The Green Bay Packers have had a strong season so far, with a record of 7-2, they are likely to take the NFC North division. The NFC North is not as strong as it has been with the Minnesota Vikings being their own competition. Kirk Cousins is having a great season, but I think the Packers can beat them again at U.S. Bank Stadium later this season. The other teams in the division, the Lions and Bears, are well, not doing so great. With quarterback issues in Chicago and a lack of a defense in Detroit, neither team shows a chance of dethroning the Packers. The Packers defensive has improved since last season, with Blake Martinez stepping up and leading the league in tackles, and Za’Darius Smith and Preston Smith leading the team with 16.5 total sacks. Aaron Rodgers, as usual, is having a fantastic season as well, projected to throw 4,418 yards and 30 touchdowns with just 4 interceptions.
At the beginning of the season, I did not include the Packers as possible Super Bowl contenders, but that has since changed. I believe that with their only losses against the Philadelphia Eagles and Los Angeles Chargers, they have a chance at taking the NFC from the San Francisco 49ers and beating the New England Patriots in Super Bowl 54. If they could possibly beat the 49ers in 2 weeks, they could show the rest of the league that they could make a run for it.
The Packers’ last Super Bowl win was in 2010, in which their record was 10-6, and came from the wildcard and fought their way up. In that year, they had a strong defense being led by Charles Woodson and BJ Raji. I believe that if they could maintain a defense as they did in 2010, they have a good chance of letting Aaron Rodgers do what he does best and throw deep balls in clutch moments.
Liam Meyer - Contributing Writer