Packers News: Malik Willis advantage, RB shuffling, kicking woes addressed

Green Bay Packers fans enjoyed their 16-10 victory over the Colts in Week 2 but it was hardly a dominating effort by the home team at Lambeau Field. Head coach Matt LaFleur and his staff know they'll need to take another step forward if they want to knock off the Titans on Sunday.

Predictably, there's been some roster movement this week to respond to injuries and uneven performances. Much of the chatter revolves around who will start at quarterback or the Packers this week, but newly signed running back Chris Brooks deserves some mention as well. He will need to take some heat off of Josh Jacobs this week.

Packers fans wanting to catch up on their favorite team's news cycle this week should pay attention to the following nuggets.

Packers news: Malik Willis has a subtle advantage if he plays this week

Willis may not have played a ton of football before he arrived in Green Bay, but he spent previous time in the NFL with this week's opponent. That means Willis is in a unique position to know the ins and outs of the Titans defense after going up against them in practice every day.

Of course, Willis likely had most of his practice reps against Tennessee's second-string defense. It might take him a little bit of effort to adjust to the speed and force that the Titan's top unit possesses. Quick decisions will be required by the inexperienced quarterback if he's going to lead his new team to a second consecutive victory.

Love practicing on Wednesday does put Willis' status for the game in question. The odds still favor the Packers exercising some patience here. They need to make sure Love is 100% before putting him back onto the field. Another injury could completely torpedo their hopes of making a deep postseason run. Expect Green Bay to go with Willis this week and try to leverage his inside knowledge of Tennessee's defensive scheme to their advantage.

Fans should not be surprised if a big part of Green Bay's game plan this week revolves around letting Willis use his legs to his advantage. He flashed that ability against the Colts but the Packers did not want to expose him to much physical contact while Love's status was still in doubt. If Green Bay feels that Love is ready to play in an emergency, they might be more inclined to let Willis get on the perimeter and threaten the opposing defense with his rushing ability.

Packers news: There's a new running back in town

The bad injury news coming out of Green Bay's win last week is that rookie running back MarShawn Lloyd is going on Injured Reserve. That necessitated the addition of a running back by the organization. They elected to go in-house by promoting Chris Brooks from the Practice Squad.

That does not qualify as a sexy transaction, but it's a solid decision by a team that values substance over style. Jacobs is still going to get the lion's share of carries this week but Brooks knows the system well enough to take 5-10 carries off his plate. His fresh legs could really help Green Bay salt this game away late if they can grab a first-half lead.

It's imperative that the Packers find a running back they can trust to avoid the temptation to wear Jacobs out early in the season. Brooks has a chance to seize the No. 2 running back spot while Brooks is on IR. Emanuel Wilson is the other back who has a chance to get into the mix this week. The Packers need either him or Brooks to give them a boost when Jacobs needs to recharge on the sidelines.

Jacobs' workload is an early storyline that Packers fans should be paying close attention to. He is still in his prime but that does not mean he can afford to soak up 32 carries each week like the load he carried against the Colts in Week 2.

Packers news: Willis isn't the only former Titan to have a role to play on Sunday

Willis is the biggest name to move from Nashville to Green Bay this offseason but he isn't the only player who switched sides between the two franchises this offseason. The Packers also claimed kicker Brayden Narveson off waivers from Tennessee before Week 1 kicked off.

The rookie has struggled with his consistency in the early going. He's made six of his eight field goal attempts but, ironically, has missed both 43-yarders he's attempted. His miss from that distance against the Eagles was a big missed opportunity for Green Bay to put real pressure on Philadelphia. On the bright side, he's managed to nail several longer kicks that shows his potential to be a quality NFL starter at his position.

The young kicker does have the confidence of his head coach though. LaFleur told reporters this week that he intends to be pretty "patient" with him. He needs to hit more than 75% of his field goals moving forward but it's still too early to draw big conclusions on such a small sample size.

One nightmare game this week might change the organization's view on Narveson. They do not have much invested in him so a change could be made via free agency with little opportunity cost. Narveson shouldn't be panicking about his status with the team but he'd do well to enjoy a productive day against the Titans to cement his status as the Packers' top placekicker.