Pass rush should determine winner of Packers-Lions

When the Green Bay Packers and Detroit Lions meet on Sunday afternoon, it will be the first time that the two teams have played since last Thanksgiving. Much has changed since that day, when the Packers won 31-24, but in one sense, nothing has changed at all.

Since that game, Micah Parsons suffered a torn ACL (one that he will not be back from in time for this game) and Zach Bako-Bewele injured his knee (twice) and is out for the season. Edgerrin Cooper also tore his ACL earlier this season. Then there’s the offensive line, where only two players who started for the Packers last Thanksgiving will be in the lineup again in this one, and one of them, Anthony Belton, is playing a different position.

Likewise, the Lions also have just two players from last Thanksgiving’s starting offensive line on the team this week. And of the top 15 players on Detroit’s roster in terms of snaps played on defense in that game, just six are on the roster (seven if Brian Branch is activated off the PUP list by Sunday).

But with all of that under consideration, this game looks like it should still be much the same as the Packers’ other recent games at Ford Field: a track meet with lots of points.

This Sunday, the X-factors for both defenses should be their pass rush. If either unit hopes to slow down the opposition’s offense, it will need to get after the quarterback and, most importantly, get him on the ground. Jared Goff hasn’t thrown a pick yet this season while Jordan Love has been slinging the football like crazy despite heavy pressure. The two are both among the top five quarterbacks in the NFL in passing yards per game as well.

Whichever team is able to get to the opposing quarterback more consistently should win this game, plain and simple. Packers fans will need to hope that defensive coordinator Jonathan Gannon can keep confusing yet another offensive line on Sunday to help his players do just that.

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Gannon’s creative blitz looks are making it very hard for opposing offensive lines to identify who’s rushing, leading to plenty of pressure on opposing quarterbacks.

Packers’ ball-hawking defense faces unique challenge against pick-free Jared Goff | Packers Wire
Gannon’s goal will be to move Goff off his spot and force him to get the ball out quickly. So far this season, he has not thrown a single interception; will that change on Sunday?

Can Lions get to Jordan Love before Packers receivers get loose? | Packersnews.com ($)
On the other side of the ball, the pass rush is probably the one area where the Lions can actually slow down Green Bay’s offense. If Love has time to throw, he should be able to pick apart a porous secondary, so Aidan Hutchinson and company are Detroit’s best chance to keep the Packers’ passing game in check.

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Both Caleb Williams and Drake Maye had big games last night, but New England’s run game was MIA while the Bears managed to do enough on the ground late to grind out the win.

Our own Tyler Brooke has reported that the Packers are calling about a quality veteran defensive tackle. It makes sense, too, given the injuries the team has suffered at the position so far.

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