🏈Opening Kickoff
The Packers fell to 5–3–1 after a narrow 10–7 loss to the Eagles. Despite the defense’s best efforts, Green Bay couldn’t buy a break and found themselves in a slugfest where the offense simply couldn’t deliver.
🗞️The Headline Recap
A highly anticipated cold weather primetime matchup between two NFC frontrunners turned out to be the first scoreless first half in the NFL since 2023. The Packers' defense was exceptional against the Eagles, but the Packers' offense simply couldn’t capitalize on anything they were given. There were struggles all around. HC Matt LaFleur's conservative play-calling was the major handicap. He only let Jordan Love throw 3 times in the first 16 plays, making it nearly impossible for him to get into a rhythm. Love admittedly had one of his worst games of the year, looking uncomfortable in the pocket and missing some throws, but he was not given much help by a continuously shaky offensive line and plenty of drops from his wide receivers. As a result, the Packers were consistently driving into Eagles territory but leaving with no points.
Philadelphia struck halfway through the 4th quarter, building a 10-0 lead after a 36-yard TD pass from Jalen Hurts to DeVonta Smith. Green Bay finally responded with a touchdown drive of their own, scoring their first points of the game with under 6 minutes remaining. The Packers got the ball back again with about 2 minutes remaining and (somehow) a chance to win the game. They were quickly stopped when Matt LaFleur chose to call a run from the shotgun on 4th and 1 that was stuffed after the Eagles defenders audibly recognized the play call before it even happened. Worst play call ever?
Anyway, after an insane Nick Sirianni decision to go for it on 4th & 8 to try to put the game away failed, the Packers got one final chance with 27 seconds remaining to at least tie the game. However, Brandon McManus completely shanked a 64-yarder on a cold, windy night as time expired, and that was all she wrote.
The offense managed only 261 total yards while the defense again kept them in it: the story of the 2025 season so far. On a night when “turn the page” was supposed to resonate, the Packers turned instead into a reminder that potential means nothing without execution.
🤓By The Numbers
After five games, the Packers ranked 3rd in the NFL in play action rate. Jordan Love had a 128.0 passer rating on play action. In the four games since, they rank 29th in play action usage. It might be time to go back to what was working! (h/t Daire Carragher)
Bo Melton, whose primary position is now cornerback, got more targets (5) than Christian Watson (4) against the Eagles. Interesting strategy. (h/t PackersNotes/X)
The New York Giants defense is giving up 5.5 yards per carry (DFL) and 0.16 EPA/rush (DFL) this season and has allowed 187 rushing yards per game over the last 4 games. If Matt LaFleur is hellbent on running the ball, Sunday is his chance. (h/t Zach Kruse / The Packers Wire)
📈Stock Report 📉
Stock Up
Jeff Hafley – Well, at least one half of this team looks ready to win a Super Bowl. Jeff Hafley's unit was stellar against Philadelphia, allowing just 10 points despite being on the field damn near the whole game. I'm not really sure if I should be congratulating him or extending my condolences over the wasteful death of this fantastic performance.
Rasheed Walker - This may be a hot take, but I have been of the opinion that Rasheed Walker has been one of the more stable pieces of a disastrous Packers offensive line this season. Though not elite, he brings a great energy that every team needs. His value has increased relative to a team that now needs him even more, but I think someone is going to give him a nice contract that he deserves this offseason, even if not Green Bay.
Evan Williams - Williams has been everywhere for the Packers defense all season long. He is my favorite player on this Packers defense, and he does not get enough credit, likely due to the fact that he lines up next to Xavier McKinney.
Carrington Valentine - I want to show love to as many Packers defenders as possible. Valentine had another great game on Monday and essentially took AJ Brown out of the game for Philly.
Stock Down
Matt LaFleur - I've been defending LaFleur to a certain extent all year—and I can't do it any longer. The Packers' offense came out with their tail between their legs against the Eagles with a shockingly conservative game plan that unsurprisingly only amounted to just 7 points. I'm not going to join the echo chamber of people calling for him to get fired in the near future, but I also won't be taking bullets defending him in the crossfire. Can the Matt LaFleur that was hired in 2019 please just come back?
Brian Gutekunst - His two big splash free agent signings of Aaron Banks and Nate Hobbs look worse every week. It's just so hard not to talk about it.
Josh Jacobs - I always have and always will be of the opinion that the majority of NFL running backs are mostly a product of the offensive line in front of them. Regardless, there is no denying that he has lost a step from last season, and this anemic Packers offense that is constantly facing two-deep coverages could really use a more explosive lead back right now.
