Losers of 2 in a row, Packers visit the Giants, who have Jameis Winston taking over as QB
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Green Bay (5-3-1) at NY Giants (2-8)
Day/Time/TV: Sunday, 1 p.m. EST, Fox
Series record: Packers lead 34-28-2.
Last meeting: Giants beat Packers 24-22 on Dec. 11, 2023, at New York.
Last week: Giants lost to Bears 24-20; Packers lost to Eagles 10-7.
Packers offense: overall (12), rush (20), pass (9), scoring (14)
Packers defense: overall (5), rush (6), pass (11), scoring (7)
Giants offense: overall (14), rush (11), pass (17), scoring (t24)
Giants defense: overall (29), rush (31), pass (23), scoring (27)
Turnover differential: Packers minus-1; Giants minus-4
The Green Bay Packers have learned the hard way how dramatically an NFL team’s fortunes can change in a week or two. The Packers had the NFC’s best winning percentage after beating the Pittsburgh Steelers on Oct. 26. Just two games later, they’re looking up at the Detroit Lions and Chicago Bears in the NFC North standings. “We’ve got a special team,” running back Josh Jacobs said after the Packers’ 10-7 loss to the Philadelphia Eagles on Monday night. “I don’t think nobody in this building or this locker room has given up belief in each other and what we can do and what we feel like we can do. It’s not the end of the world. But with that being said, we do have to have a sense of urgency.”
The loss to the Eagles followed a surprising 16-13 home defeat against the Carolina Panthers. If the season ended today, the Packers (5-3-1) would have the NFC’s seventh and final playoff seed for a third straight year. They’re a half-game behind Detroit and Chicago in the division race. That’s not what Green Bay expected when it acquired Micah Parsons, believing an elite pass rusher could help a consistent playoff team develop into a legitimate Super Bowl contender. “Honestly, it’s just super frustrating,” Parsons said. “But it’s just one of them things, like we’re going to win together, we’re going to lose together, regardless of the outcome, and just being there for our teammates, regardless of who’s playing better or which side is playing better.”
Parsons and the defense have done their part. The Packers rank fifth in the NFL in scoring defense and seventh in total defense. The Packers haven’t given up more than 16 points in any of their three losses. The problem is they’ve scored 13 points or fewer in each of those games. They fell 13-10 at the Cleveland Browns before this current skid. Parsons said there’s no reason for panic and that the Packers would start winning consistently once they start playing to their standard again. He believes the offense will get going again soon. “My confidence is still high,” Parsons said. “I got Jordan Love at quarterback. I got Josh Jacobs at running back. We’re banged up at wide receiver, but we’ve still got (Romeo) Doubs, (Dontayvion) Wicks. We’ve got the weapons.”
What’s working
One week after allowing Carolina’s Rico Dowdle to rush for 130 yards and two touchdowns, the Packers limited All-Pro selection Saquon Barkley to 60 yards on 22 carries. The Eagles gained just 3.3 yards per rush as a team. ... The Packers have yielded a total of 285 yards passing over their last two games.
What needs help
The offense continues to struggle whenever it gets beyond midfield. The Packers reached Eagles territory without scoring on five separate series. A week earlier, Green Bay got inside the Carolina 35 on five of its first six possessions but parlayed that into only two field goals… The offensive line struggled for much of the night, as Green Bay had just 104 yards rushing and Love was sacked three times.
Stock up
LB Quay Walker had two tackles for loss… LB Edgerrin Cooper has forced two fumbles over his last three games… On a night when the Packers had trouble producing any big plays, WR Christian Watson had catches of 20 and 25 yards. He also had a 22-yard reception that was nullified by a penalty.
Stock down
Love has no touchdown passes in his last two games… Even with an injury to Matthew Golden limiting Green Bay’s receiving depth, WR Malik Heath still played just 20 snaps, his lowest total since Sept. 28 at Dallas. WR/CB Bo Melton, who has practiced primarily on defense this year, played more offensive snaps (26) than Heath… After setting season highs in catches (7) and yards receiving (91) against Carolina, WR Romeo Doubs had just one 5-yard reception on four targets before leaving late in the game with a chest injury.
