Patriots Opponent Preview: Packers Are Facing Injury Questions Of Their Own

After back-to-back road games, the New England Patriots will be back at Gillette Stadium this week to take on a Green Bay Packers team that has played some successful football so far this season. At 5-3, they are currently in the NFC playoff picture and have shown themselves capable of winning both at home and on the road.

What the Packers also have shown is that they are capable of winning despite facing serious personnel questions. Much like the Patriots, they have been hit hard and will be without starters or key reserves at wide receiver, along the offensive line, along the defensive line and at linebacker this Sunday.

So, what can be expected in Week 9? Let’s find out.

Packers key stats

The Packers are a good football team, they just happen to play in what is the most competitive division in football right now. Despite a 5-3 record, they are in fourth place in the NFC North; they are, however, the current owners of the seventh playoff seed in the conference — same as their opponent this week, the Patriots.

And that is not the only similarity between the two teams as a look at the key stats shows.

Offensively, the Packers function mainly due to their passing game. They are ranked top-10 in attempts, yards, touchdowns and net yard per attempt; they barely rank outside in expected points added per game. Their run game, on the other hand, has been abysmal. They are not just 32nd in EPA per rush, but also in attempts, yards and yards per attempt — a direct result of their offensive line being in shambles: they have used 11 different linemen this year, with seven of them playing more than 100 snaps.

Defensively, Green Bay has performed very well especially in one department: taking the ball away. No other unit in football has had a better percentage of drives ending in giveaways than the Packers’, which registers takeaways on 16.7% of opponents’ possessions. For comparison, the Patriots are giving the ball away at a rate of 17.9% — second-worst in the league.

Packers 2026 season

The Patriots and Packers have followed the same pattern so far this year. Both lost their season openers but came back with a win the following week only to lose again in Week 3. They then rattled off three straight victories before a defeat in Week 7 and subsequent win in Week 8.

Week 1: 39-22 loss at Minnesota Vikings (0-1)
Week 2: 20-17 OT win at New York Jets (1-1)
Week 3: 35-14 loss vs. Atlanta Falcons (1-2)
Week 4: 17-14 win at Tampa Bay Buccaneers (2-2)
Week 5: 31-7 win vs. Chicago Bears (3-2)
Week 6: 23-14 win vs. Dallas Cowboys (4-2)
Week 7: 20-17 loss at Detroit Lions (4-3)
Week 8: 27-19 win vs. Carolina Panthers (5-3)

As for the games themselves, the Packers didn’t look overly impressive so far. They barely avoided going 0-3 by beating the moribund Jets in overtime, and registered one of their wins against a Bears team led by a pair of backup quarterbacks. That said, they still have the eighth-best strength of victory.

Packers active roster

Roster up-to-date as of Nov. 4, 5 a.m. ET | *denotes nominal starter

Quarterback (2): Jordan Love* (10), Tyrod Taylor (6)

Running back (4): Josh Jacobs* (8), MarShawn Lloyd (32), Pierre Strong Jr. (22), Kaleb Johnson (26)

Wide receiver (6): Christian Watson* (9), Matthew Golden* (0), Savion Williams* (83), Bo Melton (16 | KR), J.Michael Sturdivant (87), Coleman Owen (13 | KR/PR)

Tight end (4): Tucker Kraft* (85), Mark Redman (86), Josh Whyle (81), Jonnu Smith (18)

Offensive tackle (3): Jordan Morgan* (77 | LT), Anthony Belton* (71 | RT), Mekhi Becton Sr. (74)

Interior offensive line (8): Laken Tomlinson* (72 | LG), Sean Rhyan* (75 | C), Travis Glover* (79 | RG), Aaron Banks (65), John Williams (73), Kevin Zeitler (70), Jager Burton (52), Donovan Jennings (67)

Interior defensive line (5): Karl Brooks* (94), Devonte Wyatt* (95), Chris McClellan (55), Anthony Campbell (93), Jordon Riley (97)

Defensive edge (4): Lukas Van Ness* (90), Barryn Sorrell* (99), Dani Dennis-Sutton (51), Brenton Cox Jr. (57)

Linebacker (5): Zaire Franklin* (44), Isaiah McDuffie* (58), Ty’ron Hopper (59), Nick Niemann (31), Kristian Welch (54)

Cornerback (5): Keisean Nixon* (25), Brandon Cisse* (2), Carrington Valentine (24), Benjamin St-Juste (21), Kamal Haden (36)

Safety (4): Evan Williams* (33), Xavier McKinney* (29), Javon Bullard* (7), Kitan Oladapo (27)

Specialists (3): Trey Smack (28 | K), Daniel Whelan (19 | P/H), Matt Orzech (42 | LS)

Through the first eight weeks of the season, no quarterback has attempted more passes or thrown for more yards than Jordan Love. The seventh-year man has gone 192-for-312 (61.5%) for 2,246 yards with 16 touchdowns and six interceptions so far. He also has scored a rushing touchdown and is ranked 12th in the NFL in EPA per play (0.150).

The Packers putting the ball in Love’s hand is no surprise given their aforementioned struggles running the football behind an offensive line that has been a revolving door so far. One would assume the QB himself also has been impacted by this, but his 4.3% sack rate is still fairly low and the sixth-best in football. As a consequence, Love has been able to push the ball down the field: he is tied with Drake Maye and Geno Smith as the league leader in completions of 20-plus yards (17) and tied for third in average depth of target (9.8).

