The Green Bay Packers are as good as advertised, throttling the Washington Commanders on Thursday to get to 2-0 on the season. In a matchup of NFC powers, the Packers made a statement towards the elite teams in the NFC — showcasing why there has been a lot of hype in Green Bay since Micah Parsons arrived.
There’s a lot of hype surrounding the Packers, as there should be through two games. The Packers are the first team in NFL history to start 2-0 in five days against playoff teams from the previous season. Green Bay is the fifth team since 1970 to start 2-0 with wins against 12+ win teams from previous season, a statement considering the Packers didn’t win a single game against 11+ win teams last year.
A statement win for the Packers was a letdown from the Commanders, who played poorly in their first true test of the season. The season isn’t over for Washington by any means, but it is a setback for a team expected to compete for a championship.
Plenty of overreactions resulted form this Thursday night showdown, but which one are actually legitimate?
Packers defense is best in NFC
Overreaction or reality: Reality
What else can be said about this Packers defense since Micah Parsons arrived. The Packers held the Lions and Commanders offenses — two offenses that averaged 28+ points per game last season — to just 31 points COMBINED over the first two games. Detroit and Washington had a total of nine points through the first three quarters against this Packers defense.
The Packers had four sacks and 12 quarterback hits against the Commanders, four days after having four sacks and nine quarterback hits against the Lions. Micah Parsons already has 1.5 sacks and four quarterback hits in two games — and three on Thursday night.
These aren’t just good offenses the Packers dominated, but two of the best offenses in football last season. The Packers allowed under 250 yards in each of the first two games for the first time since 1995. Both the Lions and Commanders were Super Bowl contenders entering the season, and the Packers defense manhandled them. This is the best defense in the NFC, undergoing a complete transformation once Parsons arrived.
Jordan Love will be top-5 QB in NFL after this season
Overreaction or reality: Overreaction
It’s hard not to be impressed with Love after the first two games, especially how he surgically carved up the Commanders defense. Love finished 19 of 31 for 292 yards with two touchdowns and zero interceptions for a 113.9 passer rating, including 9 of 15 for 175 yards and two touchdowns when blitzed (140.3 passer rating). He was 6 of 6 for 55 yards and a touchdown from the sideline to the numbers and 8 of 14 for 182 yards (101.8 rating) when throwing for 10+ air yards.
Through two games, Love is completing 66% of his passes for 480 yards with four touchdowns to zero interceptions. He is averaging 9.1 yards per attempt and has a 120.0 passer rating. Love has been one of the best quarterbacks in football through a week and change, but it’s certainly premature to put him with the elite at this moment.
Love is entering the conversation, however, as he has nine straight regular season starts without an interception and his 14 games with two touchdowns and no interceptions in his first 35 career starts. He’s maturing into a premier quarterback.
Commanders offense has become stagnant under Kliff Kingsbury
Overreaction or reality: Reality
The Commanders have Jayden Daniels at quarterback, but were held to just 230 yards of offense in Thursday’s loss to the Packers. That’s the fewest loss in any game since Jayden Daniels has been the starter. This offense looked off all night long, as Green Bay dominated the trenches while also taking away the run early. Washington had just 51 rushing yards and averaged 2.7 yards per carry.
This was the Commanders true test to see how this offense has evolved and if they could put up strong rushing numbers against a good defense. Washington came up embarrassingly short, relying on quick passes early to get any kind of offense going — abandoning a run game revolving around Daniels.
Washington may not have Austin Ekeler for a prolonged period of time, relying on a seventh-round rookie in Jacory Crosley-Merritt to carry the running back group. If the Commanders run game can’t get going, the offense becomes bland — and Daniels can’t impact the game with his arm.
The run game looked good against the Giants, but that’s the Giants. Green Bay made this offense look stale and uninventive, which may be a sign of things to come against good defenses.
Commanders aging core will keep them from playoffs
Overreaction or reality: Overreaction
Even though the Commanders looked lost against the Packers, Washington is still a good football team. Yes, the Commanders have the oldest roster in the NFL (28 years, 266 days) — the oldest roster in the league since the 1997 49ers — but there is enough talent to get Washington to one of the best seven teams in the NFC.
Even with the injuries, the Commanders still have one of the premier young quarterbacks in Daniels. Terry McLaurin will eventually get going and Deebo Samuel has shown the impact he’s had on the group through two games. There are concerns with the aging defense (Von Miller, Bobby Wagner), but Washington has enough veteran leadership to weather the storm.
The NFC North and NFC West are tough and the Commanders have a rough schedule, but Washington should be good enough to win 10 games. The aging roster is a concern, but there’s enough talent to overcome it.
As far as being a Super Bowl contender, that may be another story.