Injuries
C Elgton Jenkins was placed on injured reserve Tuesday after leaving Monday’s game with what team officials described as an ankle injury. The injured reserve designation means Jenkins must miss at least Green Bay’s next four games… WR Matthew Golden (shoulder), DL Lukas Van Ness (foot) and CB Nate Hobbs (knee) didn’t play.
Key number
40/800 — Green Bay is the first team since the 1940 Detroit Lions to allow a total of under 40 points and 800 yards in its first three losses, according to Sportradar. The Packers have given up 39 points and 780 yards in those three games.
Packers player to watch
QB Jordan Love hasn’t thrown a touchdown pass during Green Bay’s current two-game skid, and the Packers need him to showcase the playmaking ability he displayed in three-TD performances at Dallas and at Pittsburgh earlier this season. He completed a season-low 55.6% of his passes against the Eagles. Love had 13 touchdown passes with only two interceptions in Green Bay’s first seven games.
Giants player to watch
DT Dexter Lawrence has been maligned for his lack of production this season, including criticism from retired linebacker-turned-radio analyst Carl Banks. Lawrence turned 28 this week and gets to faced a banged-up Packers offensive line missing starting center Elgton Jenkins. The time is now for one of the organization’s longest-tenured players to make an impact.
Key matchup
Giants QB Jameis Winston vs. Packers defense. With rookie Jaxson Dart in concussion protocol and not expected to be available, interim coach Mike Kafka named Winston the starter over Russell Wilson to spark the offense. Green Bay’s defense is like starting with the difficulty level turned all the way up, especially after allowing just 10 points to defending champion Philadelphia.
Key injuries
Packers: Jenkins (ankle) went on injured reserve this week… DL Lukas Van Ness (foot) has missed four straight games… CB Nathan Hobbs (knee) and WR Matthew Golden (shoulder) didn’t play Monday night.
Giants: Several starters have their availability up in the air: WR Darius Slayton (hamstring), EDGE Kayvon Thibodeaux and LB Bobby Okereke (shoulder), DL Rakeem Nunez-Roches (toe) and S Tyler Nubin (neck).
Series notes
The Giants have won the previous two games against the Packers, who last beat them in 2019 in coach Matt LaFleur’s first season as coach. Packers DE Micah Parsons, who previously played with Dallas, has been on the winning team in each of his eight career matchups with the Giants… Kafka is making his NFL head-coaching debut following the firing of Brian Daboll on Monday… New York has lost four in a row.
Stats and stuff
The Packers have scored just one touchdown in each of their last two games… The Packers have allowed a total of 39 points in their three losses… Parsons has 48 quarterback pressures this season, according to Next Gen Stats. That ties him for second in the NFL with Detroit’s Aidan Hutchinson behind Denver’s Nik Bonitto with 51… The Packers haven’t allowed a first-quarter TD all season… Packers RB Josh Jacobs has 11 touchdown runs this season to rank second in the league, behind Indianapolis’ Jonathan Taylor (15)… Packers CB Keisean Nixon has 12 passes defensed to rank second in the league to Cincinnati’s D.J. Turner (14)… The Giants blew another double-digit fourth-quarter lead at Chicago, three weeks after becoming the first team since 2013 to lose after being up 18 points or more with six minutes left… Winston is playing in a meaningful game for the first time since Dec. 15 with Cleveland, his seventh start last season with the Browns… RBs Tyrone Tracy and Devon Singletary could again split the carries. Tracy had a team-high 71 yards rushing last week, while Singletary had a season-best 73 scrimmage yards… In the absence of top WR Malik Nabers, Wan’Dale Robinson leads the Giants with 53 catches for 602 yards… EDGE Brian Burns is tied with Cleveland’s Myles Garrett for the league lead in sacks with 11 apiece.
