The Packers escaped with an overtime win over the New York Jets, but it didn’t feel like much of a rescue job.
Green Bay came away with the result in East Rutherford, yet the problems were hard to miss. Jayden Reed and Zach Bako-Bewele went down with injuries early, the offense managed just 199 total yards, and the Packers finished with only 63 rushing yards in the rain. That’s not the kind of stat line that usually leaves a team feeling good after a win.
CBS Sports analyst Garrett Podell thinks the early season issues could put Matt LaFleur in a rough spot.
“Playing down to a New York Jets squad that is very much rebuilding and starting a washed-up Geno Smith at quarterback isn’t something for Green Bay to celebrate,” Podell writes for CBS. “There’s a case that LaFleur isn’t even starting his best five offensive linemen available, even with injuries.
Reports said 2026 fifth-round rookie Jager Burton outplayed undrafted veteran Donovan Jennings and 2024 fifth-round pick Jacob Monk. However, Jennings started at left guard to fill in for an injured Aaron Banks in Week 1, and Monk started at right guard in Week 2.
Plus, entering the Week 2 Sunday afternoon games, the Packers’ 26 penalties lead the NFL.
“The lack of discipline, as indicated by the penalties, and the general offensive ineptitude should have LaFleur feeling some heat, despite signing an extension this past offseason. He’ll need to tighten things up on his football team, and if not, Green Bay and their coach likely won’t have much to celebrate going forward”
The overtime finish covered up a lot, including the bad taste left by Green Bay’s Week 1 collapse in a loss to the Minnesota Vikings and Brian Flores.
Even with the win, this doesn’t look like a Packers team that’s clicking. If that doesn’t change soon, the pressure on LaFleur is only going to rise.
In Other News...
Packers Sideline Clip Adds To Fans Frustration During Ugly Blowout
The Thursday night mismatch in Atlanta had already turned into a long evening for Green Bay, with the Falcons building a 35-14 lead behind Michael Penix Jr.'s sharp season debut and Bijan Robinson's dominant night on the ground. For a Packers team trying to hold together in a rough start, the scoreboard only added to the frustration as the game slipped further away.
A sideline clip only sharpened the uneasy mood around the team, showing Micah Parsons, who is on the Reserve/Physically Unable to Perform list with a knee injury, being ignored by teammates during the blowout. It was the kind of small moment that can take on a bigger meaning in a lopsided loss, especially when the on-field problems are already loud enough. [Read more 🡒]
Micah Parsons Had A Brutal Sideline Moment During Packers Meltdown
The Packers Thursday night trip to Atlanta has turned into a long, uneasy watch, with the Falcons in control and Michael Penix Jr. and Bijan Robinson powering the gap on the scoreboard. Green Bay has had little answer on either side of the ball, and the frustration has been obvious as the game has slipped further out of reach.
Micah Parsons has been part of that sideline scene as well, watching from the Reserve/Physically Unable to Perform list while his knee injury keeps him out of action. For a team already trying to steady itself in a lopsided loss, seeing one of its biggest defensive names reduced to a spectator only sharpens the sense of how thin the margin has become. [Read more 🡒]
Packers Fans Had To Notice Micah Parsons During That Collapse
The Packers latest stumble was another reminder of how much Micah Parsons has meant to their season, even while he is nowhere near full strength. Green Bay has struggled badly in the games he has missed, and Thursday night against the Falcons offered the kind of lopsided script that makes his absence impossible to ignore.
Parsons, still sidelined after the severe left knee injury he suffered in December and recovering from reconstructive surgery, was down on the sideline watching the game unfold. For a team that brought him in through a trade from Dallas and locked him up with an extension, the sight of its biggest defensive star in street clothes during another collapse only sharpened the frustration. [Read more 🡒]