Good afternoon, everyone. On Sunday, the Green Bay Packers will take on the Detroit Lions at Ford Field. The Packers are looking to end a four game losing streak and save their season from potential disaster. The Lions look easy on paper, but they always play hard against the Packers no matter how bad their record is. As always, I am here to give you my thoughts on what the Packers need to do on all sides of the ball to win on Sunday (hopefully by double digits). Without further delay, let’s get started.
On offense, the Packers need to have a balanced attack. Last week, the Packers ran for over 200 yards against Buffalo. It helped that the offensive line created the holes for Aaron Jones and AJ Dillon to run through. Against Detroit’s defense, I have no doubt that the O-Line will help Jones and Dillon run for plenty of yards. In the passing game, the O-Linemen need to win their battles in the trenches and keep the pass rush from getting after Aaron Rodgers too often. If they are able to do that, then Rodgers will have time to throw accurate passes to his receivers, who include Romeo Doubs, Samari Toure, Robert Tonyan, and the running backs. I do hope that Allen Lazard and Christian Watson get to play on Sunday against the Lions. Lazard has dealt with a shoulder injury since the game against Washington and Watson suffered a concussion last week. If they are able to play, then the playbook will be fully open for Matt LaFleur and Aaron Rodgers. It was great to see Doubs and Toure get a touchdown last week. I do hope that Rodgers does that again to build more trust with those 2 guys. Considering that the Lions’ secondary has given up a lot of yards and points, I have hope that the Packers can score at least 30 points for the first time this season. As long as they sustain long drives, convert third downs, and stay away from turnovers, I’m sure that the Packers will get it done. Reminder for the offense: play complimentary football for all 4 quarters to give the defense some rest.
On defense, the Packers need to play a great game against a Lions offense that, while led by quarterback Jared Goff, could be dangerous. There are two players in particular that the Packers defense need to focus on. The first is running back Jamaal Williams, who used to play for Green Bay before he left for Detroit last year. He has scored 8 touchdowns so far for the Lions in 2022, and it is up to the defensive front to keep him from scoring one against Green Bay. Guys like Kenny Clark, Preston Smith, Rashan Gary, TJ Slaton, Jarran Reed, and Quay Walker should be able to tackle Williams (and any other ball carrier) to the ground for minimum gain with no missed tackles at all. Walker, in particular, might be wearing the green sticker on his helmet to hear the play calls considering the fact that De’Vondre Campbell will miss this game due to a knee injury. Krys Barnes was activated for this game because of this injury to Campbell and will likely be with Walker in the ILB area. The second player that the Packers need to focus on is WR Amon-Ra St. Brown, who is no doubt the Lions’ top receiver with Jameson Williams, who was drafted by the Lions this year, still recovering from a knee injury from his college career. Joe Barry needs to grow a pair and keep Jaire Alexander on St. Brown. I am tired of seeing Jaire not covering the opposing team’s top receiver. This all started with Justin Jefferson in week one at Minnesota. If St. Brown has a big day on Sunday, then Barry’s seat is scorching hot and his days are numbered. Hopefully the pass rush can get after Jared Goff early and often so the defensive backs don’t have to worry too much about allowing too many catches. Jaire, Rasul Douglas, Eric Stokes, and the rest of those DBs need to make the most out of any opportunity to intercept a Jared Goff pass. I’m still hoping that the Packers get a pick six this year. As long as the Packers offense does their part in terms of playing “complimentary football”, the Packers defense should have enough energy to force the Lions to multiple stalled drives and (hopefully) a couple of turnovers. I’m sure that the defense will play hard on Sunday to make sure the Lions don’t make this a close game.
On Special Teams, the “complimentary football” thing still applies. They need to avoid critical mistakes and penalties that could mess up the Packers on either offense or defense. For example, Pat O’Donnell needs to punt the ball deep into Lions territory, preferably near the goal line, to give the defense a big field position advantage and a potential opportunity for a safety. Jack Coco, in addition to snapping the ball for O’Donnell, must help protect the kicks from getting blocked along with the rest of the line. This also applies to any field goal attempts by Mason Crosby. O’Donnell needs to secure the hold and Crosby needs to make the kicks when he is called upon. On punt returns, I only hope that Amari Rodgers doesn’t fumble the ball and give the Packers an ok field position to start on offense. Keisean Nixon needs to make the most of his opportunities on kick returns and hope that there’s no penalty that negates a long return, like what happened last week. On the other side, the coverage unit needs to make sure that the Lions don’t return any punts or kickoffs for a big chunk of yards. Since the game is being played in a dome, each kickoff should result in a touchback for both teams. Pat O’Donnell can help with the lack of returns by punting the ball deep and out of bounds. Rich Bisaccia’s unit needs to play their best to help the Packers win this game. I’m sure that his coaching will get the players motivated to do so.
Overall, this game is an absolute must-win for the Packers. If they don’t get it done against this team, then this season might be a lost cause. Other than hoping for a Green Bay win, I pray that no injuries happen on Sunday for either team. I’ll be back on Monday or Tuesday with my recap no matter what the outcome is. Hope you all have a great weekend. Go Pack Go!
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