Eight games down, nine to go. The Packers sit at 5-3, in fourth place in a loaded NFC North. Somehow, despite being in last place in their own division, they’re in the NFC playoff picture, currently holding the seventh seed.
The first eight games have been a roller coaster, with some high highs and some low lows. This team blew the doors off a division rival one week, but self-imploded in two other divisional games. Injuries, drops, and shaky offensive line play have plagued them all season, but heroics from Jordan Love and unexpected performances from the defense have kept them in the hunt.
So here’s where things stand at the midway point of the season: who’s been on the rise, and who’s trended the wrong way.
I don't need you to say Jordan Love is the MVP... But he is playing way too well this season and last night to see so many people focusing solely on the bad pick after he had built a 14 pt lead in the 4th Quarter. 1) Dealing with the worst run game in the NFL which is historically bad compared to winning football teams. 2) Has the 6th highest quick pressure rate in the NFL 3) Packers lead the NFL in drops by a wide margin 4) Is #1 in Big Time Throws and Fastest Time To Throw And those are just the numbers, his tape is a constant reminder of his pocket feel to drift against pressure, excellent arm talent and ball placement, and high end willingness to throw with anticipating and test tight windows.
— Marcus Whitman (@TFG_Football) October 30, 2026
Stock Up: Jordan Love
Let’s kick things off with the man who makes the offense go: Jordan Love. As good as he was expected to be, he’s been even better.
The standard stats don’t tell the whole story of how good Love has been this season. He’s completed 192-of-312 passes (61.5%) for 2,246 yards, 16 touchdowns, six interceptions, and a 92.4 passer rating. On paper, that’s nothing special. But make no mistake: Love has been playing at a very high level.
The rest of the offense hasn’t done him any favors. The offensive line has been a disaster. There’s been no semblance of a running game. His pass catchers lead the league in drops. But yet Love is amongst the league leaders in passing yards and has his team firmly in the playoff hunt. The offense has been entirely reliant on Love, and he’s stepped up. “I can’t say enough great things about him,” LaFleur said. “Because he’s carrying the burden of everything right now, just dealing the ball and throwing a lot of great passes.”
To put it in perspective, Love has accounted for 82% of Green Bay’s yardage this season and has 18 big-time throws, all while facing 123 pressures and posting one of the league’s lowest time-to-throw rates. The regular box score won’t put him in the MVP conversation, but he has undoubtedly been Green Bay’s most valuable player through eight games.
Stock Down: Running Game
Now let’s shift to the offense’s biggest hindrance: the running game. It was fairly predictable that Green Bay would struggle to run the football without Josh Jacobs, but it’s been far worse than anyone could’ve imagined. The Packers have one of the worst rushing attacks in recent memory. The stats are bad, the tape is bad, it’s all just bad. “I mean, if I’m being honest, not a lot right now,” LaFleur said when asked about the run game. “That’s our job as coaches. We’ve got to figure it out, because it’s not good enough.”
The Packers average 60.6 rushing yards per game, easily the lowest total in the NFL, and 2.9 yards per carry, also dead last in the league. It was a clear concern while Jacobs was out, and it hasn’t gotten any better since he returned. They had a chance to get the run game going last Thursday against Carolina’s league-worst run defense, but Green Bay’s running backs managed just 48 yards on 25 carries. It’s brutal.
No team in NFL history has made the playoffs averaging under 70 rushing yards per game, and only four teams have ever made it averaging under 3.0 yards per carry, per Dan Orlovsky. The way it’s trending, the run game is going to cost the Packers some important games down the stretch. The inability to sustain drives or put teams away will come back to bite them. And the worst part? There aren’t any clear solutions.
Barry Sanders wouldn't stand a chance behind this O-line in the run game https://t.co/Uo9VWBpa2D
— Matt Schneidman (@mattschneidman) October 30, 2026
Stock Up: Christian Watson and Matthew Golden
The Packers have a wide receiver duo that could be one of the best in the NFL.
Christian Watson (708 yards) and Matthew Golden (619) have combined for 1,327 receiving yards this season. Per Aaron Nagler, they’re the first duo in team history to both top 600 receiving yards in the first eight games of a season. They’ve also combined for ten touchdowns and account for 73.77% of Green Bay’s air yards. Jordan Love is funneling the pass game through these two, and they’ve produced.