Unfortunately for Love, his receiving corps has not held up its end of the bargain at times. A league-leading 23 of his passes have been dropped, resulting in the second-worst drop rate in the NFL (10.7%).

And that is despite Green Bay having some talent at the receiving positions. Christian Watson (42/708/6) and Matthew Golden (43/619/4) are among the most productive wide receiver pairings in football, while tight end Tucker Kraft (35/350/3) has also been steadily involved. Behind those three, however, there is a significant drop-off in receiving production — the passing game runs through their connection with Love.

The running game, meanwhile, doesn’t run a whole lot at all. Part of it is Josh Jacobs (32/75/1) missing six games on the commissioner’s exempt list due to domestic violence charges, part is neither him nor MarShawn Lloyd (57/149/2) being particularly effective behind Green Bay’s O-line.

The outlook isn’t much better either: starting center Sean Rhyan (ankle) and No. 2 right guard Travis Glover (knee) were absent from practice on Wednesday, while nominal right guard Jacob Monk and right tackle Zach Bako-Bewele are currently on injured reserve. Maybe some extra time coming off a mini-bye can help the unit find some chemistry, but the production on the ground so far has been poor.

Defensively, star outside linebacker Micah Parsons remains on the physically unable to perform list even after returning to practice on Wednesday. In his place, Lukas Van Ness has been the top guy on the edge: his 28 quarterback pressures are leading the team, as are his 4.5 sacks. The Packers are about more than those two, with the other edges all being heavily involved in the rotation.

On the interior, Karl Brooks, Devonte Wyatt and rookie Chris McClellan are the main three. With rotational DTs Jonathan Ford and Javon Hargrave on IR, they are hoarding snaps at the position.

Green Bay’s injury questions also have hit the linebacker position: Edgerrin Cooper is out for the year, while Zaire Franklin has missed practice on Wednesday with a shin issue. If Franklin ends up missing a third straight game, Isaiah McDuffie and Ty’ron Hopper will be the main men off the ball. Hooper is one to have an eye on: his two interceptions are tied for second on the team behind only safety Xavier McKinney’s three.

Speaking of McKinney, he is part of a secondary that relies heavily on three-safety sets featuring him, Evan Williams and rookie Javon Bullard. At cornerback, Keiseaon Nixon and Brandon Cisse are the starters and unlikely to leave the field in any situations. Together, the five have registered eight takeaways so far this year.

One potential area of concern for the pickers is their kicker. Rookie Trey Smack is only 11-of-16 on field goals and 16-of-19 on extra points so far this season. His combined success rate of 77.1% is the worst in the NFL among regular kickers.

Packers reserves

Practice squad (16): QB Cam Miller (17), WR Isaiah Neyor (80), WR Quincy Skinner Jr. (82), TE Drake Dabney (49), OT Dalton Cooper (78), OL Dillon Wade (68), DT David Blay Jr. (61), DT Mazi Smith (63), ED D.J. Johnson (46), ED Nyjalik Kelly (47), ED Arron Mosby (53), LB Jack Dingle (48), CB Elijah Culp (39), CB Domani Jackson (20), S John Saunders Jr. (35), K Lenny Krieg (38 | exempt)

IR (10): RB Chris Brooks (30), WR Skyy Moore (23), WR Jayden Reed (11), OT Zach Bako-Bewele (50), OL Jacob Monk (62), DT Warren Brinson (91), DT Jonathan Ford (96), DT Javon Hargrave (98), ED Collin Oliver (45), LB Edgerrin Cooper (56)

PUP (2): TE Luke Musgrave (88), ED Micah Parsons (1)

The most important name on the Packers’ reserve lists entering Week 9 is four-time All-Pro selection Micah Parsons, who is recovering from an ACL tear suffered last December. While he did return to practice this week, Parsons playing on Sunday is still considered unlikely.

The star edge rusher is not the only starter sidelined. Linebacker Edgerrin Cooper will miss the remainder of the season with an Achilles injury, while wide receiver Jayden Reed is out for the remainder of the year due to a neck issue. The aforementioned Jacob Monk is on IR with a quad injury, while Zach Bako-Bewele won’t come back this season from his patellar injury.

Packers coaching staff

Head coach: Matt LaFleur

Coordinators: Adam Stenavich (OC), Jonathan Gannon (DC), Cameron Achord (ST)

Matt LaFleur has been the Packers’ head coach since 2019. Not only has he gone a combined 84-49-1 over his seven-plus seasons, he also reached the playoffs six times and earned three division titles. Not only did he provide success since arriving in Green Bay, he also provided stability that extends beyond himself: offensive coordinator Adam Stenavich, for example, has been with the club since 2022.

The same cannot be said for his defensive and special teams counterparts, Jonathan Gannon and Cameron Achord — the latter a former Patriots assistant — who were both hired just this offseason. Achord is not the only New England connection in Green Bay: offensive quality control coach T.C. McCartney was the Patriots’ quarterbacks coach in 2024, while outside linebackers coach, run game coordinator and defensive assistant head coach DeMarcus Covington spent eight years in Foxborough.