How Have the Green Bay Packers Looked So Far This Season?
Two weeks into the season, and the Green Bay Packers have found themselves off to a great 2-0 start, earning attention from players, coaches, and media across the NFL. With new additions already making an impact and young players stepping into bigger roles. Green Bay looks like a team with a lot of momentum. Still, questions about depth and consistency amongst the team remain, especially with new injuries being added to tests for the Packers.
Offensively, Jordan Love has shown great leadership and command of the ball and the team through the first two games of the season, throwing the ball across the very young wide receiver group while showing great confidence in small windows. Rookie wide receiver Matthew Golden played great in his first few catches and on returns, while Romeo Doubs and Dontayvion Wicks continue to provide reliability on the outside. Also adding to the receiving group, Malik Heath made his presence on the team known after Week Two, coming away with a great catch on the sidelines. However, the loss of Jayden Reed to a broken collarbone brings a challenge to the team. Reed now joins other Packer wide receiver Christian Watson, who is still recovering from an injury last season, leaving a hole in the receiving core. Reed’s quickness and ability to work the middle of the field gave the offense balance and support. Now Green Bay will need other targets to step into that role during the next few months. Without Reed, Love’s window for error shrinks, and the Packers will need to lean more heavily on their depth at receiver and at the tight end position with Tucker Kraft, who has shown to be a reliable target for Love over the first two games of the season.
The offensive line has done its job as well over the first two games of the season. Thus, allowing Love more time in the pocket. The offensive line held two of the best defenses in the league to just two sacks, both in the win over the Commanders last week. Rasheed Walker and Sean Rhyan remain steady on the line. However, the run game has yet to find its footing, leaving Love to throw more down the field. Being able to establish a run game with second-year Packer and league veteran Josh Jacobs on the ground will be a big area for the team as the season continues, and Reed, sidelined with an injury, will also be a big factor in getting a run game going for the Packers. Giving Jacobs the ball and running will take the pressure off the passing game and maintain control of the tempo of the game against tougher defenses as the season continues.
Defensively, Green Bay has taken some large steps in the right direction. First, the new addition of Micah Parsons, whose skillset has already improved the front line for the Packers. Parsons' abilities, combining power and speed, have already created mass chaos in the backfield. Opposing teams have now been forced to account for him on every snap he lines up for on the field. This creates chances for other Packers players to make big plays for the team, like Lukas Van Ness and Edgerrin Cooper, who have made big plays in the first two weeks of the season, both with and without Parsons on the field. Both Van Ness and Cooper are bringing athleticism and range in the middle that Green Bay has been missing in recent years, and their development will be key as the defense looks to expand on the current momentum.
However, one area the team is showing signs of struggle is depth at cornerback after the release of Jaire Alexander this offseason, and dealing with injuries. Some good news on that front is that Nate Hobbs was back in the lineup for the Packers in Week Two after missing opening weekend due to injury. If injuries continue like this defensively, Green Bay could be stretched thin against versatile offenses. With Parsons setting the tone up front and Xavier McKinney back in command of the secondary, this young defensive group provides the offense with the strength to win and control games when called upon. Two games into the NFL season, the Packers look to be both aggressive while working out kinks and developing their young players into bigger roles. The sky’s the limit for this Packers team, but continuing to overcome injuries and building consistency on both sides of the ball will prove whether this promising start will end with the team having a winning season.
