The Packers have the kind of roster that can make people talk themselves into big things. But the real question in Green Bay isn’t just talent. It’s whether Matt LaFleur can squeeze the most out of it.
That’s where the conversation gets interesting. The Packers are loaded enough to land at No. 10 in ESPN’s roster rankings from Mike Clay, Aaron Schatz and Seth Walder, but the biggest swing factor may be LaFleur’s approach on offense. And according to Walder, the issue is pretty clear: Green Bay hasn’t leaned into its passing game nearly enough.
“Their run-pass ratio,” Walder writes for ESPN. “Despite designing one of the league’s most efficient passing games, coach Matt LaFleur’s weakness has been leaning too heavily on running the ball.
In 2025, the Packers recorded 0.21 EPA per play on designed pass plays (second best) and minus-0.02 EPA per designed run (16th). Despite that huge gap in efficiency, the Packers ranked 26th in pass rate over expected, per Next Gen Stats.
If Green Bay puts the ball in quarterback Jordan Love’s hands more often, it should win more games.”
That’s the heart of it for Green Bay. The offense has shown it can be dangerous through the air, but the Packers haven’t consistently matched their play-calling to that reality. If LaFleur can find the right balance and let Jordan Love drive the attack more often, the ceiling rises fast.
Of course, the offense isn’t the only thing hanging over this team. How Micah Parsons and Tucker Kraft come back from torn ACLs will matter, and so will how long it takes Green Bay’s top playmakers to get back to form. Those recovery timelines could end up shaping the Packers’ ceiling just as much as anything LaFleur does with the play sheet.
If the offense finds its rhythm and the defense delivers on the promise of the roster, Green Bay has the look of a team nobody will want to draw. But that’s the challenge now.
The Packers have the pieces. This season will be about whether they use them the right way.
In Other News...
Chris McClellan Is Already Giving Packers Fans A Reason To Revisit That Pick
Chris McClellan is already making the Packers feel a little better about a draft choice that raised some eyebrows in the moment. Green Bay took the defensive lineman at No. 77 overall, betting on his college production over the raw athleticism of other options, and the early returns from offseason work have been encouraging enough to keep that conversation alive in a different way.
Defensive line coach Vince Oghobaase said McClellan was picking up technique and scheme faster than expected during the first two days, and he has also been getting first-team reps in the offseason program. For a team looking to fortify the interior, especially with Micah Parsons set to miss the start of the season, that kind of early progress matters, even if the real verdict on the pick will take much longer to come into focus. [Read more 🡒]
Packers Suddenly Face A Brutal NFC North Reality
The early look at the 2026 NFC North is not exactly flattering for Green Bay. Bleacher Report analyst Moe Moton has the Packers pegged for a last-place finish, a projection built on worries at both ends of the roster and the kind of uncertainty that can make a division race turn quickly. Even before camp opens, the offense has already taken hits with Romeo Doubs departing in free agency and Dontayvion Wicks getting traded away, leaving Jordan Love with fewer proven targets to work with.
The bigger concern is that the Packers could be forced to navigate the season with more questions than answers in key spots. Josh Jacobs status remains unsettled because of an ongoing legal case and possible league discipline, while the defense is waiting on Micah Parsons as he works back from a torn ACL with meniscus damage. In a division where every game tends to matter, that combination is enough to make a once-promising roster look a lot more fragile than it did a few months ago. [Read more 🡒]
Packers Suddenly Have A Season Defining Question Around Josh Jacobs
Josh Jacobs enters the Packers offseason with more uncertainty than anyone would have expected just a year ago. Green Bay is letting the legal process play out, and the league is doing the same, but the situation alone has turned one of the teams most important offensive pieces into a major storyline as the 2026 season approaches.
The football questions are piling up, too. Jacobs was already dealing with lingering ankle and knee issues late last season, and at 28, he is at the age when running backs start to face the usual durability and decline concerns. Even so, there remains a belief in league circles that he can still be a productive back, which is why the Packers suddenly have a real decision to make about how much they can count on him moving forward. [Read more 🡒]