Rodgers, Packers seek first road win at the Buffalo Bills
From Various Sources
GREEN BAY (3-4) at BUFFALO (5-1)
WHEN/TV: Sunday 8:20 p.m. EDT, NBC.
OPENING LINE: Bills by 10½
AGAINST THE SPREAD: Green Bay 2-5; Buffalo 4-2.
SERIES RECORD: Bills lead 8-5.
LAST MEETING: Packers beat Bills 22-0 on Sept. 30, 2018, in Green Bay.
LAST WEEK: Packers lost to Commanders 23-21; Bills bye.
PACKERS OFFENSE: OVERALL (20), RUSH (18), PASS (17t), SCORING (23).
PACKERS DEFENSE: OVERALL (8), RUSH (27), PASS (1), SCORING (14t).
BILLS OFFENSE: OVERALL (1), RUSH (16), PASS (1), SCORING (2).
BILLS DEFENSE: OVERALL (1), RUSH (1), PASS (11), SCORING (1).
TURNOVER DIFFERENTIAL: Packers minus-4; Bills plus-3.
Bills safety Micah Hyde and receiver Jake Kumerow know Aaron Rodgers well enough to appreciate how much the Packers quarterback's words resonate in Green Bay. So when Rodgers defiantly insisted the Packers' playoff hopes, at 3-4, remain realistic despite a third consecutive loss and facing the formidable challenge of traveling to play the AFC-leading Bills (5-1) on Sunday night, the two former Green Bay players took serious note. "I've been around him before and I know that when his back is against the wall, he just rallies them," said Hyde, who rejoined the Bills this week in a quasi-coaching role after sustaining a season-ending neck injury last month. "You can't take him lightly," added Kumerow. "You've seen him. He's capable of anything."
Well, not so much this year as of yet. The Packers are off to their worst start to a season in four years under coach Matt LaFleur, and Rodgers — the two-time reigning NFL MVP — is experiencing difficulty overseeing an injury depleted offense that's also missing his favorite target after Davante Adams was traded to Las Vegas this offseason.
While Rodgers ranks 10th in the league with 1,597 yards passing and tied for sixth with 11 TDs, the offense's production has dipped over its three-game skid. After averaging 377.5 yards offense in winning three of four, the Packers are down to 270 yards offense over their past three.
What's more of a concern is how the three losses came in outings in which Green Bay led twice and was tied once at halftime. That includes a 23-21 loss at Washington on Sunday, in which the Packers led 14-10 after two quarters.
Not only did Green Bay manage a season-worst 232 yards of offense against the Commanders, it went 0 for 6 on third down, the first time the Packers didn't have a single successful third-down conversion since 1999.
Rodgers chalked it up to too many mental errors, questioned whether some players - without naming who - should be benched, and blamed himself. "I think we all need to be on the details, and that includes me," he said. And he relished the challenge that comes with Green Bay being 10½-point underdogs, the largest spread in a game Rodgers has started over his 18-year career. "I love it," he said. "I hope we embrace that role because it's probably not going to be like this for a while."
The Packers face a buzz saw of a Bills opponent that's leading the league in total yards and yards passing gained, and fewest yards and points allowed and interceptions (10). The Bills are rested following their bye, and coming off their most complete victory of the season. Josh Allen threw the go-ahead TD pass with 64 seconds left, and the defense sealed the 24-20 win at Kansas City 13 seconds later with Taron Johnson's interception of Patrick Mahomes. "It gives you that confidence that you could win in more than one fashion," receiver Stefon Diggs said of the Bills, who have twice rallied to win when trailing in the final two minutes of regulation this year. "It doesn't always have to be pretty. It could be ugly. But I'll take an ugly win over a pretty loss any day."
PRIME-TIME PACKERS
The Packers have won their last 13 regular-season prime-time games. It's the longest such winning streak for any NFL team since at least 2000. Rodgers has been particularly effective at night. The four-time MVP has thrown 45 touchdowns and just four interceptions in 18 night games since 2019. The streak began after a 37-8 loss at San Francisco on Nov. 24, 2019.
