All chances for the Green Bay Packers of retaking the division lead from the Chicago Bears were mercilessly trampled by Derrick Henry on Saturday night. Even with a heroic performance from Malik Willis and a Bears loss to the 49ers, the Packers defense ensured the Packers will not play in Lambeau again this season. Fortunately, the Minnesota Vikings might be a team that the Packers can use to build momentum into the playoffs.
Run-down defense
Derrick Henry isn’t called “King Henry” for nothing. He has been embarrassing opposing defenders since he was in pee-wee football, and, unfortunately, Saturday night was no different. Against the Packers defense, Henry ran for 216 yards and 4 touchdowns at an eye-watering 6 yards per carry. The last time the Packers were so thoroughly defeated on the ground was in the 2019 NFC Championship game against the 49ers where Raheem Morris ran for 220 yards and 4 touchdowns.
The Packers defense, which had been dominant at home, only stopped the Ravens from scoring on one drive all game. On the other side of the ball, Willis was able to score on 4 of the 6 drives he led, but a fumble and a turnover on downs limited the Packers opportunities.
The ability to control the ball so consistently made the game quite lopsided Baltimore Ravens. Not only did they beat the Packers by three scores, but they had the ball for more than twice the amount of time as their opponent.
Christmas turnovers
If any NFC North unit performed worse than the Packers defense this week, it was the Lions offense. Although they woke up on Christmas morning with only 8 turnovers this season, by the end of the day’s festivities the Lions had almost doubled that number to 14.
Against Brian Flores’ defense, Jared Goff was responsible for 5 turnovers alone. Despite this, rookie backup quarterback Max Brosmer threw for a net 3 yards against the Lions defense. The Vikings only had a 3 point lead in the final minute of the game when Jordan Addison took a jet sweep for a 65 yard touchdown, making him the leading rusher for either team on one single carry.
Coasting to Chicago
Now, while the Packers have been rumored to be resting key players against the Vikings, their defense should still be up to the task of keeping the Vikings offense under control. Their rushing offense, in particular, has not been excellent this year. Aaron Jones and Jordan Mason rank 30 and 32 respectively in rushing yards per game this season.
In addition, J.J. McCarthy, who missed the game against the Lions with a fractured throwing hand, may miss another game and will be playing through a significant injury if he does play. Max Brosmer is no Malik Willis as far as backups go, and Justin Jefferson is having the worst season he has had as a pro.
Given all of these factors, the Packers defense should be able to pick up a win to end the season. If Clayton Tune can avoid making 5 turnovers, there is no reason why the Packers should not enter the playoffs off of a sweep of the Minnesota Vikings.
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