São Paulo, Brazil witnessed a thrilling first-ever encounter of an NFL game on South American soil between the Green Bay Packers and the Philadelphia Eagles, which ended 34-29 in favor of Philadelphia. The back-and-forth contest between the teams produced over 800 yards of total football, exciting touchdowns, and turnovers to entertain the South American crowd.
But moving on from the frenzy of the Week 1 matchup, the Packers started off their season with a loss and more importantly, are in a spot of bother as QB1 Jordan Love is set to miss the next few games on account of an MCL injury he suffered toward the end of the game.
Irrespective of the injury, below are 5 reasons to still keep faith in the Packers this season.
Jordan Love’s Injury is Not as Bad as Feared
When Jordan Love went down in the dying seconds of the game, there was fear amongst Packers fans that he may have suffered a horrific injury. In fact, there was even the possibility that Love may have torn his ACL which would mean his season would have ended there and then.
However, since then it has been revealed that the 25-year-old has suffered an MCL injury which will sideline him for anywhere between three-to-six weeks. While that means Green Bay will have to turn to backup QB Malik Willis and hope that he can keep the Packers in contention, the good news is that Green Bay doesn’t have the most difficult schedule in the upcoming weeks.
The Packers will now face the Colts, Titans, Vikings, Rams, Cardinals, and Texans in the upcoming six games. It is probable that Love could return within a month and if that is the case, Green Bay’s season could be far from over as long as they have not fallen too far behind.
Jayden Reed Is Looking Like A True No. 1 for the Packers
Wideout Jayden Reed seems to have picked up right where he left last season. Once again Reed was the best receiver for the AFC North outfit as he hauled in four catches for a whopping 138 yards and a touchdown while also adding a 33-yard touchdown run.
The second-year receiver looks to have planted himself as the WR1 for the Packers despite head coach Matt LaFleur being against the idea of any such notion. According to LaFleur, Green Bay plays as a unit and is not dependent on any one receiver.
Reed led the Packers in his rookie season last year with 793 receiving yards and tied for first with Romeo Doubs for the most receiving touchdowns with eight.
High Hopes From Running Back Josh Jacobs
Although running back Josh Jacobs got off to a slow start, he finished the game with 84 rushing yards from 16 carries for an average of 5.2 yards per carry. Green Bay signed Jacobs from Vegas as a replacement for Aaron Jones who had a 94-yard, one-touchdown game in the Vikings’ opener against the Giants.
The Packers would be looking for consistency from Jacobs in the backfield and now with Love out for a few games, the majority of the offensive responsibility may fall on the shoulders of the 26-year-old.
The Packers’ Defense Forced 3 Turnovers in Week 1
Even though Green Bay’s defense did not shine as expected under Jeff Hafley, there were still a couple of takeaways from the game against Philadelphia. The Packers forced three turnovers and won the turnover battle easily, 3-1.
Defensive tackle Devonte Wyatt pounced on a fumble while the secondary forced two interceptions one by safety Xavier McKinney and the other by cornerback Jaire Alexander. Unfortunately, the Packers weren’t able to put too many points on the board, as they scored just nine from the three turnovers.
Jeff Hafley Should Improve the Packers’ Defense
In the first game of the new season, the Packers defense didn’t look much different than last season despite a change in the defensive coordinator. Packers’ have placed hopes on former Boston College head coach Jeff Hafley to improve their defense and Hafley has introduced changes to that effect.
However, a change in scheme requires time and practice so writing him off after one game is unjust. As the season advances, we should be able to see a vast difference in the Green Bay Packers’ defense especially as the pass rush starts to get more involved.
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