🔥 Quick Hits
Matt LaFleur confirmed in his press conference on Wednesday that he will retain play calling duties, and chuckled when he was asked if there would be a change.
Matt LaFleur also announced that the Packers will stick with Brandon McManus at kicker. McManus told the Monday Night production crew that he had not felt semi-healthy until last week…so why did the Packers have him out there playing before that?
Packers C Elgton Jenkins has been placed on IR with a leg fracture. He is unlikely to return this season.
🏆 The Big Take from Brian
Boy, was I wrong about this game. Consistent readers of this column know that I usually try to focus on silver linings. But man, I am struggling this week.
Monday was one of the most uninspiring games I've ever watched, and it didn't help at all that I can't stand the Philadelphia Eagles and their unhinged fanbase. Given that, and the stakes of this game, this loss hurt extra.
This game felt like the straw that broke the camel's back, so to speak, and has finally sent the Packers fandom into a spiral of panicking, outrage, and waving of the white flag. If you'd like to participate in that echo chamber, you won't have to look very hard to find it elsewhere on the internet. I'm tempted to myself, but I'm sure I'll get that opportunity at some point later in the season if I want it. What I'm going to offer here is more of a reality check.
The most common discourse of the week is "should the Packers fire Matt LaFleur?" Newsflash: the Packers are 5-3-1. That might not be where we expected to be at this point, but it's a far cry from garbage. Until the Packers are eliminated from playoff contention or the season ends, there won't even be conversations about firing Matt LaFleur internally, I would basically guarantee it. I'm not even certain that they would fire him if the Packers did miss the playoffs. But, let's say they do fire him: who is on the street right now waiting to be hired that you can confidently say would be an upgrade? The point is, let's just can that talk until further notice. The conversation for now is what he needs to do to turn things around. We all agreed the Packers had a Super Bowl roster after the Micah Parsons trade, right? Okay, that hasn’t changed, so spare me any talk on throwing in the towel as a fan.
Here are 3 immediate ways I think the Packers can improve in the immediate future:
Trust your $220m QB. The Packers are trying to run the ball more because of the constant two-safety shell coverages they face—teams are essentially trying to take away their big-play ability and force them to run. But here's the thing: the Packers still have a very deep WR room, and especially with Matthew Golden and Jayden Reed coming back soon, they should be finding new and creative ways to get the ball in their hands quickly. The run blocking isn't going to get better overnight, and Josh Jacobs is simply not one of the Packers' more explosive playmakers right now. Maybe this won't work, but I would much rather see the Packers go down swinging than continuing to die on the same lifeless hill.
Sign an actual punt returner. For the love of God, why is Romeo Doubs returning punts? He simply doesn't have the quickness to make defenders miss in open space, and he's far too valuable as a WR to be put in harm's way like that. There is nothing this offense needs more than energy and spark. Wouldn't it be nice to have some positive momentum before the offense even steps on the field?
You want someone fired? Fire the medical staff. I'm no doctor, but something has changed in Green Bay. The once notoriously cautious Packers medical staff is putting their players in harm's way. Why was Brandon McManus telling the Monday Night Football production crew that he wasn't as healthy as the Packers claimed he was? Why is Lukas Van Ness' injury inexplicably taking far longer to heal than expected? Why was Zach Tom (earlier in the season) thrown into the fire with a clearly unhealed oblique injury, only to have to leave immediately? These situations aren't few and far between like they once were. Control what you can control and make sure your guys are healthy. Also, Jordan Love, if you're reading this, please start sliding more when you decide to run the ball yourself.
👀Looking Ahead
The Packers will head to the Big Apple on Sunday to take on the New York Giants, likely led by Jameis Winston rather than Jaxson Dart. Dart is only the headline for a team that is currently dealing with a plethora of injuries and had their Head Coach get fired just days ago.
What should be an easy “get right” win will still cause some anxiety for me. I’m old enough to remember that Jameis Winston is the type of QB who either throws 5 interceptions or for 500 yards…or both. The point is, there is definitely a scenario where the Packers find themselves in a competitive game and they need to be ready for that. The Giants front seven on defense is scary and won’t give up anything easy. Their 2-8 record is by definition, misleading. Not scared yet? In the very first game following the firing of a head coach from 2000-2023, teams won 43% of the time (16-21).
Players and coaches on both sides have plenty to prove, and the great thing about the NFL is that anyone truly can beat anyone on any given Sunday.
For my own sanity, I hope the Packers are the correct side of that in East Rutherford.
👇Final Thoughts
"No man steps in the same river twice. Because the river has changed, and so has the man.”
Till next time,
Packerscoverage
Brian Pedretti