The Green Bay Packers have made the flight over Lake Michigan, and it's an NFC North showdown in the Motor City this afternoon with the Packers taking on the Detroit Lions from Ford Field in Detroit at 3:25 PM CST. The Packers are 4-2 coming off their 23-13 victory over the Dallas Cowboys, which looked closer than it really was. If it weren't for a few drops and penalties, the Packers may have put up more points, running away with the game. The Lions are sitting at 3-2 coming off their Bye week, and we'll see if the early Bye was a positive for them or a negative. The NFC North is looking strong this season, and a victory in today's game will help either team begin setting themselves apart from the pack.
The last time these two teams met was November 27, 2025, for a Thanksgiving matchup in which the Packers were victorious, defeating the Lions 31-24 and spoiling the Lions' annual Turkey Day festivities. Both quarterbacks had good games, with Jordan Love going 18/30 for 234 yards and four touchdowns and Jared Goff going 20/26 for 256 yards and two touchdowns, but it was defensive stops in this game that made the most difference, with the Packers' defense coming up big. Micah Parsons wreaked havoc for Goff, tallying 2.5 sacks, four quarterback hits, and countless other pressures, which eventually led to many Lions' drives stalling. No Micah Parsons today, obviously, but hopefully the Packers' defense can still get that pressure after him today.
Last week, while Jordan Love had a good game, interception aside, it was the defense that really got things done for the Packers. They gave Dak Prescott fits as he threw two interceptions and was sacked once. We'll try not to talk about how some questionable officiating assisted in extending Cowboys' drives and how many drops from Packers' receivers could have made the score much different. But the defense answered the call despite some of these frustrations, also holding Cowboys' running backs to just 41 yards on 13 carries. We're going to need the Packers' pass catchers to hold on to the ball today, though, as you can't always count on your teammates to cover for you; you need to get the job done on your own.
Let's get to the previews.
What to see on Offense
Jordan Love has been able to go scorched earth in the last two games, getting the ball to his pass catchers. A big thanks is due to the improvement along the offensive line. We're finally seeing what the combo of Christian Watson and Matthew Golden are capable of, and it's led to them sitting as one of the best WR duos in the league. It's a good thing these improvements have come about, as today the offensive line faces a Lions' squad that leads the league in sacks. Aidan Hutchinson is obviously considered their premier pass rusher, but he has four sacks and sits behind linebacker DJ Wonnum, who has five this season. Not far behind is DT Alim McNeill with 3.5.
Travis Glover has filled in nicely these last few games at right guard, but this past Sunday he had a little more difficulty, and the question begs whether or not it is time for Kevin Zeitler to take over. Zeitler did take starting reps in practice at right guard, so this could be the week we see him on the offensive line. Aaron Banks also practiced this week at left guard. While his status remains up in the air, I can't lie to you, I'd prefer Laken Tomlinson at left guard given how he's helped improve the line, and Banks has been shaky at best. We'll see what happens today.
If the offensive line can keep Jordan Love off the ground today, we could see more of the same from the last two games as Detroit's secondary is sorely lacking. DJ Reed has struggled this season as their big free agent signing at cornerback, and fellow corner Keith Abney holds only one of two interceptions made by the secondary this season, the other belonging to safety Chuck Clark. The Lions are worst in the league when it comes to passing yards given up per game with 297.4 yards allowed. That means if Love has time, Watson, Golden, Kraft, and company could have a field day. Safety Brian Branch has been activated by the Lions coming off an Achilles injury last season; he'll make his 2026 debut today and hopes to help bring the Lions' secondary back on track. He'll have a tall task ahead, though, in his return facing the Packers' receivers today.
On to the run. And today, it's a big question mark for more reasons than one. Josh Jacobs returned to practice this week; he was activated from the commissioner's exempt list, and the consensus is that he will play today. It's doubtful that he'll get RB1 snaps considering his long absence, and he still needs to work up to speed, but we may see him on the field a few times today. Any contribution from Jacobs, though, no matter how minimal, could be an improvement as the Packers have just been atrocious running the football. Last week I called out the running backs, stating that one of them could find a stride against the 32nd-ranked Dallas rush defense and perhaps set themselves apart, and they responded by saying "no thank you," we'll put up 36 yards total amongst us all instead.
The Lions defense is ranked 12th in yards per carry, and 13th in rushing yards allowed per game. If Strong, Lloyd, and Johnson couldn't do much against the worst team, it's hard to say if they'll do anything today. Josh Jacobs may take a few games to get back to form, but honestly, that could be an improvement over what we've seen this season from the rest of the RB room.
