Good afternoon, everyone. The Green Bay Packers will kick off the 2022 season against the Minnesota Vikings at U.S. Bank Stadium on Sunday. It’s crazy that we finally made it to kickoff weekend. As in years before, I’ll be giving my thoughts on what the Packers need to do on all sides of the ball to win each game. Without further delay, let’s get started.
On offense, it’s important for the Packers to have a balanced attack. Yes, they have the combo of Aaron Jones and AJ Dillon at running back, but I have a feeling that those two backs will be utilized in the passing game through screens and (hopefully) wheel routes. The biggest concern for the Packers is the health of the offensive line. Both David Bakhtiari and Elgton Jenkins are listed as questionable on the injury report. The issue is that it’s a long season and Jenkins hurt his knee on that artificial turf last year. I have hope that they’ll both play on Sunday to help protect Aaron Rodgers from a defense that includes Eric Kendricks and former Packer Za’Darius Smith. The O-Linemen (plus any other blockers) also need to make the holes necessary for Jones and Dillon run for big gains. Another challenge for the Packers on offense is the most likely absence of WR Allen Lazard. For some reason, he got stepped on and was listed as doubtful on the injury report with an ankle problem. I’m hoping that the injury is not too serious. The receivers and tight ends available for the game are Sammy Watkins, Randall Cobb, Robert Tonyan, Marcedes Lewis, Josiah Deguara, the duo of Jones and Dillon, and the two rookies (Christian Watson and Romeo Doubs). I have no doubt that Matt LaFleur will design ways to get these guys open for Rodgers to throw to. There will also be times when Rodgers will come up with stuff at the line of scrimmage. I still think that Rodgers will be able to catch the defense offsides with a hard count. As long as he is protected, he should throw to his receivers, who need to run the right routes and catch each ball (other than throwaways). Most importantly, the Packers need to sustain long drives to win the time of possession battle while avoiding turnovers and penalties. When they get in the red zone, they need to capitalize each opportunity with a touchdown rather than settling for a field goal. There might be some growing pains for the offense, but I hope that they get out of those quickly, especially in front of a hostile crowd and the horn that plays in that stadium.
Defensively, the key for the Packers is to keep the ground game in check. Luckily, the Packers have plenty of players capable of getting to Dalvin Cook (or any other ball carrier) and bring him down. Among them are De’Vondre Campbell, Rashan Gary, Kenny Clark, Preston Smith, plus rookies Quay Walker and Devonte Wyatt. The key is to tackle the ball carrier without letting him make forward progress. The defenders also can’t allow the runner to break tackles for extra yardage. If the defense is able to keep the run game in check, then the pass rush can get after Kirk Cousins. Even if they don’t sack him every time, they could force him to throw passes that can easily be picked off by the likes of Jaire Alexander, Rasul Douglas, Eric Stokes, Darnell Savage, and Adrian Amos. In other cases, those defensive backs need to keep the WR corp of Minnesota, led by Justin Jefferson and Adam Theilen in check (plus Dalvin Cook in some cases). Jefferson, in particular, is the most dangerous receiver that the Vikings have. I have no doubt that Jaire will stay with him (along with some safety help) and try to limit his impact. If there’s chances for interceptions, then any player needs to capitalize on it (especially for a pick-six). The most important thing for the Packers defense to do is to not let the Vikings sustain drives that can exhaust them. If they get in the red zone, the Packers need to limit them to field goals rather than allowing them to score touchdowns. I’m confident that Joe Barry’s unit will be ready for anything.
On Special Teams, the key for the Packers is to avoid any crucial mistakes that can give the Vikings extra momentum. An example is giving up a blocked punt that could be picked up for a touchdown. I hope that with Rich Bisaccia at the helm, mistakes like that are kept to a minimum. The line protecting the punt and field goal attempts needs to keep defenders from coming anywhere near the kicks. Jack Coco needs to snap each ball accurately. On field goal attempts, the holder (most likely punter Pat O’Donnell) needs to secure the ball for Mason Crosby to kick the ball cleanly. I’m happy that Crosby is back, and I hope that he can play well this year. With better protection, he should have less moments of weird missed kicks. On punt and kick return situations, the guy returning the kicks needs to make sound decisions with the ball. If there’s no room for a punt return, he needs to call for a fair catch. If there is a chance, he needs to make the most of it by following the blocks and running north instead of fidgeting left and right. On the other side, the return coverage unit needs to keep the return man in check to keep a long run from happening. In the dome, every kickoff should result in a touchback on both ends. Considering the fact that Mason Crosby is coming back from a knee issue, Pat O’Donnell should be kicking off each time to ensure a touchback. I really have high hopes that the Special Teams unit will be better than the past couple of years.
Overall, I’m looking forward to the game on Sunday afternoon. There will be some challenges for the Packers, both on the field and surrounding it. I have confidence that they will get through those challenges and come out of Minnesota with a 1-0 record. Regardless of the outcome, I’ll be back on either Monday or Tuesday with my postgame thoughts. I also pray that nobody on either team gets injured during the game. Have a great weekend, everyone. Go Pack Go!
Comments