HYDING DISAPPOINTMENT
Hyde lamented missing out on what could well be his last opportunity to pick off Rodgers. The two were teammates in Green Bay from 2013-16 before Hyde signed with Buffalo in free agency in 2017. In his first meeting against the Packers in 2017, Hyde was limited to playing a quarter before being sidelined by a groin injury in Buffalo's 22-0 loss. "Any time you can (intercept) a Hall of Fame quarterback, that's something you put in your trophy case," Hyde said. "Maybe after the game, I can ask him for a football or something."
BACK IN BUFFALO
Packers receiver Sammy Watkins spent his first three seasons with the Bills, who traded up five spots in the draft order to select him out of Clemson with the fourth overall pick in 2014. Dealt to the Rams in August 2017, Watkins looks forward to his first chance to be active when facing Buffalo. "It's definitely going to be weird, but I just can't wait to get there, get those old feelings back when I was just a young Sammy and try to go out there and fight for a win," Watkins said.
JUST JOSHING
Aside from facing off against each other in golf outings, Rodgers and Allen connected by FaceTime last week. Rodgers reached out after seeing Allen and his girlfriend in a private box in San Diego attending Game 2 of the NLCS between the Padres and Philadelphia Phillies. "I was giving him some guff about being a fair-weather Padres fan," Rodgers said. Allen, who was back home in Southern California during the Bills' bye, was invited to the game by former Padres reliever Trevor Hoffman, who is married to a former Bills cheerleader.
PACKERS PLAYER TO WATCH
CB Jaire Alexander. The fifth-year starter will likely line up against Stefon Diggs. Alexander struggled last week in being beaten by Terry McLaurin on a 37-yard touchdown that put the Commanders ahead for good, and a 12-yard catch on a third-and-9 conversion with just over two minutes remaining. Diggs ranks fourth in the NFL with 49 catches, second with 656 yards receiving, and tied for second with six TD catches.
BILLS PLAYER TO WATCH
LB Matt Milano. The sixth-year starter represents a dual threat in defending the run and pass. His 26 solo tackles lead the team.
KEY MATCHUP
Packers O-line vs. Bills D-line. Buffalo’s Von Miller-led pass rush has been able to apply pressure without having to blitz for much of the season and faces a potentially banged-up Packers offensive line that was missing starting left tackle David Bakhtiari because of a knee injury last week. QB Aaron Rodgers has been sacked just 15 times this season in part because of his ability to get the ball out quickly. Buffalo is tied for seventh in the NFL with 19 sacks.
KEY INJURIES
Packers OLB Rashan Gary left the Commanders game to be evaluated for a concussion and didn’t practice Wednesday… WR Allen Lazard didn’t practice Wednesday after injuring his shoulder against the Commanders… CB Shemar Jean-Charles (ankle) also didn’t practice Wednesday… WR Christian Watson (hamstring) and OT David Bakhtiari (knee) didn’t play at Washington and were limited practice participants Wednesday… QB Aaron Rodgers is playing with an injured right thumb… The Bills are at their healthiest of the season with RT Spencer Brown (ankle) and backup RB Taiwan Jones (ankle) not practicing… CB Tre’Davious White has been ruled out two weeks after he began practicing for the first time since tearing a ligament in his left knee 11 months ago.
SERIES NOTES
The Bills are 6-0 at home against Green Bay in which they have outscored the Packers by a combined margin of 148-73… The Bills are the NFL’s only team the Packers have never defeated on the road… In their previous meeting in 2018, Bills QB Josh Allen threw two interceptions and lost a fumble in making just his third career start in a 22-0 loss at Green Bay… In his only appearance at Buffalo, Rodgers went 17 of 45 for 185 yards passing with no touchdowns, two interceptions and was sacked for a safety with 1:51 left in a 21-13 loss in 2014.
