The Packers need to win versus the Lions on Sunday. It is hard to believe that the Green Bay Packers find themselves in this position where they are in a must-win this early in November but they are. The Lions have the worst record in the NFL but have been in every game. They know how to fight and with the Packers history of recent struggles in Detroit, this game will not be a cake walk. If one looks at the next three games for the Packers after Detroit, you will see those teams have a record of 20-4. The Packers are in a must-win game for sure. If the Green Bay Packers lose, the season could already be over. So what do the Packers have to do to win?
The Offense
The Packers Offense has to generate points. Last week against the Bills, they ran the ball effectively for over 200 rush yards, however, were only able to put up seventeen points. The Packers need to marry their effective run game with the pass to get their young receivers open to make big plays. Run the ball well and set up the play action for some shot plays.
Aaron Rodgers went as far as to say, “we’re going to have to push the ball down the field to win games in this league.” He is not wrong.
Aaron Rodgers is beginning to trust (maybe out of necessity) his young receivers, and if they can be healthy, they will have every opportunity to stretch the field and “push the ball down the field.” This will be essential against this weak Lions defense and could be a foundational game for the Packers young receivers. The Packers will need to score a lot as the Detroit Lions are averaging 35.8 points per game at home.
The Defense
The Detroit Lions are averaging 24.7 points per game with most of their points being scored at home. The Packers defense will need to shut down the receivers for the Lions. They have the corner backs to do this though the tackling needs to be better with the safeties, in particular Darnell Savage. The Packers will not have to worry about T.J. Hockenson, however, as he was traded to the Vikings. This still leaves Amon-Ra St. Brown who is still very much a threat.
The Packers defense also needs to get more of a pass rush and this can be done with more pressure from Kenny Clark on the interior defensive line and from the talented edge rusher Rashan Gary. The Packers pressure needs to force Jared Goff into making mistakes and force turnovers. The Packers defense has been doing better at getting takeaways as of late, but this definitely needs to continue.
Special Teams
The Packers special teams still needs a ton of improvement and seemingly has been cursed. Even with the addition of Rich Bisaccia this past offseason. Green Bay’s punter Pat O’Donnell has experienced more pressure on his punts than any other punter in the NFL. This cannot continue to happen or it will rear its ugly head soon enough.
Conclusion
The Packers need to win this game and it will not be easy. The Detroit Lions have been in every game this season. Even though they are 1-6, expect a battle for the Packers. Maybe, just maybe, if the Packers can win this one, they can go on a run.
“I feel like if we can just get one, then our whole momentum changes.” – Aaron Rodgers
Damon is a diehard, fully-immersed cheesehead who currently lives in southern Missouri. He teaches at a local high school and has a family YouTube channel about all things Packers. You can follow him on twitter at @packersfamily and on YouTube at The Packers Family.
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