After losing at home to the Minnesota Vikings in Week 17 last season, the Green Bay Packers would like nothing better than to spoil their rival’s first game in their new stadium. This NFC North contest will kick off at 7:30 CT with television coverage on NBC.
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Aaron Rodgers is undoubtedly one of the best quarterbacks in the NFL. But the Packers have won 10 of the last 13 meetings between the teams, losing only two with one tie.
They will also both be key as each team tries to establish the tempo of the game and control possession with the running game. I expect the Packers to shut Peterson down and make Sam Bradford try and win the game.
The recipe for beating the up-and-coming Tennessee Titans is way different than beating the established Green Bay Packers attack.
The Green Bay Packers barely came away with a victory against the Jacksonville Jaguars, but they won’t be able to catch a break this week. Neither option is good when the other team has Aaron Rodgers. They are still the dynamic group they’ve always been.
CORNER CONCERN, PART TWO: The Vikings played their opener without cornerback Xavier Rhodes, whose knee injury kept him out of practices this week too.
It was a gritty performance in the eyes of most observers, that little solace for a line who wants to block for last year’s league-leading running back. The Packers defense needs to primarily stop Adrian Peterson. Packers win 31-14.
I have the Vikings winning by a field goal in this game, 27-24. Linebacker Eric Kendricks returned an interception 77 yards for a touchdown, and a scoop-and-score fumble recovery by defensive end Danielle Hunter was the second defensive touchdown of the day.
The Vikings can either start the more talented Sam Bradford who’s spent three weeks in their offense, or the talent-deficient Shaun Hill who knows the offense well. The Vikings aren’t saying whether Bradford will start, but they have said they believe he will have had enough time to learn enough of what he’ll need to know to be effective against the team that’s trying to re-take the NFC North title it lost to the Vikings a year ago.
Ultimately the quantity of concussions is extremely concerning and the long-term safety of Shields is more important to everyone in Green Bay.
So it’s no wonder the Packers won’t be lulled into a false sense of security based on Peterson’s slow start last week. The Vikings’ defense will provide a tough test, but Rodgers has to be in your lineup.
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With Zimmer in the head coach role, the Vikings are 1-3 against the Packers over the past two seasons.
