NFL
Week 5 Preview: Green Bay Packers vs Detroit Lions
Aaron Rodgers and the Packers head to Detroit on Sunday to face Mathew Stafford and the Detroit Lions. Rodgers and Stafford, two of the top five highest-paid quarterbacks in the league, will battle it out in what should be a tightly-contested inner-division rivalry matchup.
So far this season, the Packers and Lions are neck-and-neck with offensive and defensive rankings. Rodgers and his 18th-ranked Packers offense will be challenged mightily by Darius Slay and his ninth-ranked Lions defense. On the other side of the ball, Stafford and his 13th-ranked Lions offense will have to get through Clay Matthews III and his seventh-ranked Packers defense.
Head-to-Head Meetings
In Aaron Rodgers’ career, his record against the Lions stands at 13-3. Stafford, meanwhile, is 5-10 against the Packers in his career. Three of Stafford’s wins, notably, came when Rodgers wasn’t playing.
When Stafford is playing, Rodgers is 9-2 against Detroit with 23 touchdowns and only two interceptions. Stafford, against Rodgers’ Packers, is 2-9 with 17 touchdowns and 15 interceptions.
Rodgers has always seemed to be a problem for Detroit. One game that fans of both teams will never forget came late in the 2015 season. Rodgers and the Packers came back from a 20-point deficit to beat the Lions late. The reigning MVP (at the time) completed a 61-yard hail mary to tight end Richards Rodgers with time expired on the clock to beat the Lions at home, 27-23. Detroit, however, swept Green Bay last year — their first regular season sweep of the Packers since 1991.
Injury Report
Green Bay Packers
The Packers will officially be without one of their top wide receivers in Randall Cobb. Cobb was hurt in practice last week and has yet to recover enough to play.
Green Bay’s injury report is notably long, with many important players still listed as questionable for Sunday’s game.
Full Packers injury report for #GBvsDET. Looks like Kevin King is good to go. pic.twitter.com/uUE3eLggK2
— Aaron Nagler (@AaronNagler) October 5, 2018
Rodgers has quite a few obstacles to get around if all of his favored receivers will be out. Tight end Jimmy Graham will need to step up to fill the void. His negligible receiving numbers won’t continue to suffice for Rodgers and this increasingly banged-up offense.
Cornerback Kevin King was Green Bay’s second-round draft pick last year, but played minimally in his rookie season due to concussions. His return on Sunday could help bolster the Packers’ scattered secondary.
Detroit Lions
Detroit’s defense took a hit after last week’s game against the Dallas Cowboys. Defensive end Ezekiel Ansah and guard T.J. Lang have both been ruled out of the game. In the secondary, cornerback Nevin Lawson and defensive back Quandre Diggs are both listed as questionable. Detroit will need to figure out a new plan for their defense with their top defensive players unlikely to feature.
Receiver Marvin Jones Jr. is also listed a questionable. This will be a crucial game-time decision, since Jones is one of Stafford’s top targets aside from Golden Tate.
Photo Credit: Mike Morbeck via Flickr
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