The Green Bay Packers are back at home today when they face the Vikings for the second time this season. All the way back in week one, the Packers went into Minnesota and started very hot. With just five minutes left in the 3rd quarter, they were rolling with a score of twenty-two to ten. But then everything fell apart. More specifically, the offensive line fell apart.
The Minnesota Vikings pressure that they were bringing throughout the entire game started to get home. Initially, one would think that this was just an indictment of the current state of the Packers offensive line. Go to find out that nope, it’s just the style of play for the Vikings.
But I digress. The Vikings started to finally get to Jordan Love. The offense sputtered and turned the ball over way too many times in the fourth quarter. Most of these turnovers occurred on the Packers side of the field, leaving the Vikings with a very short field. The Vikings then scored 29 straight points making what was initially a lopsided Packers dominant game quickly turn into a blowout on the Vikings side of things. With a score of 39-22, the Vikings won the rivalry’s first matchup of the season.
Now, it’s week 10 in the NFL. The Vikings are 6-2 and the Green Bay Packers are 6-3; both teams are playing for a chance to keep pace in a crowded NFC North.
This game is a BIG one!
Packers and Vikings Aren’t The Same Team
But since week one, these two teams are not the same teams from back then. On the Vikings side of things, their defense is still tops in the NFL and are very aggressive. Honestly, they look even more aggressive and have created some unique looks on that side of the ball. The Vikings are 6-2 and at the top of the NFC north solely because of their defense.
However, they have lost the last two games not because of their defense, but because of their offense. Minnesota had been suffering from a lack of talent at the quarterback position and it had been really hurting them. And so, with their team starting to flounder, they traded a third round pick to the Raiders to bring back Kirk Cousins. The thirty-eight year old quarterback had been playing well for the Raiders and will seek to continue that with the Vikings. The big question with the Vikings is whether or not the quarterback position was the sole issue, or are there deeper issues on the offensive side of the ball for Minnesota?
We’ll find out soon enough.
Green Bay Isn’t the Same Either
The Packers looked horrible to begin the year. They barely beat a New York Jets team in week two and lost Zack Bako-Bewele and Jayden Reed in that game. They then played the Falcons on Thursday Night in which they looked extremely underprepared. This is when the Green Bay offensive line looked like the worst line in NFL history.
They then went onto finally get some momentum and fix some of their line issues (not all of them by any means) and won the next five out of six games. More recently, their wins have been pretty dominant in nature. The Packers had great wins against the Bears, Cowboys, and Patriots and the Packers are now rolling. They were close to winning against a very good Detroit Lions team in Detroit if it weren’t for some controversial calls.
The Packers are primed to compete very well against this Minnesota Vikings team and the reason is simple.
Jordan Love is playing at an MVP level and the defense is very, very good!
The Importance of Being Quarterback
This game is going to come down to the quarterbacks. Which one can beat the other one’s elite defense? Initially, the Packers had a great advantage in this matchup but now that the veteran Kirk Cousins is back with the Vikings, it’ll be a lot tougher.
Jordan Love has been playing at an MVP level against the blitz. Last week, Love didn’t even have an incompletion against the blitz. And those weren’t all checkdowns either, Love has the best aDot (average depth of target) in the NFL. This is including passes against the blitz. If Love can continue this against the Vikings, the Packers could very well win this game. If Kirk Cousins comes in and can right the ship for a horrible Vikings offense, then this game will be very close if not favoring the Vikings.
It should be a fun one, that’s for sure!
But regardless!
Go Pack Go!
——————
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.
——————
