Despite coming to Colorado to face a Denver Broncos team that had won 10 straight games, 11 consecutive games at home dating back to last season, and boasted one of the top defenses in the NFL, the Green Bay Packers actually came into this Week 15 matchup as the favorite.
And for quite a while, it looked as if Matt LaFleur & Co. were all set to up their own winning streak to five, scoring on their first five offensive drives of the day, with the fifth resulting in a Josh Jacobs 40-yard touchdown run that ultimately gave Green Bay a 23-14 lead early in the third quarter.
But it was all downhill from there, as Denver dominated both sides of the ball the rest of the way en route to a 34-26 victory. But a football game wasn't all the Packers lost on Sunday, as Micah Parsons left with what looks to be a torn ACL, while Christian Watson was lost as well after suffering a chest injury. And those were both after Zach Tom exited with a knee injury.
So, yeah, it was a bad day. And to make matters even worse, the Packers fell out of first place in the NFC North and ultimately fell five total spots in the NFC standings.
Packers fell from second to seventh in the NFC standings
Here's an updated look at the NFC playoff picture coming out of Week 15. As you'll notice, only 10 of the 16 teams in the conference are included, as the Minnesota Vikings (6-8), Atlanta Falcons (5-9), New Orleans Saints (4-10), Washington Commanders (4-10), Arizona Cardinals (3-11), and New York Giants (2-12) have all been officially eliminated.
Updated NFC playoff picture
- Los Angeles Rams (11-3, 1st NFC West)
- Chicago Bears (10-4, 1st NFC North)
- Philadelphia Eagles (9-5, 1st NFC East)
- Tampa Bay Buccaneers (7-7, 1st NFC South)
- Seattle Seahawks (11-3, 2nd NFC West)
- San Francisco 49ers (10-4, 3rd NFC West)
- Green Bay Packers (9-4-1, 2nd NFC North)
- Detroit Lions (8-6, 3rd NFC North)
- Carolina Panthers (7-7, 2nd NFC South)
- Dallas Cowboys (6-7-1, 2nd NFC East)
As you can see, Green Bay, which came into Week 15 as the No. 2 seed, has fallen all the way down into the No. 7 slot, with that second position going back to the Chicago Bears, who retook first place in the NFC North with an easy 31-3 win over the Cleveland Browns.
Of course, the Packers can move back into the top spot in the division and back into that No. 2 spot this upcoming Saturday, as they're set to square off with the Bears at Soldier Field.
Overall, despite the loss to Denver, Green Bay is still in solid shape heading into the final three weeks of the season, as the first team on the outside looking in at this point is the Detroit Lions, who fell to 8-6 with a 41-34 defeat to the top-seeded Los Angeles Rams, who inched closer to clinching the No. 1 seed by improving to 11-3.