The Green Bay Packers 27-13 victory over the Detroit Lions was one of the most impressive wins of any NFL team in Week 1 of the 2025 season. The Packers defense was dominant in the win against Lions.
The Lions, who led the NFL in scoring and were second in yards gained in 2024, were held to just 246 yards and 13 points. They did not score their loan touchdown until there was less than 2 minutes to go in the game.
Dating back to Green Bay’s Super Bowl winning season of 1996, it was the 5th time the Packers held an opponent to 13 or less points.
In the previous four occasions, the Packers advanced to the NFC Championship three times (1996, 2007, 2019) and the Divisional Playoff the fourth time (2001).
Year Opponent Score Season Result
1996 at Tampa Bay 34-3 Win - Super Bowl XXXI
2001 Detroit 28-6 Loss - Divisional Playoffs
2007 Philadelphia 16-13 Loss - NFC Championship
2019 at Chicago 10-3 Loss - NFC Championship
The impressive performance in Week 1 was very reminiscent to the defenses of both of the Super Bowl championship teams in the past 28 years.
In 1996, the group led by Hall of Famers Reggie White and LeRoy Butler, allowed just 26 points in its first three games of the season en route to being ranked first in both points allowed and yards allowed. The 1996 Packers are one of just two teams in the Super Bowl era to lead the league in both points scored (456) and points allowed (210). The other team was the 1972 Miami Dolphins.
In 2010, the defense was led by two first-team all pro performers in Charles Woodson and Clay Matthews, resulting in the Packers finishing second in points allowed and fifth in yards allowed.
As the Packers head into a Week 2 showdown against the Washington Commanders, how important is a 2-0 start? Well based on recent history going back to that ’96 season, the Packers have started 2-0 10 times, with nine of those seasons ending in playoff appearances.
The lone exception in the 10 seasons was Aaron Rodgers first season, which ended at 6-10 after numerous close, midseason losses.
2-0 Starts (Since 1996)
Year Week 2 Opponent Score Record Season Result
1996 Philadelphia 39-13 13-3 #1 Seed - SB Win
1998 Tampa Bay 23-15 11-5 #5 Seed - WC Loss
2001 Washington 37-0 12-4 #4 Seed - DP Loss
2007 at NY Giants 35-13 13-3 #2 Seed - NFC Champ Loss
2008 at Detroit 48-25 6-10 No Playoffs
2010 Buffalo 34-7 10-6 #6 Seed - SB Win
2011 at Carolina 30-23 15-1 #1 Seed - DP Loss
2015 Seattle 27-17 10-6 #5 Seed - DP Loss
2019 Minnesota 21-16 13-3 #2 Seed - NFC Champ Loss
2020 Detroit 42-21 13-3 #1 Seed - NFC Champ Loss
Going into Thursday night, the keys for the Packers will be the same as they were in Week 1 against the Lions.
Get Ahead Early
In the win over the Lions, the Packers had a tremendous start, scoring the game’s first 10 points and building a 17-3 lead by the end of the second quarter. The Packers were 1-5 in their previous six games against the Lions and a common theme in most of those losses was playing from behind.
Green Bay flipped the script on Detroit, by playing from ahead for the majority of the game. The Packers are now 12-0 (including playoffs) under Jordan Love when leading by double digits at halftime. The streak goes back to the 2023 Thanksgiving win in Detroit and includes seven wins from last season.
Limit Turnovers
An obvious key to all football games. The team, who wins the turnover battle, generally wins the game. The Packers had the lone takeaway in Sunday’s win, a second-quarter interception by Evan Williams. The interception plus the pressure by Micah Parsons was one of the plays of the game.
Jordan Love also extended his team record with 8 straight regular-season games without an interception. In those 8 games, the Packers are 5-3, with losses to Detroit, Minnesota and Chicago last season.
Get After the Quarterback
The Packers finished 8th in the NFL in sacks in 2024 with 45, but their pass rush left more to be more desired for the majority of last season. On Sunday, the Green Bay pass rush got all four of its sacks in the second half, thwarting the Detroit comeback attempt. The front four of Lukas Van Ness, Rashan Gary, Devonte Wyatt and Micah Parsons combined for the four sacks.
If the Packers are to generate a consistent rush on Jayden Daniels and limit his ability to escape the pocket, it should provide the team with a good chance of a win on Thursday night.
In 2024, the Commanders gave up 50 sacks, which was 8th worst in the NFL. In their win over the New York Giants, the Commanders quarterback was sacked three times. He was able to scramble for 68 yards, which allowed the Commanders to extend drives and put away the Giants in the 4th quarter.