The last two seasons for the Green Bay Packers have ended with losses in the NFC title game. Could this be a different kind of year for Matt LaFleur’s club?
You would hope that people aren’t reading too much into the Green Bay Packers’ preseason record. Home losses to the Texans and Jets will mean very little when the club kicks off the season at New Orleans in less than two weeks.
The team has won consecutive division titles and followed that up with losses in the NFC title game each time. Getting back to the Super Bowl for the first time since 2010 may seem like a bold prediction to some. But there are three other picks that may be much more surprising.
3. TE Robert Tonyan will be a 1,000-yard receiver
There has seemingly been only one pass-catcher for the Packers in recent years and he’s been a pretty good one. All-Pro Davante Adams once again put up monstrous statistics and he and quarterback Aaron Rodgers were the most productive passing tandem in the league in 2020.
But tight end Robert Tonyan came a long way in his third season. The former Indiana State product saw six targets during his rookie campaign, 15 passes thrown his way in 2019 and amassed a combined 14 catches for 177 yards and two scores.
Then came 2020, where he started eight out of 16 contests. He caught 52 of the 59 passes thrown his way and finished with 586 yards and 11 touchdowns. That 88.1 reception average is hard to ignore and he could put up huge numbers this year.
2. QB Aaron Rodgers will throw at least 10 interceptions
The biggest NFL story for the majority of this offseason focused on the league’s reigning MVP. Quarterback Aaron Rodgers made it pretty obvious that he was unhappy with the organization. The 2005 first-round pick has been a member of the Green Bay Packers for 16 years and his daily status kept fans and media on their toes.
He’s been the club’s primary starter for the last 13 seasons. There have been 10 playoff appearances and that one Super Bowl title. But teams win championships, not quarterbacks or any single player.
All told, Rodgers has put up stunning numbers. It’s still mind-boggling when you realize that he connected for 412 scores in the regular season (seventh in NFL history) and thrown only 89 interceptions. Only twice since he became the starter in 2008 has he thrown at least 10 picks in a season. There were 13 interceptions that year and 11 INTs during the club’s last Super Bowl campaign in 2010.
So could the three-time NFL MVP be a little rusty come September? Could you imagine Rodgers getting off to rocky start and then catching fire? A double-digit interception campaign wouldn’t be the end of the world if there’s another 40-plus scores through the air.
1. The Packers won’t win the NFC North, but…
The franchise’s last Super Bowl appearance came in 2010 under head coach Mike McCarthy. That year, the Packers were the No. 6 seed in the NFC playoffs. They won postseason games at Philadelphia, at Atlanta and at Chicago and would go onto knock off the Pittsburgh Steelers in Arlington (XLV), 31-25.
Since then, there have been plenty of playoff appearances and four trips to the conference title game. But the Pack has come up short of getting back to playing on Super Sunday each time. There were losses to the Seahawks (2014), Falcons (2016), 49ers (2019) and Buccaneers (2020) – the latter at Lambeau Field.
Green Bay has won its division each of the past two seasons under current head coach Matt LaFleur. The club posted a 13-3 record each year and were joined the playoffs by the Vikings in 2019 and the Bears this past year. Are either of those clubs capable of dethroning LaFleur’s club?
If the Packers are to lose the top spot in the division, it wouldn’t be a shock if Mike Zimmer’s Purple Gang did the honors. But it also wouldn’t be a shock to see the Packers get on a roll come playoff time and enjoy a little 2010 déjà vu.