The good, bad, and ugly for Packers entering the bye week
As the youngest team in football, the Green Bay Packers' excuse of inexperience only holds up for so long if the signs of potential are not shining through enough.
The offense has shown it can close the door on teams crawling back, like they did against Chicago, and overcome a steep fourth-quarter deficit to win a game like they did against the Saints. Against the Raiders and Falcons, the Packers had chances to snag victory from the grasp of defeat with one properly executed late-game drive.
Having mixed results of victory and defeat, the Packers are gaining situational experience and look like an offense learning how to win games.
It hasn't been all bad, though, and each game has presented valuable lessons for the young talent to build on. But the lack of an identity on offense and the inconsistencies on defense have made maintained success difficult to come by.
Here is the good, the bad, and the ugly for the Packers through five weeks.
The Good: Packers 2022 first-round draft picks
Through five games, the Packers' two first-round picks from the 2022 class - Quay Walker and Devonte Wyatt - have been top-performing players on defense.
Following a strong first year where Walker finished second among all rookies in tackles (119) and earned All-Rookie honors from the Pro Football Writers of America, Walker has emerged as the Packers' top linebacker in 2023.
After an injury to fellow inside linebacker and recent All-Pro De'Vondre Campbell, Walker has seized the opportunity to the tune of 51 combined tackles through five games, seventh-most in the NFL. His 33 combined tackles against the run rank third in the NFL.
In Week 1 against the Bears, Walker showed off his freakish athleticism when returning his first career interception for six points. Against the Lions in Week 4, Walker posted 19 total tackles, the most from a Green Bay player since 2000 and the highest single-game mark in 2023 so far.
Walker's talent is mouth-watering for any defensive coordinator. As he works to clean up the occasional lousy penalty, he's playing like the big-time thumper that Green Bay has badly needed from its off-ball linebacker group.
As for Wyatt, he currently sits at 2.5 sacks, holds the third-highest pressure rate among all defensive tackles in football (18.18%), and his 17 pressures through five games is the second most on the Packers.
Per Zach Jacobson of Heavy.com, compared to other defensive linemen in Wyatt's 2022 draft class, Wyatt's 17 pressures are one behind the next four closest players combined (18).
This comes as Wyatt claims nowhere near the snap count share that other star defensive linemen hold. Most recently, against the Raiders, Wyatt played only 52% of snaps but was second on the Packers in pressures (3).
After rookie seasons where Wyatt and Walker didn't provide the immediate splash fans were hoping for, both are off to solid starts in 2023 and outperforming the remainder of their draft class at their respective positions.