Three potential trap games for the Packers in 2020.
The Green Bay Packers will soon know their 2020 regular season schedule.
After winning 13 games last year, good for the number two seed and an eventual trip to the NFC Championship Game, the Packers will be looking to find similar success again in 2020.
But what are three potential trap games on the schedule?
Tennessee Titans
The Packers will host the Titans in 2020. And while the visitors made it as far as the AFC Championship Game last year, they only won nine games in the regular season and will likely enter this game as the underdogs.
But there is cause for concern for the Packers. Green Bay struggled to stop the run, home or away, throughout the 2019 season and has so far not done nearly enough to fix that this offseason.
Derrick Henry rushed for 1,540 yards and 16 touchdowns last season, and the Titans have now added third-round pick Darrynton Evans to the backfield. Green Bay will need to stop the run. If it can’t, this will be a tough game to win.
Atlanta Falcons
The Falcons have fallen well short of expectations in recent years since their heartbreaking Super Bowl loss to the Patriots. At Lambeau Field, this looks like a game the Packers should win. And, well, they should.
But Matt Ryan is a former league MVP. Julio Jones is a seven-time Pro Bowler and five-time All-Pro. And he puts up about 4,000 yards every time he plays the Packers. In six career games against the Packers (including playoffs), Jones has 698 yards and five touchdowns. That’s an average of over 100 yards per game.
At their best, the Ryan-to-Jones connection is tough to stop. The Packers will need to be ready.
Detroit Lions
While I’m not ready to put the Lions in the mix for the NFC North title just yet, they’ve done a good job of closing the gap slightly. While trading away Darius Slay will hurt, they’ve done well to replace him, signing Desmond Trufant before drafting Jeff Okudah third overall.
A backfield of Kerryon Johnson and rookie D’Andre Swift could be one of the best in the NFC and a healthy Matthew Stafford also gives the Lions offense a major boost.
Even if the Lions aren’t contenders in 2020, they shouldn’t be overlooked.