Packers
The Green Bay Packers will finally play at home, albeit on a short week when they host the Atlanta Falcons at Lambeau Field on Thursday night. Green Bay (1-1) comes into the game shorthanded on offense, with injuries to wide receiver Jayden Reed and multiple offensive linemen creating even more uncertainty around a unit that has struggled to start the first two weeks of the season.
Atlanta (0-2) has its own questions, particularly at quarterback, where Michael Penix Jr. will make his 2026 debut after missing the first two games of the regular season while recovering from a torn ACL he suffered last season.
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Lukas Van Ness is coming off the best game of his NFL career, and the Packers’ defense has already produced seven sacks through two games without Micah Parsons. Green Bay has also seemingly revitalized its special teams unit with the additions of returner Skyy Moore and rookie kicker Trey Smack. Despite those positives, the offense remains a major concern. Jordan Love has been pressured on a majority of his drop backs through two weeks, while the Packers have fumbled seven times, although only two have been recovered by opposing defenses.
Green Bay’s offense will look to take advantage of a Falcons defense that has struggled to create pressure and disrupt opposing offenses. Atlanta has already allowed 56 points through two games and has recorded just three sacks over that span. The Falcons are also dealing with their own issues along the defensive front, which creates an important opportunity for a Packers offensive line that will look significantly different from the group that started the season just two weeks ago.
Offensive Line Must Step Up
It is critical for offensive linemen to know who they are supposed to block for an NFL offense to function properly. On more than one occasion across Weeks 1 and 2, Green Bay’s linemen simply did not know who they were supposed to block. Thankfully, Love has a quick release, as he averaged just 2.36 seconds to throw through the first two weeks, according to PFF. Miraculously, Love has still managed an average depth of target of 10.1 yards.
Those numbers are simply not sustainable, especially for an offense that leans heavily on pre-snap motion and misdirection to set up long pass plays. That motion and misdirection should also create opportunities in the run game, yet the Packers have managed just 129 rushing yards through two games, with a long of only 14 yards. Obviously, Green Bay is missing the vision and tough running of former All-Pro running back Josh Jacobs. However, what the Packers are missing more is an offensive line that can consistently win (or even identify) its blocking assignments.
The Falcons’ front seven does not pose much of a challenge on paper, as it is made up largely of a combination of unproven players still early in their NFL careers and veterans in their last seasons. A season-ending training camp injury to standout edge rusher Jalon Walker and an eight-game NFL suspension to James Pearce Jr. take some of the pressure off of Green Bay’s blocking unit, at least in theory. The Packers’ offensive line must make a statement against this shaky group, if only to alleviate some of the stress that Love has had to endure through the first two games.
If the line does not meet the challenge head-on and instead allows Atlanta to wreak havoc, Love may not make it through the game without an injury. If fans get another sloppy, penalty-ridden performance, expect another close game similar to the one last week in MetLife Stadium. However, if offensive line coach Luke Butkus finally gets his guys ready to play a clean, aggressive game, the Packers could finally open up the playbook and put multiple touchdowns on the board.
Special Teams Reborn Under Achord
New Green Bay special teams coordinator Cam Achord deserves a ton of credit for last week’s win over the New York Jets. Through two weeks, the trio of Skyy Moore, Bo Melton and Kaleb Johnson has combined for 292 kick return yards, while Moore adds another 109 yards (on six returns) as a punt returner. Through two weeks last season, Green Bay had just 96 kick return yards and 33 punt return yards. Achord has transformed a unit once plagued by a lack of discipline and intensity into a brand-new, well-oiled machine that looks ready to make big plays happen.
Despite their lack of flash, field goals are critical plays for any NFL team, and Green Bay appears to have found its answer at kicker in rookie Trey Smack. Smack is perfect on all five of his field-goal attempts, though he did miss one extra-point attempt in Week 1. Not only has Smack been mostly accurate, but he has also shown plenty of power, consistently hitting from 55 yards or more during pregame warmups. He was also perfect on his lone attempt from 50-plus yards, giving Green Bay its first points of the 2026 season on a 59-yarder back in Week 1 after a Keisean Nixon interception.
With the Packers’ home opener on the horizon, Thursday night’s matchup gives Achord and his unit an opportunity to show just how much this new mentality can impact a game at Lambeau Field. A 60-yard kick return can deflate a stadium on the road, but what can it do to a raucous Lambeau crowd hungry to see its team make a midweek statement? Packers fans should look for Moore to continue his aggressive approach on returns, while the offense must take advantage of the field position those returns provide by scoring touchdowns rather than settling for field goals.
LVN & Co. Could Feast
The Falcons have a quarterback problem, but Green Bay cannot afford to assume that problem will continue into Thursday night. NFL journeyman Cooper Rush started Atlanta’s first two games, in which the Falcons scored just three and 13 points, respectively. However, Penix Jr. is a far different quarterback than Rush, which means the Packers’ defense must be prepared for a significant change under center while continuing its assault (seven sacks across two weeks) on opposing backfields.
Van Ness may finally be blossoming into the first-round pick the Packers hoped he would become when they selected him 13th overall in the 2023 NFL Draft. The former Iowa standout was simply everywhere against the Jets, consistently handling double teams, setting the edge in the run game and producing nine pressures. What separates Van Ness from many edge rushers is his combination of strength and versatility. That was on full display during the Jets’ final offensive snap of regulation when he crashed into the A-gap on a critical fourth down to make the stop with 1:20 remaining. That play helped propel Green Bay to a road victory and could be a sign of what is coming from Van Ness.
Green Bay’s safety-linebacker combination could also present Penix Jr. with a challenge he has not seen before in his young NFL career. Evan Williams showcased rare physicality for a safety against the Jets, while Javon Bullard was all over the field in coverage with multiple pass deflections. Packers’ on-the-ball linebacker Edgerrin Cooper has also been lights out to start the season, already recording 15 tackles, two sacks and five tackles for loss in just two games. Penix Jr. will have to navigate Jonathan Gannon’s complex pre-snap and line-of-scrimmage looks in his first start of this season and only the 13th of his NFL career.
The Last Word
The Packers are 6-4 in their last 10 Thursday Night Football games. Thursday night’s matchup with the Falcons should give fans some answers about Matt LaFleur’s leadership. Will his offensive line be ready for the challenge against an unproven front seven? Will the defense be prepared for a quarterback with only a dozen career NFL starts?
It is hard for Green Bay fans to imagine a reality where the Packers do not win this game, but they must remember that Green Bay narrowly escaped the Jets last week at MetLife Stadium. A vast improvement from the offensive line and continued dominance from the defense are critical if the Packers want to avoid another close game. Hopefully, this matchup does not come down to kick and punt returns like it did last week.
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Main Photo Courtesy of Brad Penner – Imagn Images