5 bold predictions for Packers vs. Texans: Jordan Love goes wild for Green Bay

The Packers and Texans will meet at Lambeau Field in Week 7 in a match-up of two of the NFL's best young quarterbacks. Both Jordan Love and C.J. Stroud will heap pressure on the opposing secondaries on Sunday afternoon. The signal caller who outduels their counterpart should walk away with a massive victory for their respective team.

Of course, quarterbacks always get too much credit or blame for what happens in big games like these. Each star will need their supporting cast to play top-flight football if they're going to emerge victorious. Packers fans should read on to discover five bold predictions about how their favorite team will perform in one of Week 7's biggest games.

Packers prediction No. 1: Jordan Love will throw for over 400 yards

The Packers would like to establish the run before accomplishing anything else on offense against the Texans. Houston's defensive coaching staff will be keenly aware of that coming into this game. That's why the Texans are going to stack the box in the first quarter and force Green Bay's wide receiver corps to beat their secondary in one-on-one matchups.

That philosophy will backfire on DeMeco Ryans and his staff. The Packers might lack a truly elite No. 1 wide receiver but the group is underrated on the whole. That gives Love a lot of choices on how he wants to attack a high-quality Houston secondary.

The end result will see Love throw the ball more often than head coach Matt LaFleur might like. The upside is that he will enjoy more opportunities to push the ball down the field in an effort to produce explosive plays. That will permit Love to eclipse the 400 yard mark in the air with a couple of touchdowns to his name. One bonus prediction is that he'll only turn the football over once via interception which will allow the Packers to win the turnover battle.

Packers prediction No. 2: Josh Jacobs will average under three yards per carry

The Texans have one of the best defenses in the NFL. They come into this one only averaging 277 yards against them per game. Their decision to try to take away Green Bay's ground game is bad news for Josh Jacobs.

The Packers' top back has struggled with efficiency early in the season against mediocre defenses. He does not have the juice required to step up his production against seven or eight Texans in the box. Green Bay will try to feed him early but his lack of production will have them leaning heavily on the pass come the second quarter.

The final stat line for Jacobs is going to reflect his struggles. He will still get at least 15 carries on the day but his average rush won't creep over three yards. This will be another worrying week for Green Bay and their high-priced running back.

Packers prediction No. 3: Jayden Reed will produce over 100 yards of offense

One of the most intriguing matchups of this game will pit Green Bay's slot receiver Jayden Reed against Houston's standout nickel back Jaden Pitre. This battle could ultimately be where this game is won or lost.

The edge goes to the Packers and Reed. He isn't garnering a ton of national attention for his dynamic play but that will change as the season goes along. Reed is Love's top receiving target and the offensive coaching staff regularly finds a way to get the ball into his hands on a few rushing attempts as well.

Reed will notch one explosive play against Pitre that will help his offensive total eclipse the 100-yard mark. There's also a strong chance he finds the end zone against this stingy Texans defense.

Packers prediction No. 4: Evan Williams forces a turnover

The Packers drafted Javon Bullard in Round 2 but the team's fourth-round pick, Evan Williams, has been their standout rookie safety through six weeks. His PFF average of 91.4 shows how dominant he's been from the free safety spot. In particular, his pass coverage has done wonders to improve the back end of Green Bay's defense.

Stroud is a tough quarterback for any safety to handle. Williams might make a mistake or two against Houston's pass attack but he has shown a real knack for taking the right risks this season. Lock him in to produce a turnover against Stroud when Houston's offense is pressured into throwing the ball into double coverage. Xavier McKinney has been the interception artist so far but Williams will nab one in this game.

Packers prediction No. 5: The Packers won't miss a kick

Brayden Narveson is gone and Brandon McManus gets his chance to stake his claim on the starting kicker spot for the Packers this week. What McManus lacks in leg strength he will make up for in accuracy against the Texans.

Green Bay won't have enough confidence in him to feed their new kicker anything more than routine shots against Houston. There's also the reality that it will be touchdowns, not field goals, that are at a premium in this high-scoring affair.

Add all that up and you get a reasonably comfortable game for a kicker that needs to cement his claim on the starting job. McManus will make two or three modest field goals with little or no drama. That represents a sharp upgrade over what Narveson gave Green Bay over the first six games of the season.