Through Week 11 of the NFL season, the Green Bay Packers are off to a good start with a 7-3 record. In week one, the Packers suffered a tough loss to the Philadelphia Eagles, 34-29, in the first game ever played in Brazil. In the game’s final moments, the Packers had the ball with a chance to score and start the season off with a win. However, the drive stalled out when star quarterback Jordan Love was injured with an MCL sprain with only six seconds left in the game. This injury would sideline Love for weeks two and three. Within those two weeks, newly acquired backup quarterback Malik Willis started at quarterback. In week two, the Packers took on the Indianapolis Colts and pulled off the 16-10 victory. This triumph was because of a strong showing from the defense and a great game by running back Josh Jacobs who went for 151 yards on the ground. In week three, the Packers faced off against the Tennessee Titans which was Willis’ old team. Willis got his revenge on the Titans as he led the Packers to a dominant win over the Titans 30-14. Willis played a great game as he totaled 275 yards along with one passing and one rushing touchdown.
Week four saw the return of Love against the undefeated Minnesota Vikings. The Packers fell just short in a 31-29 defeat. The loss was especially frustrating as rookie kicker Brayden Narveson missed two field goals that were both inside 50 yards. In week five, the Packers beat the Los Angeles Rams 24-19. The game was propelled by an excellent performance by tight end Tucker Kraft who had 88 yards and two touchdowns. The Packers then took on the Arizona Cardinals at Lambeau in week six. The Packers won in dominating fashion with a 34-13 victory. However, during the following week, the Packers released rookie kicker Brayden Narveson after he started the season only going 12 for 17 on field goals, which was the worst in the National Football League for this season. During the following week, the Packers signed veteran kicker Brandon McManus.
With this new addition, the Packers headed into week seven to face the Houston Texans. The Packers were able to escape with the win as McManus was able to drill the winning field goal as time expired to make the final score 24-22. The Packers then took on the Jacksonville Jaguars in week eight. Unfortunately, Love was injured again at the start of the third quarter with a groin injury. Willis came in again and was able to lead the Packers to 16 more points throughout the rest of the game. On the last drive of the game, Willis drove the ball down the field into field goal range. With the game on the line, McManus had a chance to win for the second week in a row. With time expiring he made the 24-yard field goal to win the game 30-27.
In week nine, the Packers took on the Detroit Lions. The Lions handed the Packers their third loss of the season with a 24-14 defeat. With this loss, the Packers move to 6-3 on the season heading into the bye week. After the bye week, the Packers took on their rivals, the Chicago Bears at Soldier Field. Coming into the game the Bears had not beat the Packers since 2019, when Mitch Trubisky was still the Bears quarterback. At the end of the game, it looked like the Bears were finally going to break their losing streak as they were only down by one and had a 46-yard field goal to win. However, the kick was blocked by defensive end Karl Brooks. With the block, Green Bay won the game 20-19 and extended the winning streak to 11 straight against the Bears.
The Packer’s free-agent signings have performed very well to start the season. Safety Xavier McKinney has been a great addition to the secondary. He has six interceptions on the season, which puts him in second place among defensive players in the NFL. Running back Josh Jacobs is also having a fantastic season. In week seven, he got his first career receiving touchdown against the Texans. He also ranks second in the league in yards after contact, third in rushing yards, and fifth for rushes over ten yards.
The Packers end the season with a fairly hard strength of schedule to finish the season. The teams they play have a .549 win percentage, which has them at the 10th hardest remaining schedule. They play the San Francisco 49ers in week 12, the Miami Dolphins in week 13, the Detroit Lions in week 14, the Seattle Seahawks in week 15, the New Orleans Saints in week 16, the Minnesota Vikings in week 17 and they end the season at home against the Chicago Bears once again.
