Winners and losers: 5 takeaways from Packers in Week 3

Jordan Love's health dominated the headlines in Green Bay heading into their Week 3 clash against the Titans. Malik Willis and his teammates made sure Love's status was an afterthought after dispatching Tennessee with a dominating 30-14 victory.

Of course, not everything went perfectly from Green Bay's perspective. Winning the turnover battle 3-0 papered over some of the Packers' weaknesses in the game. Head coach Matt LaFleur and his staff will spend a lot of time examining film this week to shore up the team's deficiencies before next week's marquee matchup against the Vikings.

Packers fans should keep a particularly close eye on the following five players whose stock fluctuated most this week. The news is mostly good for Green Bay's big-name players but a couple of stars displayed some troubling signs in Week 3.

Winner No. 1: Malik Willis

Critics of the young quarterback might point to the fact that he was only asked to throw 19 passes this week as a reason no one should get too excited about his play. That ignores the significant damage Willis dealt to the Titans' defense on the ground.

Willis led his offense with 73 rushes on six carries including an early touchdown. His ability to threaten opposing edge rushers with his running ability opens up LaFleur's playbook. It's an extra dimension the Green Bay offense enjoys with Willis at the helm.

Averaging 10.6 yards on his 13 completions also shows just how far Willis is coming with his throwing accuracy. He pushed the ball down the field against Tennessee and also put throws right on his receivers so they could produce yards after the catch. He was a solid point guard for the Packers' offense in his second start on the season.

None of this means Love won't waltz right back into the starting lineup as soon as he's deemed to be fully healthy. It just means the Packers have one of the best backup quarterbacks in football. Trading for Willis in the preseason looks like a shrewd acquisition by Brian Gutekunst and the team's front office.

Winner No. 2: Emmanuel Wilson

The Packers have used their ground game to protect Willis in both of his starts. Second-year running back Emmanuel Wilson was the biggest beneficiary of this strategy against the Titans.

He came into the game with only nine carries on the season but flashed with 12 carries for 50 yards. Wilson didn't pop an explosive play but he consistently kept the offense on schedule by producing positive runs.

The performance was a boost for the Packers on Sunday, but it was also crucial for Wilson's future with the franchise. MarShawn Lloyd will get back into the mix once he returns from injury. Wilson, at the very least, cemented his hold on the No. 3 running back spot on the roster with this performance.

He may lack the big-play ability to ever be a starter, but Wilson knows how to grind out the tough yards with his physical running style. That should endear him to the Packers' coaching staff as long as he continues to grind out yards with this level of efficiency.

Winner No. 3: Preston Smith

In truth, almost every edge-rusher who got into this game from the Packers really enjoyed playing against Titans quarterback Will Levis. Green Bay racked up eight sacks against the inexperienced signal-caller and made life difficult for him in the pocket every time he dropped back to pass.

Preston Smith gets the nod because he managed to get Levis down twice on the afternoon. Smith is a pass-rushing specialist at this stage of his career so it's vital that he produce sacks. Levis represented an easy target for him but he still managed to do what was required.

Smith may struggle to hold on to his starting spot as Lukas Van Ness continues to come on. Getting two sacks on Sunday at least serves to hold the younger pass-rusher off for a few additional weeks. Getting production out of Smith continues to be crucial for Green Bay's defense.

Loser No. 1: Josh Jacobs

Jacobs has enjoyed a hot start to the season but he gave back a lot of his momentum in Week 3. The team's workhorse running back was only able to scrounge out 43 yards on 14 carries against Tennessee. That lack of efficiency will concern the coaching staff when it goes back and watches the tape.

No one in Green Bay should panic about Jacobs having one lackluster game but the fact that they've leaned on him so heavily in the early going should be observed. It might be a good idea to manage Jacobs' workload in the coming weeks to allow him to recover from all the carries he was asked to soal up with Love on the bench.

No matter what, Green Bay should be looking to work with a running back by committee approach as the season trudges along. They run the ball too often for any one back to handle the lion's share of their carries. Jacobs has to be kept fresh for the playoffs if the Packers want to make a deep postseason run.

Loser No. 2: Romeo Doubs

The Packers are still trying to figure out what the appropriate pecking order of their wide receiver room should be. Last week, it looked like Doubs might be rising to the No. 1 spot. Following that effort up with just one catch on two targets this week plunges Doubs' status back into uncertainty.

That may not be a huge concern for the front office but it should weigh heavy on Doubs' mind. He wants to carve out a big role as the most reliable target available to anyone who plays quarterback for the team. As it stands, he's struggled to establish a consistent connection with Willis.

Doubs likely believes that Love returning under center will be the cure for his erratic workload. That might not prove to be the case given the playmaking ability teammates like Christian Watson and Jayden Reed possess. It's a precarious situation that Doubs must handle early in the season.