The Packers walk into Week 2 with the kind of urgency that comes from a bad loss and a short week of reflection. After letting a game slip away against the Vikings, Green Bay now heads to MetLife Stadium to face the Jets in a matchup that suddenly feels a lot bigger than it did a week ago.
For Green Bay, the headline is simple: stop the slide. The Packers are trying to pick up their first regular season win since last December, and they’d like to avoid an 0-2 start for the first time since 2006. New York, meanwhile, brings a 1-0 record into its first home game of the season and will try to keep the early-season momentum rolling.
The biggest question for the Packers starts up front. Last week, the offensive line had only a handful of good moments before Minnesota’s pressure took over and swallowed the game.
Jordan Love was effective for three quarters, but the protection broke down once the Vikings ramped up the blitz. The Jets may not come with that same kind of all-out pressure, but they have real heat off the edge with Will McDonald IV, rookie top pick David Bailey, and others.
Add in the weather, and Green Bay’s line is under the microscope.
The forecast only sharpens that concern. Heavy rain is expected throughout Sunday, and that sets up the kind of messy game where every mistake gets magnified. The Packers already had trouble staying in sync in clean conditions last week, so a sloppy afternoon at MetLife would only make the margin for error thinner.
Green Bay’s defense will also need to do its part. The score against Minnesota made the unit look worse than it was, and the Packers actually held up reasonably well for much of that game.
That won’t matter much if they can’t do it again against a Jets offense with more juice than it may get credit for. Geno Smith is running the show, and even though he threw for only 215 yards and no touchdowns in Week 1, he was 19-of-24 and didn’t put the ball in harm’s way.
The Jets also have Breece Hall, Garrett Wilson, offensive tackle Olu Fashanu, and more pieces that can make life difficult.
There are a few Packers who could swing the day if things break right. Aaron Banks is the biggest one, assuming he plays.
If he’s available, he instantly matters because Green Bay’s line needs help, and Donovan Jennings is not the same answer. Banks’ 2025 season wasn’t still, but the Packers would take him in a heartbeat over what they had last week.
In ugly weather, getting that starting guard back would be a major boost.
Trey Smack is another name to watch. The rookie kicker was impressive in his debut, drilling a 59-yard field goal against the Vikings.
But that came indoors, and this game could be a very different challenge. Smack has had trouble with the tricky conditions at Green Bay’s practice facility, and with rain in the picture, he’ll need to be sharp whenever his number is called.
MarShawn Lloyd also has a chance to shape the game. Green Bay’s backfield was basically a nonfactor last week, and that can’t happen again if the weather turns the game into a slog.
The Packers need a real run game, and Lloyd is the lead back who has to carry that load. Chris Brooks and Kaleb Johnson could factor in too, but this is Lloyd’s chance to show why the team trusted him.
If Green Bay is going to leave with a win, the formula is pretty clear. The Packers need to run the ball better than they did in Week 1, where they finished with 66 rushing yards and just 3.1 yards per carry.
Lloyd averaged 2.8 himself, which simply won’t get it done. They also need to make Geno Smith uncomfortable and force the kind of mistake-free rhythm the Jets enjoyed last week.
And after wasting four red-zone trips against Minnesota by scoring only once, the Packers have to be far more ruthless inside the 20. That’s where this game can tilt, and where Green Bay has to clean up its act.
In Other News...
Packers Draw More NFL Discipline After Van Ness Controversy Takes A Turn
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Safety Evan Williams also drew a fine, taking a $7,087 hit for unnecessary roughness on a defenseless player in a play involving Justin Jefferson. Javon Bullard was flagged for unnecessary roughness on a hit that injured Vikings quarterback Kyler Murray, though he was not fined, leaving Green Bay with discipline that reaches beyond the box score and back into the league office. [Read more 🡒]
Packers Suddenly Have An Early Problem Fans Cant Ignore
Week 1 gave the Packers an early snapshot that was hard to shrug off. In a broader look at several opening-week performances around the NFL, Green Bays offense drew attention for the wrong reasons, with the offensive line and running game both showing issues that could quickly become more than a one-week annoyance if they linger.
For a team that expected to come out of September with some clarity on who it is offensively, the concern is less about overreacting to one Sunday and more about how the pieces fit together from here. Opening-week concerns can fade, but when the front five and the ground game both look out of sync, it leaves the Packers with an early problem fans cannot ignore. [Read more 🡒]
Packers Get Reassuring News On Rookie Corner Before Jets Game
Brandon Cisses week got a lot calmer after a shaky opening night. The Packers rookie cornerback is off the injury report now after dealing with cramps that forced him out of the season opener, a notable development for a secondary that could use all the stability it can get heading into Week 2 against the Jets.
Cisse was back for a full practice and is expected to have a significant role on Sunday after starting last game and playing 49 defensive snaps before leaving. For Green Bay, the encouraging part is not just that he seems ready to go, but that the rookie who was already trusted in the starting lineup appears set to resume that responsibility without any lingering concern. [Read more 🡒]