As good as they’ve been, the numbers should be even better. The one blemish is drops. PFF has charged Golden with nine drops this season, the most in the NFL, and Watson with three, including a couple on potential touchdowns. For whatever it’s worth, their confidence hasn’t wavered. “That’s probably not going to be my last drop; who knows?” Golden said on Thursday night. “But I’m not going to dwell on it. Because I know I’m going to make the next catch.”
Despite the drops, Love keeps going right back to Watson and Golden, and both keep making plays. The ball isn’t going to stop coming their way. “Stuff happens during the game,” Love said after the Dallas game. “We want to make every play, but when we don’t, guys have to respond and find a way to make the next play. It’s always about the next play, and I think the guys did a good job of that. They responded after a couple of drops and started making more plays.”
Stock Down: Offensive Line
The offensive line was a major concern heading into the season, and it’s been worse than anyone expected. It’s been a smidge better over the last few games, but the bar was incredibly low. The first few weeks were bad. Really bad.
Throughout the offseason, the widely assumed starting group was Jordan Morgan, Aaron Banks, Sean Rhyan, Anthony Belton, and Zach Bako-Bewele, but that combination was never used. Instead, the season began with Morgan, Donovan Jennings, Rhyan, Jacob Monk, and Bako-Bewele.
Fast forward to today, and the Packers have used 11 different offensive line combinations this season. Injuries are a big reason why, but that’s still a lot. Banks has been hurt on and off, Bako-Bewele suffered a season-ending knee injury, Rhyan dealt with an ankle injury, Jennings had a hand injury, and Monk landed on IR with a knee injury.
Injuries aside, this group hasn’t performed no matter who’s been out there. They haven’t pass-blocked or run-blocked well. Per ESPN, they rank 32nd in pass-block win rate at just 31%. Love is one of the most pressured and most-hit quarterbacks in the NFL, and the run game is even worse, with the line a big reason why.
What the Packers do up front from here is a mystery, but they had a mini-bye to re-evaluate their options. There are 11 offensive linemen on the active roster, so there’s no shortage of choices. Will they run it back with the same group as Thursday night? Or could we see Kevin Zeitler or Mekhi Becton inserted into the lineup? At this point, it’s anyone’s guess.
😓 NFL QBs pressured the most on dropbacks this season, per TruMedia: Bryce Young, CAR (111) Jordan Love, GB (109) Deshaun Watson, CLE (108) Daniel Jones, IND (105) Tyler Shough, NO (105) Drake Maye, NE (104) Justin Herbert, LAC (99) Aaron Rodgers, PIT (96) C.J. Stroud, HOU (96) Dak Prescott, DAL (95)
— Pro Football Network (@PFN365) October 29, 2026
Stock Up: Front Seven
While Green Bay’s offensive front has trended down, its defensive front continues to trend up.
Let’s start with the obvious: the injuries. The Packers are still without Micah Parsons, Warren Brinson, and Collin Oliver, and they’ve lost Edgerrin Cooper, Jonathan Ford, Javon Hargrave, and Zaire Franklin for extended stretches. Those are some key members of the front seven.
Despite that, this group has been better than anticipated. It starts against the run. The Packers are allowing 110.9 rushing yards per game. That’s not bad, and it’s inflated by the stinker on Thursday Night Football, when Atlanta ran for 242 yards. Take that game out, and they’re allowing just 92.1 yards per game, which is really solid considering who they’re missing and the backs they’ve faced.
The unit is also getting after the passer. Green Bay has 22.0 sacks, among the top totals in the league. Per PFF, they’ve also recorded 154 pressures, 99 hurries, and 29 quarterback hits. It’s taken contributions from the entire defense, but those are strong numbers for a group missing so many key pieces.
The best part? They keep getting better. The Packers pressured Bryce Young on 51.1% of his dropbacks and sacked him six times. “It was just the relentless pressure,” LaFleur said after the game. “I thought our guys did a great job up front. I think some of the looks that we’re giving them, the opposition, Carolina, are very difficult. We do a lot of different things off of it, so I think that’s a big-time credit to our defensive staff.”
