The Green Bay Packers snapped their two-game losing run at Lambeau Field with an emphatic win over the Minnesota Vikings.
Matt LaFleur called a conservative, run-heavy game, which didn't impress everyone, but it was effective against this Vikings team. J.J. McCarthy and Minnesota's offense rarely looked like scoring points, which allowed Green Bay to drain the clock, ease its way down the field, and happily boot field goals rather than trying to launch the ball deep.
It worked, with the Packers taking a 23-6 win and the offense barely needing to shift out of first gear. Green Bay is now 7-3-1 and 2-0 in the division, clearing the first of many challenging hurdles to come. There were far more positives than negatives in this game.
The Packers' biggest winners and losers from their win over the Vikings in Week 12
Winner: Emanuel Wilson
No Josh Jacobs, no problem. Emanuel Wilson reminded everyone how talented he is and also kept his fantasy managers happy, rushing for 107 yards and two touchdowns on 28 carries. It wasn't easy work, either, as the offensive line didn't exactly carve open the biggest rushing lanes, as most of his work came after initial contact.
According to Pro Football Focus, an incredible 94 of his 107 rushing yards came after contact. Wilson is a strong runner and he consistently fought for additional yards. It's a performance Jacobs would've been proud of.
Winner: Micah Parsons
At this point, we just need to hand Micah Parsons a permanent spot in our winners section. He changed the game yet again. Parsons made J.J. McCarthy's life miserable. Along with two more sacks, Parsons generated a team-best four pressures, per PFF.
It doesn't matter how many linemen the Packers' opponents put on Parsons. It doesn't matter if they hold him on every play. Parsons still dominates.
Winner: Warren Brinson
Hello, Warren Brinson. The Packers' sixth-round rookie enjoyed his breakout performance on Sunday. According to Next Gen Stats (h/t Zach Kruse of Packers Wire), Brinson made a team-best five pressures on only 15 pass-rush snaps. He also shared a sack with Isaiah McDuffie. That's ridiculous production.
Brinson has quietly been stacking success, and this performance proved he can become a valuable piece of the Packers' defensive line.
Winner: Devonte Wyatt
Devonte Wyatt made a lightning start to the season with two sacks and five quarterback hits in the opening four games, but he got hurt in the tie against the Dallas Cowboys, and the Packers missed him.
Since returning in Week 8, Wyatt played at nowhere near the level he had produced in September, with no sacks or quarterback hits. That all changed on Sunday. Wyatt took down J.J. McCarthy twice and looked back to his best. On one play, Jeff Hafley had Parsons line up directly behind Wyatt, creating a truly unfair matchup that led to one of Wyatt's sacks.
Loser: Jordan Morgan
Jordan Morgan is a left tackle trying to play at right guard. He never truly took the right guard job away from Sean Rhyan, and now with Rhyan shifting to center to cover for Elgton Jenkins, Morgan appears to have lost the job to rookie Anthony Belton.
The Packers said Belton was practicing at the interior spots, which seemed to hint at a potential change, and here we are. The two rotated snaps in the first half before Belton took over the right guard job in the second half. Time will tell if it's a permanent move. Morgan looks destined for the bench, at least for now, and his best opportunity to start may not come until 2026 if Rasheed Walker leaves in free agency.