The Packers keep finding the same painful way to lose, and Tucker Kraft isn’t interested in sugarcoating it.
Green Bay let a 22-10 lead slip away in the third quarter against Minnesota, then watched the Vikings pour in 29 unanswered points in a 39-22 Week 1 defeat. It was the kind of collapse that has started to feel familiar for this team, one more entry in a run of blown second-half leads that also included losses to the Broncos and twice to the Bears, including in the NFC Wild-Card Round.
Kraft, who is back from an ACL injury and caught three passes for 65 yards, pointed the finger at the Packers themselves.
“That momentum swing was due to our own fault," Kraft said, via video posted to X by ESPN's Rob Demovsky. "We allowed that to happen...
The only people who can beat us are us. That’s it.
"We’re the best team in the NFL, but if we don’t go out there and play like it, no one’s going to believe us."
The message lands because the problems went well beyond one bad stretch. Green Bay’s offense stalled twice on downs, threw an interception, and watched Jordan Love get strip-sacked as the game turned. The defense, meanwhile, unraveled under first-year defensive coordinator Jonathan Gannon as Minnesota kept piling on.
Matt LaFleur’s team also ran into major trouble up front. Love was sacked four times for minus-34 yards, and the offensive line had a rough day even without the passing-game chaos. The Packers, missing star running back Josh Jacobs, who is on the commissioner’s exempt list, ran 21 times for 66 yards and averaged just 3.1 yards per carry.
LaFleur and his staff have gotten Green Bay off to strong starts, but the adjustments have been a different story once opponents start solving the plan. That leaves the Packers with plenty to answer for heading into Week 2.
In Other News...
Brewers Suddenly Have A Luis Lara Decision That Wont Go Away
Luis Laras extended run earlier in the season gave the Brewers a useful look at what he can offer when the lineup opens up. With Sal Frelick sidelined, Lara stepped into significant playing time and produced a solid enough line over 125 plate appearances, then kept himself relevant by contributing a steady on-base presence and dependable defense. For a club that has made a habit of sorting roles by performance rather than reputation, that kind of flexibility matters.
Since Frelick came back, though, Laras usage has shifted into a more complicated pattern, with his at-bats leaning into a platoon arrangement that is a little unusual for a switch-hitter. Even as the recent on-base numbers have held up, the Brewers have had to weigh how much of Laras value comes from matchups, how much comes from his glove, and how much room there is to keep both him and Frelick involved without forcing the issue. The fact that the answer still feels unsettled says plenty about how quickly this roster can turn a useful depth piece into a real decision. [Read more 🡒]
Brewers Trade Is Already Raising Questions About Their Catching Bet
The Brewers made a notable catching move when they sent Craig Yoho and Blake Perkins to Cleveland for Bo Naylor and Codi Heuer, a deal that was soon altered again when Heuer was flipped to Baltimore for cash. It was the kind of swap that immediately drew attention because Milwaukee was clearly betting on Naylors upside behind the plate, even if the early returns have been uneven and the bigger picture was still taking shape.
Yoho has settled in well with the Guardians, which has only sharpened the early reaction to the trade, while Naylor has had only limited major league chances in Milwaukee. There is still reason for the Brewers to believe the long view could look different if his Triple-A performance carries over, but for now the move is being read more as a short-term win for Cleveland than a finished judgment on Milwaukees catching gamble. [Read more 🡒]
Joey Ortiz Is Giving The Brewers A Huge October Question
Joey Ortiz spent much of the 2025 season and the early part of 2026 looking like a glove-first infielder whose bat simply had not caught up, with his offensive production sinking as low as a 52 wRC+. Since late May, though, the Brewers have seen a very different hitter. Ortiz has climbed all the way back to a 102 wRC+, and his work since the All-Star break has turned him into a far more useful presence in the lineup.
For Milwaukee, the timing is what makes this so interesting. Ortizs .331/.380/.565 line since the break has changed the way he fits around the rest of the roster, and it leaves the Brewers with a real October decision to make about how much they can count on this version of him. The question now is whether this surge is the new normal, or just the latest twist in a season that has already given them plenty to sort through. [Read more 🡒]