Week One in the NFL is always one of the hardest to glean useful information from. Starters see less time then ever in the preseason. New schemes are being used for the first time. Rookies are seeing their first real action. Some fields should have never been allowed to be used at any point ever. The point is that any takeaways from week one should be taken with an enormous grain of salt. It’s also the week that brings out the hot takes, and the Packers are no exception.
I’m going to lean into that uncertainty and give you a few of my own hot takes. Arguments that may not stand up to scrutiny, but that I felt strongly about coming off of Friday’s loss.
Packers TAKE #1
Green Bay was the better team on Friday.
Yes I know how that sounds and I’m saying it anyway. First off, lets talk about the field:
The field wasn’t the only opponent the Packers were faced with however. If you’re anything like me, the biggest thing you enjoy about primetime football are the refs. The refs did not disappoint in that regard calling a staggering 17 penalties over the course of the game. Now just like the field, you can say it hit both teams. However, Green Bay was the recipient of not only bad calls like this:
They also had the pleasure of crucial penalties not being called on the Eagles like this:
Packers TAKE #2
Jayden Reed is WR1.
Hopefully Coach LaFleur doesn’t read this because we all know how he feels about this discussion. After an incredible 138 yards and 1 TD on just four catches, plus a rushing TD, Reed has laid claim to the #1 spot.
Reed is more explosive than Doubs, has better hands than Wicks, and fights through contact better than Watson. Plus, he’s just plain fun to watch:
Reed was the leading receiver on this team last year as a rookie. He trailed only Doubs in targets against the Eagles, while providing upside as a rusher.
I think it’s undisputable right now that Reed is the top WR on this team. At least until next week when Watson goes off for 120 and three TDs.
Packers TAKE #3
Lukas Van Ness is on bust watch. Is it way too early to be making this call? Probably. But as the Eagles offense took off in the second half, you couldn’t help but wonder where the 12th overall pick of the draft from just a year ago was.
Green Bay has a history of taking players based on their potential upside and sometimes it pans out, like with Rashan Gary. But that comes with risks, and if Van Ness continues to be the 4th guy on the depth chart, the concerns will only keep growing.
Rookie Watch
I wanted to close this out taking a moment to highlight two rookies that I thought stood out in different ways on Friday.
Javon Bullard was my favorite pick from the ’24 draft. Green Bay came out of 2023 with one of the worst safety rooms in the NFL. The Xavier McKinney signing got most of the attention, but Bullard may be just as important.
Bullard totaled 11 tackles in first start ever. He did it on a field that was a mess. Played 100% of the defensive snaps. And maybe best of all:
The other player I wanted to quickly mention was Green Bay’s other second round pick, Edgerrin Cooper. Cooper was on the other end of the spectrum from Bullard, playing only 11 snaps as he works his way back from a preseason injury. What we saw in those snaps however was extremely encouraging. Cooper posted a 85.9 PFF grade, and looked the part in limited action:
When you pay your quarterback a top five salary in the league hitting on rookies becomes more important than ever. If guys like Bullard and Cooper continue to shine the Packers will no doubt be a contender moving forward despite the early loss.
