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NFC Game Of The Week
Detroit Lions at Green Bay Packers
Lions: This is the best team in the National Football League right now. I understand that the Kansas City Chiefs are undefeated and all, but let’s be real, they’ve just been getting by and I understand that a win is a win, but what I’ve seen from this team in Michigan has me paying close attention. At this moment, they have zero weaknesses. On offense, they can beat you either with the passing attack and they are balanced enough to wear you down with the ground-and-pound rushing attack, they have the best Offensive Line in the league, and how about this play of Jared Goff as of late? He has been the most efficient passer in the league and getting his weapons the football in a record fashion without turning the rock over. How they beat up the Dallas Cowboys a few weeks back shocked, yet amazed me at the same time because they were simply playing with their emotions from a physical standpoint. As the game went on, they continued to keep their foot on the gas. Even against the Minnesota Vikings, they were down, but never out of it and handed the Vikings their first loss of the season. Next, look what they did this past Sunday to the Titans or as I’ve been calling it, “Dismembering the Titans”. The Lions can beat you in so many ways and what I appreciate about them most is they don’t play down to the competition. I know they won the NFC North last year, but I feel they look better this season than they did around this time a year ago and what makes this more unbelievable is they’ve done this without Aidan Hutchinson who’s done for the year with that fractured leg. This is a team now with more experience under their belts and they’re playing with all the confidence in the world at this point. This Sunday, they will look to win another game, this time at Lambeau Field.
Packers: It wasn’t the best effort, nor was it the best looking, but they were able to get the job done. Let’s give some credit to the Jacksonville Jaguars though because they hung around and gave them all they could handle. In the end, they were able to prevail and improve to 6-2. I still think highly of Jordan Love and he could be a phenomenal Quarterback for years to come. One thing he must improve on is taking care of the ball and cutting down on the interceptions. If this is something he can improve on, good things will happen for him. The one thing I will give the Packers credit for is the way they develop Quarterbacks and since 1992, they’ve had a total of three. A Hall of Famer in Brett Favre, a future Hall of Famer in Aaron Rodgers, and now, Jordan Love watching him closely in the last year, Jordan is a mix of the guys who played before him. He can flick the ball down the field effortlessly just as Aaron did and he knows how to play improvisationaly just as Brett was known to do. Where he gets in trouble is when he’s pressured and throws the football off his back foot which is also something Brett did during his career. Two things you never want to do as a quarterback are to throw off your back foot and across your body because that can result in an interception. I’d rather take the sack than give the ball to the other team because when you’re sacked, you at least still have the ball. I’ve enjoyed what I’ve seen from this group this year. They’ve been balanced offensively and Josh Jacobs has been a godsend. All he needed to do was get away from the dumpster fire that is the Raiders and he’s prevailed. I also like the aggression I’ve seen from them on the defensive side. They get after the passer and know how to force those takeaways week in and out. When they have everything clicking, this is a team I wouldn’t want to see in January, especially in Wisconsin during January when it’s cold. They return home on Sunday for a huge divisional showdown.
Lions X-Factor: Amon-Ra St. Brown– Yes, he’s the number one receiving option for this Detroit offense, but I can see him having a huge game on Sunday. Jameson Williams is still suspended and I envision Amon-Ra having a big role this week. He’s so quick out of his releases and cuts to get open that when he breaks free, the ball is already in his vicinity or he’s already caught it. He’s also crafty and shifty in space with the football in his hands and knows how to make people miss in the open field. Last week, the Lions didn’t need much of their offense due to the defense handling most of the business and constantly putting them in good field position. This is why I mentioned that I see number 14 putting up some numbers at Lambeau on Sunday afternoon.
Packers X-Factor: Josh Jacobs– What Joe Mixon has become to the Houston Texans offense is exactly what Josh is to the Packers. He provides balance, he’s a hard runner outside or inside the tackles and he’s consistent. When you feed him the football as consistently as the Packers have, he appears to get stronger and stronger throughout the game. Josh plays with contact balance, speed, and vision and also happens to be an every-down back which is rare to see in this day and age of the NFL. He’s an elusive and physical Running Back who can run around you and will lower the shoulder to truck through you. Depending on the Quarterback situation if Malik Willis starts or Jordan Love is good to go and he’s limited, build your offensive gameplay around number eight.
Final Thoughts: What a game this should be. The NFC North has not disappointed this year and I expect this to be a battle. With a win and a Vikings loss against the Colts on Sunday night, the Packers could be in first place by the end of the day. If they were to lose this game and Minnesota wins, the Packers would be sitting in third place because Minnesota owns the head-to-head tiebreaker over them. The big story to watch in this game is the status of Jordan Love. If he does play, how healthy will he be? His movement in the pocket will be something to watch with that groin injury. There’s a strong possibility the Lions could see Malik Willis start. I love what this Lions defense is doing, even without Aidan Hutchinson. They’re active, they challenge your physicality and they force turnovers. It’s key for the Packers not to give this team any opportunity to take the football away. I’ll also be watching this Packers pass rush and can they get home to Jared Goff as he’s been having his way with defenses picking them apart left and right. His jersey has been a little too clean for my liking and the Packers will need to collapse his pocket and throw him off his spot. Here’s a fun fact, the Packers lead the league in takeaways with 19 and the Lions are tied for second with 15. This will be a battle. I like the Lions on Sunday.
Prediction: Lions 31, Packers 26
