5 reasons the Packers don't need to panic after rough loss to the Lions

The Packers suffered a rare home loss to the Lions in Week 9 which dropped their record to 6-3. More importantly, the defeat saw Green Bay drop to third place in the ultra-competitive NFC North.

None of that means it's time to panic for the Packers. It's never a good sign to lose to a rival at home but there are plenty of reasons why Green Bay can feel optimistic about their chances of making a deep postseason run. The loss to the Lions is more likely to be a blip on the radar than a real sign of consternation for fans at Lambeau Field.

Even so, intense analysis is required to see exactly why the Packers can feel encouraged after the 24-14 defeat. Read on to discover five reasons why Green Bay should stay the course instead of making big changes based on Sunday's defeat.

Packers reason for optimism No. 1: Jordan Love was not 100 percent

The biggest extenuating factor in this loss for Green Bay is that their offensive talisman, Jordan Love, was clearly not fully healthy. His lack of mobility in the pocket directly led to one obvious interception against the aggressive Lions defense. His inability to move around likely cost the Packers' offense several opportunities to hit explosive plays down the field as well.

In the end, his final line of 23 completions on 39 pass attempts for 273 yards with just one interception was not terrible for an injured signal-caller. That's not the sort of production the Packers need from their most talented offensive player though.

It is entirely possible that the next time these two teams meet up Love will be much more capable of taking advantage of any errors the Detroit defense makes. The Packers know how good Love is when he's healthy and won't panic over this loss because they didn't get great quarterback play.

Packers reason for optimism No. 2: The run defense is better than it played in Week 9

The Lions really benefited from their ability to run the ball with physicality against the Green Bay front in Week 9. Running backs David Montgomery and Jahymr Gibbs averaged just a shade under five yards per rush on their 28 carries. That far exceeds the Packers' defense average of four yards per rush on the season.

Ironically, the biggest reason why Green Bay struggled to stop the run in this game was the absence of rookie safety Evan Williams. His absence really inhibited defensive coordinator's Jeff Hafley to crowd the box against the Lions on early downs. It's easy to see how his return to the field could title the math in the Packers favor when these two teams meet again.

Packers reason for optimism No. 3: Josh Jacobs ran the ball efficiently

Josh Jacobs had a nice individual performance even though his workload was limited after his team fell behind early. He tallied 95 yards rushing on the day despite being held to just 13 carries. Averaging over seven yards per carry is something the Packers' offense can be proud of.

Jacobs also caught two passes out of the backfield which illustrates just how much his team wanted to get the ball into his hands. He prides himself on being a workhorse out of the backfield no matter how he gets his touches. The next time he comes up against the Lions' physical front he'll hope to get a much heavier workload. The efficiency he displayed in this game proves he's capable of getting more touches in an effort to wear down Detroit's front seven.

Packers reason for optimism No. 4: They limited Jared Goff to just 145 yards passing

Some might argue that Detroit didn't need more than 145 passing yards to win this game comfortably. While that is true, it's still telling that the Lions didn't push the ball down the field more against an undermmaned Packers' seconday.

The aforementioned injury to Williams affected Green Bay's safety pairing but they also missed out on their No. 1 cornerback Jaire Alexander. Hafley and his defensive staff should gain some quiet quality in how they held down the Lions' passing attack without two of their starters in the secondary.

The Packers' pass defenders also get extra credit for holding Goff down while the Lions' signal-caller was only sacked once. More pressure and better heatlh should work in Green Bay's favor as the regular-season rolls along.

Packers reason for optimism no. 5: The passing game remains diverse

Green Bay is criticized in some circles due to their lack of a true No. 1 wide receiver. The flipside to that is that the Packers have a number of wideouts they can go to at any time.

In this game, Love completed passes to nine different receivers. No pass-catcher exceeded seven targets on the day. Christian Watson led the team with that number while Jayden Reed paced the group with five catches for 113 yards.

The Packers might go shopping for a No. 1 wideout this offseason but they are leaning into using every member of their receiver room at the moment. That was not enough to topple the Lions in Week 9 but head coach Matt LaFleur knows that developing his receiver room is a marathon, not a sprint. The talent in that room will continue to shake out in the coming weeks but the sheer number of options available for Love makes this offense difficult to predict.