It’s all about that word urgency.
It has to happen right now, but at the same time, it shouldn’t be rushed.
From 2019-2022, the Packers went 10-3 in the month of September. But from 2023-2024, they are just 4-4. It isn’t just starting slow to the season, it is also getting off to a sluggish start to games. That’s what happened in last year’s loss to the Eagles in the NFC Wild Card Playoff, both losses to the Vikings and the Week 9 loss to the Lions last year.
“That’s going to be a great reflection point this offseason,” said Packers coach Matt LaFleur.
And I love that he addressed it right away by playing starting quarterback Jordan Love in the first preseason game. Normally that is taboo for the team’s most important position player to play in a meaningless game — especially the first preseason contest — but it shows that LaFleur is serious about starting fast right out of the gate.
Granted, Love only attempted five passes. But he also only completed one and he absorbed a sack as well. I’m glad that wasn’t on display in the season opener because Love is clearly not operating on all cylinders right now and he needs more reps to figure it out.
Green Bay has all of the ingredients to win the NFC North for the first time since 2021. But in order for that to happen, they cannot afford to sleepwalk through the first quarter of any game.
“We need to continue to ramp up our sense of urgency,” said Packers general manager Brian Gutekunst in the offseason. “These opportunities don’t come (very often). The life of a player in the National Football League is not very long.”
He’s right. Typically, the average NFL player has a career of about 3.3 years. Three years of doing anything isn’t very long.
Add in that the Packers kick off the season against the Lions and Commanders — both 2024 playoff teams — and having a sense of urgency comes into greater focus. No team wants to be a desperate 0-2 heading to its first road game in Cleveland on Sept. 21.
Take nothing for granted. Make every rep count and most importantly, hold teammates accountable that aren’t doing these things.
This is the year where Love needs to be more of a voice on this team. Heading into his third year as a starter, he needs to let the younger guys know what it means to be in a successful program. And with that, Love must be the urgency police. If he sees a player not giving his all — offense or defense — he has to find out why and then find a way to alleviate that.
Let’s face it, being just OK to start the games or the season isn’t OK. There isn’t a magic formula to get these guys playing lights-out football right from the kickoff. But there is something called pride and making sure you’re giving all you can when you can.
If the Packers do that, the urgency police will be a thing of the past.