What to see on Defense
The Packers' defense finally faced a worthy QB adversary on Sunday night in Dak Prescott after being criticized for facing backups lately. And they rose to the occasion. This week, they face another worthy QB with some notable weapons. Jared Goff has had a very good season so far, throwing for 1,485 yards, 12 touchdowns, and zero interceptions. That's right, ZERO interceptions. Goff has been outstanding at taking care of the football this year. And when he takes care of the football, he has the weapons to get it to in WR's Amon-Ra St. Brown and Jameson Williams, as well as tight end Sam LaPorta. So far, St. Brown leads the way with 372 yards and five touchdowns off 37 catches, but LaPorta isn't far off.
It stands to argue that the Packers' secondary handled the duo of Ceedee Lamb and George Pickens just fine last week, but the Lions have additional options in Isaac TeSlaa and RB Jahmyr Gibbs in the passing game that help make things difficult. The key to limiting this bunch is pressuring Jared Goff. As I stated earlier, last season, the Packers limited Goff with pressure the last time these teams met, and it resulted in success for the Packers' defense. This season, Goff has been pretty well protected by his offensive line, only being sacked 11 times. Goff has praised his line, stating that the offense cannot function without their steady performance. Well, it's time for Jonathan Gannon to put a wrench in that plan.
I'm a broken record in saying that Jonathan Gannon has been in his bag when getting his defense to generate pressure, and well, today he needs to do it yet again. Lukas Van Ness emerged once again following a short absence from notice last week, and Dani Dennis-Sutton has started to show why everyone called him a fourth-round steal, getting pressure on the QB often. The Packers will be hoping for another Jonathan Gannon masterclass today to make Jared Goff uncomfortable and perhaps force that first interception of the season out of his hands.
Let's get to the running game. Jahmyr Gibbs is a special player. So far this season, he's averaged 4.8 yards per carry and has seven touchdowns on the ground. The Packers have been pretty good against the run this season so far. The only time they've faltered has been against the Atlanta Falcons and the duo of Bijan Robinson and Brian Robinson Jr. While, after the departure of David Montgomery, Detroit doesn't employ a second running back threat, Jahmyr Gibbs is very comparable to Bijan Robinson. Last year, the Packers defense held Gibbs in check in Detroit on Thanksgiving for the most part, limiting him to 68 yards on 20 carries. They will need to do more of that today if they want to get off the field early.
Unfortunately, getting off the field may be a little more difficult, as LB Zaire Franklin has been ruled OUT today with a shin injury sustained in practice this week. It's just bad injury luck after bad injury luck for the Packers lately. In Franklin's absence, we'll be looking for Isaiah McDuffie and TyRon Hopper to step up in his absence and hopefully help hold Jahmyr Gibbs in check. The Packers also activated Jordan Riley from IR, whose presence in the middle of the line at DT will hopefully bolster the run defense.
Extra Notes
Following a frustrating game against Chicago where Trey Smack had a rash of misses, which luckily didn't matter, the rookie kicker bounced back going 3/3 on field goal attempts and 2/2 on extra points in the win over Dallas. Hopefully, this means Smack is back to form after a one-week hiccup, and he'll hold today in Detroit's dome. Kicking for Detroit is Jake Bates, who has been perfect so far this season, going 8/8 on field goals and 20/20 on extra points.
Jack Fox averages 47.2 yards per punt for Detroit, which is just behind the Packers' Daniel Whelan, who continues to be a weapon, averaging 49.7 yards per punt.
In the return game for Detroit, Tom Kennedy is their main man, averaging 24.9 yards on kickoffs and 13.2 on punts. Jacob Saylors also contributes on kick returns, averaging 26 yards per return. For the Packers, with Skyy Moore on injured reserve, they called up practice squad receiver Coleman Owens to return punts. When he had the chance to make a return, he pulled off a decent 16-yard return, and I would expect him to be elevated this weekend as well to do the job. On kickoffs, J. Michael Sturdivant and Bo Melton seem to have that covered, but last week neither really stood out enough to be of note.
In the End
The NFC North is extremely competitive this season. The Packers had the Lions' number last year, winning both games, and getting revenge for the Lions defeating the Packers in both games the year prior. Neither team, of course, has any desire to risk being on the losing end today. A win will set either team apart in the division with a tie-breaker over the other until they meet again.
The Lions are favored today to be victorious in the end; however, the same was said about the Cowboys last week. This Packer team seems to be thriving in their current underdog status, and hopefully today they can pull off a fourth-straight victory. We've got yet another short turnaround with a Thursday night game against the Panthers coming up. Let's come out of this game healthy and with a W. Go Pack Go.
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Greg Meinholz is a lifelong devoted Packer fan. A contributor to CheeseheadTV as well as PackersTalk. Follow him on Twitter @gmeinholz and Bluesky @gmeinholz.bsky.social for Packers commentary, random humor, beer endorsements, and occasional Star Wars and Marvel ramblings.