STATS AND STUFF
Since 2020, Allen ranks first among NFL players with 106 touchdowns followed by Rodgers, who has 102, with Allen holding a 19-11 edge this season over Rodgers… Rodgers has won 13 consecutive prime-time starts. It’s the NFL’s longest streak since 1970 and goes back to a 37-8 loss at San Francisco on Nov. 24, 2019… In his past 18 night games, Rodgers has 45 touchdown passes and only four interceptions… According to Sportradar, the previous time the Packers were underdogs by 10½ points or more was Nov. 26, 2017, when Pittsburgh was favored by 14½ and won 31-28 over a Packers team that started QB Brett Hundley… Green Bay hasn’t been this big of an underdog in a game started by Rodgers or Brett Favre since Oct. 2, 2006, when Philadelphia won 31-9 as 11½-point favorites over a Favre-led Packers team… The Packers are on a three-game skid, their worst in three-plus seasons under coach Matt LaFleur… OLB Rashan Gary has six sacks this season with at least one sack in five of seven games… Green Bay went 0 of 6 on third down last week, the first time the team has been blanked since 1999… The Bills have won at least five of their first six games of a season for the 12th time in team history. They’ve made the playoffs in 10 of those seasons with the exception of 2008, when Buffalo opened 5-1 before closing 2-8… Buffalo is 7-5 in prime-time games in five-plus seasons under coach Sean McDermott, including 2-0 this year… Diggs, who spent his first five seasons with Minnesota, faces his former NFC North rival for the first time since being acquired by Buffalo in a trade in March 2020. Diggs combined for 46 catches for 656 yards and eight TDs in nine games against Green Bay… Despite missing two games because of an injury, S Jordan Poyer is tied with Seattle rookie Tariq Woolen for the NFL lead with four interceptions. Buffalo leads the NFL with 10 interceptions… The Bills have outscored opponents by a combined 84-17 in the second half. The Packers have led or been tied at halftime in each of their past three games… The Packers have won their last four home games against the Bills, but are 0-6 all-time in Buffalo, most recently dropping a 21-13 game there in Week 15, 2014. The Bills are the only active franchise that the Packers have never beat on the road… The Packers fell to the Commanders, 23-21, last week, and have lost three straight games for the first time since Weeks 11-13, 2018. They have not lost four straight since Weeks 8-11, 2016. The last time they lost four of their first seven games was 2006 (also 3-4)… Last week was Green Bay's first game without a 25-yard rusher in almost exactly one year (October 24, 2021, also vs. Washington). Aaron Jones has three games this season averaging 3.0 yards per rush or lower; he had three total such games across 2020 and 2021… The Bills are coming off their bye week following a 24-20 win in Kansas City in Week 6. Since the Bills' last Super Bowl appearance in 1993, they have begun a season 5-1 four times — 1995, 2008, 2019, and this year… Last week was Josh Allen's ninth career game with at least 300 passing yards, three passing touchdowns and zero interceptions. Since his career began in 2018, only two players have more such games — Patrick Mahomes (13) and Kirk Cousins (10)… The Bills' offense has faced a blitz on 35.3 percent of its passing plays this season, fourth highest in the league. The Packers have faced a blitz just 20.2 percent of the time, second lowest in the league (Miami, 18.2). The Bills have blitzed opponents just 12.9 percent of the time, lowest in the league.
OFFICIAL INJURY REPORT (SATURDAY)
GREEN BAY PACKERS at BUFFALO BILLS | GREEN BAY — OUT: CB Shemar Jean-Charles (ankle), WR Allen Lazard (shoulder). QUESTIONABLE: OT David Bakhtiari (knee), OLB Rashan Gary (concussion), G Elgton Jenkins (knee), WR Christian Watson (hamstring). BUFFALO — OUT: T Spencer Brown (ankle), QUESTIONABLE: RB Taiwan Jones (knee).
