The Packers entered the bye week with some significant questions.
Between injuries along the offensive line, at wide receiver, and some inconsistent play from a defense that was built in 2024 on creating turnovers, Green Bay’s last two games before the bye week raise questions about Green Bay’s ability to contend in the NFC.
What Packers need to correct after the bye week vs. Bengals
Sep 21, 2025; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; Green Bay Packers quarterback Jordan Love (10) drops back to the end zone to hand the ball off to running back Josh Jacobs (8) against the Cleveland Browns during the fourth quarter at Huntington Bank Field. Mandatory Credit: Scott Galvin-Imagn Images
Despite some concerns on both sides of the ball, NFL Media’s Eric Edholm suggests that there are some key areas the Packers can improve on to reignite a Super Bowl chase that’s going to need to begin with overcoming teams like the Philadelphia Eagles and Detroit Lions in the NFC.
“There’s a fairly clear to-do list coming out of the bye,” Edholm writes of the Packers. “One key objective is fixing the offensive line, with the hope that the eventual returns of Zach Tom, Aaron Banks and Anthony Belton can contribute to that solution. Another one is reducing the penalties; the Packers have averaged nearly nine per game.
“There are also the matters of cleaning up special-teams operations, honing the coverage in the secondary and returning to the sort of three-phase execution we saw in Weeks 1 and 2. Coming off the 40-40 tie with Dallas, a lot of the talk centered on the surprising dip from the Packers’ defense, and there are still plenty of Jordan Love doubters out there. But if Green Bay fixes some of those primary concerns, this is a Super Bowl-caliber team.”
For a young roster still developing chemistry, the bye week may have come at exactly the right time.
If the Packers can clean up the details and regain their early-season form, they’ll quickly rejoin the conversation among the NFL’s true Super Bowl contenders.
Opening up against Joe Flacco and the Bengals could be exactly what head coach Matt LaFleur’s team needs to right the ship after some unexpected turbulence their last two times out.
Sep 28, 2025; Arlington, Texas, USA; Dallas Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott (4) throws under pressure from Green Bay Packers defensive end Micah Parsons (1) in the first quarter at AT&T Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kevin Jairaj-Imagn Images
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