Four things the Green Bay Packers must do coming off of their bye week

The Green Bay Packers head into their game with the Denver Broncos fresh following their bye week. Their start to the season has been interesting to say the least, leaving more questions than answers. 

A 2-3 start doesn’t look too bad, but two lacklustre performances and defeats means the Packers need to go into Denver and take advantage of their opponents starting the season just 1-5.

A comfortable Week 1 rout of the Chicago Bears gave hints that Green Bay could be sneaky good this season. A one-point defeat to the Atlanta Falcons was followed by a one-point win over the New Orleans Saints. 

A two-point score either way and the Packers could be 3-2 or 1-4. What followed in Week 4 was a very disappointing 14-point loss to the Detroit Lions in which their NFC North rivals looked levels above the Packers on both sides of the ball. Week 5 saw another disappointing defeat at the hands of the Las Vegas Raiders in the Monday Night Football game.

With the men in green and gold returning to the field this weekend, here are four things the Packers must do coming off their bye week! 

1. Get off to a hot start

A clear problem the Packers have had this season is their first-half offensive struggles. In the previous three games, they have scored just a total of six points (YES 6 POINTS) in those six quarters of play. Add in the first two games of the season and the Packers still only average 5.2 points in the first half so not even a touchdown per first half. 

Granted star running back Aaron Jones and wide receiver Christian Watson haven’t been fully healthy, but there is still enough talent across the offense to be doing far far better than what they have shown after five games. The slow starts aren’t sustainable and needs addressing immediately if the Packers have any aspirations of making the playoffs.

2. Protect Jordan Love

The early signs under Jordan Love were so promising and it looked as though Aaron Rodgers wasn’t being missed. However, the offensive line has really struggled to hold up and protect their QB. Once again there is context to this, David Bakhtiari is done for the season and All-Pro Elgton Jenkins has missed time which left the entire left side out of action. 

Against the Lions’ Aidan Hutchinson and Raiders’ Maxx Crosby, the offensive line had no answer and Love had no time in the pocket before having to take a sack or throw the ball away.

Another factor with Love is getting him out of the pocket and on the move. This can drag defenders around and open up play down the field, but this relies on him being provided with the time to be mobile. For the offensive line, getting Love in running plays or moving out of the pocket also means they won’t be zeroed in by the opponents pass rushers. 

3. Lean on Jones and Watson (if healthy)

Jones was electric in Week 1 against the Bears and for those fantasy football lovers, you will know he was RB1 following that performance. We haven’t really seen him since and you can tell from the level of the Packers offense. He is the main cog of the offense as he is an elite running back but is also incredibly useful in the passing game. 

Watson has been the other big miss as his ability to stretch defences opens the field for other players to find space. He missed the first three weeks of the season and then was limited against both the Lions and Raiders, but still had solid games when not at 100%. 

Get both back and healthy to face the struggling Broncos defence then Green Bay may run riot in the Mile High City.

4. Improve on defensive matchups

One thing that has been noted during the Joe Barry tenure as defensive coordinator of the Packers is very interesting matchups in games and these have to improve massively. 

Week 2 saw De’Vondre Campbell 10 yards off the line of scrimmage in man coverage against Bijan Robinson, who needed just three yards for a first down. Preston Smith is a pass rushing linebacker and many Packers fans will be very aware of the numerous times he has been put in man coverage, and none worse than Davante Adams last time out which is asking for trouble.

Having Campbell back alongside Quay Walker in the linebacker positions is crucial, along with Darnell Savage Jr. returning at safety with Eric Stokes potentially making his first appearance of the season really helps in the secondary too. This will help both defend both types of plays but the run defence really needs to improve and get after Russell Wilson this weekend to impose themselves on the game and get the record back to .500.

–

The bye week has given Green Bay time to get those key players back to full health and work on plenty of things before heading to Denver. The Broncos have really struggled and if the aspirations of reaching the postseason are to be achieved, the Packers need to go into Week 8 with a record of 3-3.