NFL.com has the Packers sitting at No. 12 in its Week 1 power ranking, putting Green Bay behind the Houston Texans at No. 10 and the Chicago Bears at No. 11.
That placement comes with plenty of baggage from last season. Chicago beat Green Bay twice, and one of those losses ended the Packers’ season in the wild-card round. The worst of it came in Chicago, where Green Bay let a 21-6 lead slip away.
Even with Micah Parsons set to miss the start of the 2026 season, NFL.com’s Nick Shook still has some faith in the Packers. Green Bay also expects Tucker Kraft to be available on opening day.
The Parsons situation remains the biggest early-season hurdle. He tore his ACL against the Denver Broncos in Week 15, and the Packers dropped all four of their games to close out 2025 after that. Parsons had ACL surgery and a meniscus procedure on December 29, and the current nine-month recovery timeline suggests he should not be back before September 29.
Parsons said on 8/4 that he may play against the Dallas Cowboys in Week 6. That line didn’t exactly send shockwaves around the league, especially since the Cowboys traded him to Green Bay last year.
His first season with the Packers was a monster one: 12.5 sacks, 19 solo tackles, 12 tackles for loss and 27 QB hits in 14 games. Green Bay is clearly waiting for the Penn State product to get back on the field.
The Packers open 2026 against the Minnesota Vikings, and the pressure is on Jordan Love to deliver like a true franchise quarterback. He signed a four-year, $220 million deal with Green Bay in 2024, and the expectation now is that he plays up to it.
Love has 11,535 passing yards and 83 passing touchdowns in his career, along with a 27-20-1 record as a starter. Last season, he threw for 3,381 yards and 23 touchdowns while completing 66.3% of his passes.
Under Matt LaFleur, Green Bay has gone 79-46-1, including the regular season and playoffs.
There’s also the Josh Jacobs factor. He is on the commissioner-exempt list, which adds another layer of uncertainty as the Packers try to navigate the opening stretch of 2026 without Parsons and with more questions than usual.
In Other News...
Romeo Doubs Just Sparked A New Packers Debate
Romeo Doubs first game with the Patriots offered a familiar reminder of why his departure from Green Bay still invites debate. Brought in during the 2026 offseason on a four-year deal, Doubs stepped into a receiving group dealing with injuries and immediately saw action in a recent game, drawing three targets as New England tried to piece together its passing game.
For Packers fans, the performance landed in that awkward middle ground where the old questions never quite go away. Doubs had one drop and one interception on the night, a rough enough debut to keep the focus on his fit and his reliability, but also a sample that feels too small to settle anything. Green Bays decision to move on from him remains part of the conversation, and this outing only adds another layer to it. [Read more 🡒]
Packers Week 1 Depth Chart Hints At Whos Winning Key Job Battles
The Packers first unofficial depth chart after roster cutdowns offered an early snapshot of how several of the roster battles appear to be shaking out heading into Week 1. Jacob Monk is penciled in at right guard, a notable sign for an offensive line spot that drew plenty of attention through camp and the preseason, while Barryn Sorrell is projected to line up opposite Lukas Van Ness at edge rusher.
Keisean Nixon also appears to be holding onto a starting cornerback job, even with fresh competition arriving through the draft and free agency. None of it is official, of course, but the chart does reflect what Green Bay saw throughout the summer and gives a useful read on which players have done enough to put themselves in position for opening week. [Read more 🡒]
Packers Defense Faces A Real Identity Debate Under Jeff Hafley
The Packers defense has already shown plenty of new wrinkles under Jeff Hafley, but the bigger question may be how willing Green Bay is to change its personnel habits to match what offenses are doing. Seattle has leaned hard into five defensive backs when opponents go with two or fewer receivers, using that grouping on 81 percent of those snaps, the highest rate in the league. Green Bay, by comparison, has gone in the opposite direction, using that look on only 14 percent of such plays, which is second-lowest in the NFL.
That contrast speaks to a broader identity debate between coaches who see the same modern passing game through different lenses. Jonathan Gannons approach with the Seahawks has emphasized flexibility, and Nick Emmanworis ability to move between slot and linebacker roles gives Seattle a kind of matchup freedom that few defenses can copy cleanly. For Hafley and the Packers, the challenge is figuring out how much of that adaptability belongs in their own version of the defense, and how far they are willing to go to get there. [Read more 🡒]