored 14 points in the 2nd half of the last 2 games, that simply won’t cut it, especially considering the offense hasn’t scored in first quarter in 5 of their 9 games so far this season. The Packers have been a great 4th quarter team this season, having only been shut out in the last quarter in week 3 in Cleveland, which was their 1st loss of their season. All in all, if Green Bay can figure out how to start fast, they’re undefeated in those games. When the Packers have scored in the 1st quarter, they’re 3-0-1. In each of those games they’ve also put up considerable points in the 4th quarter to either force OT or seal the W. It’s imperative that LaFleur and the offense start fast allowing their defense to play with the lead and really lean on their pass rush to disrupt their opponents – given that the Giants simply aren’t a good team, it belabors the point, but it’s another reason to believe that Green Bay can get back on track. They need to score and score often. There’s only been 1 game that the Packers have scored in each quarter (Week 4 @ Dallas), and that’s the model for consistency that’s needed to prove how good of a team they are.
Prediction Time
With the Giants having an interim Head Coach, Mike Kafka, and starting 3rd stringer (Jameis Winston) they’ll likely be very aggressive as they’re playing with nothing to lose. While dangerous, Green Bay can really capitalize by generating turnovers and putting up a ton of points. If the Packers were rolling, much like last year v. San Fran, Miami, and New Orleans, this is a game they should control from start to finish. Look for Green Bay to begin the correction of the trajectory of the season today and start marching toward their goal – Super Bowl champion.
Season: 5-3-1
Overall: 112-72-1
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