The Green Bay Packers understand they need to build momentum late in the regular season if they want to mount a successful playoff run. That's why they might have hoped the NFL was going to offer them a couple of soft games down the stretch.
Clearly, no one in the league office was interested in doing the Packers a solid favor. Instead of enjoying a favorable slate over the last week weeks, Green Bay will face a gauntlet of challenges. Head coach Matt LaFleur and his staff won't make any excuses, but they can not be happy with the hand the NFL has dealt with.
The following three games will be the most challenging encounters for the Packers to handle. Fans of Wisconsin's professional football team should buckle up for what could be a bumpy late-season ride.
Dec. 14 at the Broncos
Green Bay's roster isn't averse to playing in cold weather but they would have preferred to avoid a trip to Denver in the middle of December. There also happens to be a strong likelihood that the Broncos will need to win the game to boost their own potential playoff position.
The game falls just early enough to largely eliminate any chance that the Packers will have their own playoff position sown up. Both teams will enter this game with meaningful things to play for unless one has fallen entirely outside the playoff race.
As it stands, this late-season game will garner a lot of attention as a battle between two of the NFL's underappreciated quarterbacks. Jordan Love versus Bo Nix will garner more headlines than necessary.
This game will be great for television ratings but the Packers would have preferred to avoid such a treacherous game outside their own division at such a late date. It's a game the Packers might need to win if they want to achieve their goal of winning the NFC North.
Dec. 20 at Chicago
One of the most interesting quirks of the Packers' 2025 regular season is how the league chose to schedule their two games against the Bears. Green Bay will host Chicago on December 7th before heading to the Windy City on December 20th to tackle Caleb Williams and company.
The Packers might have preferred to take on the Bears early in the season. There is a chance that Ben Johnson can really make his mark on his new roster by the time the second half of the campaign rolls around. Chances are, Green Bay will be taking on the full-fledged form of Johnson's team by the time December arrives.
The one hope Green Bay has is that Chicago will be outside the playoff race before they take on the Packers. They still are going to get the Bears' best shot when they're forced to battle them on the road. It's a potential trap game for a Packers team that should be looking to nail their playoff seeding when they play them twice in the span of three weeks.
Jan. 3 or Jan. 4 at Minnesota
The NFL schedule is built to produce the most compelling television product possible. That's precisely why the Packers are going to finish their regular season with a tasty game on the road against the Vikings.
At the very least, Green Bay might have hoped they could play their final game of the season at Lambeau Field. The alternative is that they'll travel to Minnesota to face a team that believes they will be competing against them for a division title. Much of that depends on how the Vikings' quarterback situation plays out. If J.J. McCarthy lives up to his pre-draft hype then it's possible this game could decide the fate of the NFC North.
Even if Minnesota falls out of the race for the division title, they'll be tempted to ruin the Packers season in the regular season finale in front of their home fans. The Vikings will want to play the role of spoiler or compete for their own postseason spot in early January. It's no good for the Packers no matter what Minnesota's motivation will be. It's going to be a great game for neutrals to watch but Packers fans will be on pins and needles.