It may not have been pretty, but a win is a win, which is what the Green Bay Packers will gladly take. On Sunday afternoon, the Packers took advantage of the New York Jets' fourth-quarter collapse to pick up a 20-17 victory in overtime. It was an ugly performance for the Packers, particularly on offense, with the team being unable to convert on third-down plays and being held to just under 100 yards of offense in the first half.
But if there was one positive for the Packers on Sunday, it was the defense. Even though the offense was giving them no help, defensive coordinator Jonathan Gannon did a great job of putting the pressure on Jets quarterback Geno Smith. Look no further than the breakout performance of pass rusher Lukas Van Ness.
The Packers are on a short week, as they have their first home game of the season on Thursday night. Their opponents are the Atlanta Falcons, who, through two weeks, have shown they are in the running for the worst team in the league. That should have Gannon salivating.
Falcons QB instability should heavily favor the Packers
It truly is surprising that the Falcons' offense, with the presence of superstars like running back Bijan Robinson and wide receiver Drake London, has been so ineffective this season. Well, that's what happens when you don't have a competent quarterback starting.
For the first two games of the season, the Falcons relied on Cooper Rush, as Michael Penix Jr. worked his way back from a knee injury and Tua Tagovailoa suffered an oblique injury in the lead-up to Week 1. The results were disastrous with Rush under center, especially in their 34-3 loss to the Carolina Panthers on Sunday. He was benched for fourth-stringer Jack Strand, but he was no better, throwing a pick-six on his first pass of the game.
On Thursday, the Falcons announced that Penix will be making his season debut, as he was officially cleared to return from injury. Even so, it's hard to see much improvement for the Falcons under head coach Kevin Stefanski. How will he play after returning from a season-ending knee injury last year? Even before his injury, Penix wasn't exactly leading the Falcons to win after win after win.
Packers' defense should be highly favored against Falcons' offense
This season, the Falcons are averaging just 262.0 yards per game (fourth-worst in the NFL) and 8.0 points per game. Perhaps the most damning statistic of all, the Falcons have yet to have a single play in the red zone. Through the first two games, they haven't made it into the opponent's 20-yard line. That's how poorly things have gone for Atlanta.
Additionally, the Falcons' offensive line hasn't done a great job of protecting the quarterback. The offensive line surrendered seven sacks through the first two games of this season, which is tied for the third-most in the NFL behind the Miami Dolphins (nine) and New Orleans Saints (eight).
Meanwhile, the Packers have been one of the most effective pass-rushing teams, logging seven sacks so far this season, tied for the second-most in the league. And this is without Micah Parsons.
On paper, the Packers should easily reach a 2-1 record after Thursday night. Given how the defense played against the Jets on Sunday, Gannon should follow a similar strategy when facing the Falcons and Penix. Pressure them and force bad decisions. If they can do that, picking up the second win of the season should be attainable.
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