Stock Up: Evan Williams
The Packers have another All-Pro caliber safety.
Evan Williams is off to an incredible start in 2026. He’s been everywhere: rushing the passer, being physical against the run, and flying around in coverage. He’s PFF’s highest-graded safety at 90.6, and he already has a sack among his nine pressures. He’s logged the second-most tackles by a safety with 49 while missing only four. In coverage, he’s allowing a passer rating of just 41.5 and has two interceptions.
“First thing of a safety, be reliable,” Jonathan Gannon said about Williams. “He’s reliable. His skill set allows him to make a lot of different plays and a lot of different calls. He’s physical. He’s extremely intelligent. And he puts time on task. I love how Matt [LaFleur] says it. To play like a G, you better prepare like a G.”
Williams was expected to take another step this season, but he’s been better than anyone anticipated. LaFleur said earlier this season that he’d put the trio of Williams, McKinney, and Javon Bullard up against any other safety group in the league, and Williams’ ascension is a big reason why. “I think they’re just smart,” LaFleur said. “They’re instinctive. They play the game the right way, but I do think there’s a natural progression for most players in terms of getting out there, the repetition, seeing different things, and learning from every experience.”
Excited to watch Evan Williams play football today. @PFF's No. 1 safety 44.1 passer rating allowed when targeted Per @NextGenStats: 26 tackles vs. the run (most among NFL DBs), 0 missed tackles Career-high 7 pressures, 4 QB hits on only 18 pass-rush snaps https://t.co/pEg03YAVMx
— Zach Kruse (@zachkruse2) October 25, 2026
Stock Up: Brandon Cisse and Keisean Nixon
Cornerback was expected to be the biggest question mark for Green Bay’s defense this season, but the group has outperformed expectations. Keisean Nixon and Brandon Cisse have been the two primary corners for most of 2026. Have they been perfect? No, of course not. But they haven’t been bad either.
Nixon has allowed 32 catches and zero touchdowns on 47 targets, with two pass breakups and an interception. He’s allowing a 75.4 passer rating when targeted and has been flagged just three times. That’s a significant improvement over last season, when he allowed seven touchdowns and a 105.4 passer rating in coverage and was called for 13 penalties. “Starting-cornerback-caliber play from him right now,” Gannon said. “Like Cisse, like all our guys, you’re going to give up some plays. That’s life in the NFL. But I think his point of attack is where it needs to be.”
Speaking of Cisse, the rookie has had an encouraging start to his career. He’s allowed 22 catches and two touchdowns on 36 targets, with an interception and three pass breakups, and he’s been flagged only twice. Quarterbacks have a 95.8 passer rating when targeting him. “I thought he played a really good game versus some really good receivers,” Gannon said. “We all have a big-time challenge…but I like where his game is at.”
All in all, the cornerback position has been fine, which is better than anyone expected. They haven’t been elite, but they haven’t been bad. Once Micah Parsons returns and gives the pass rush another boost, these corners could look even better.
Stock Down: Trey Smack
The leash on Trey Smack is getting shorter and shorter.
Let’s start with a positive: Smack has been pretty good on kickoffs. Not great, but better than Brandon McManus was. Unfortunately, that’s about it.
When it comes to putting points on the board, Smack hasn’t been good enough. He’s just 16-of-19 on extra points and 11-of-16 on field goals, which means he’s made only 77% of his kicks. The worst part? Every one of his misses has come from under 50 yards.
Simply put, the Packers should probably add some veteran competition. Whether it’s bringing in a few kickers for workouts or adding another body to the practice squad, Smack needs to be challenged, and the Packers need other options. This team has too many deficiencies to also have a kicker who isn’t making the layups. It has cost them key games in the past, namely last year’s playoff loss in Chicago. It also cost them the Detroit game this year. It can’t keep happening, and if it does, Smack’s tenure in Green Bay will be a short one.
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Carter Semb is a lifelong Packer fan, shareholder, and season ticket holder. He is a contributor for Cheesehead TV and Packers Talk. For commentary surrounding Wisconsin sports, he can be found on X at @cmsemb.