Packers: Revisiting the 16 regular season games in 2020
By David Ruiz
Week 2 vs. Detroit Lions
Ah, the home opener. Always an exciting first time-experience watching Green Bay play at home at Lambeau Field. But, as noted before, the Packers would play in front of no one as they hosted the Detroit Lions. For whatever reason it may be, Detroit has always played Green Bay well.
As evident by Detroit jumping out to a 14-3 lead after the first quarter, but, thankfully, the game isn’t just played in one-quarter of football. The focal point of Green Bay’s success in 2021 would fall under defensive coordinator Mike Pettine’s ability to improve a vastly talented group.
Packers fans had fallen in love with the Super Smith Bros. (Za’Darius and Preston Smith) but also saw improved safety play from Adrian Amos and Darnell Savage. However, the crown jewel on defense has always been Jaire Alexander.
Green Bay’s defense held Matthew Stafford and Co. to just seven points after the first quarter, hinting that maybe, just maybe, this defense will finally put it together in 2021.
Green Bay 2-0
Week 3 at New Orleans Saints
The first major test of the young season came in a Sunday Night Football Week 3 matchup against the New Orleans Saints. Rodgers has won a lot of road games over the years, but one place that escaped him was New Orleans. In a battle of NFC heavyweights with Super Bowl aspirations, this game had the makings of a Green Bay team that would’ve thrown in the towel after falling behind, 17-13, at the half.
But not the 2020 Green Bay Packers.
In a battle of haymakers back and forth, Rodgers and Drew Brees would exchange scoring drives that featured three lead changes and two tied scores before capitalizing on a crucial Taysom Hill fumble.
The Packers would put up 10 points in the fourth quarter and stopped Alvin Kamara — who had been gashing Green Bay all night — on a third-and-5 to put the final touches in New Orleans.
If this wasn’t an indication that this season would begin taking shape towards something special, then I’ve got nothing for you.
Green Bay 3-0
Week 4 vs. Atlanta Falcons
The schedule-makers gave Green Bay back-to-back primetime slots as they would host the Atlanta Falcons on Monday Night Football. The series between the two has always favored the home team but a struggling Atlanta team would prove to be no match in this contest.
However, this would prove to be the Robert Tonyan game after torching the Atlanta defense for three touchdowns in which Green Bay would top 30-plus points for the fourth consecutive game.
Watching this game back, there was nothing Green Bay couldn’t do on offense that night. This would prove useful after Adams had missed a few games with a hamstring injury and Allen Lazard was lost due to a core injury a week prior.
Atlanta would hang around after a pair of Todd Gurley touchdowns, but never sniffed an upset win as Alexander would shut down Calvin Ridley (zero receptions) and stopped a fourth-down play to end the game.
Green Bay 4-0