Preview: The Paradox That Is Packers at Lions

You’re no doubt familiar with the unstoppable force paradox. It will be the opposite when the Green Bay Packers play at the Detroit Lions on Sunday.

Author:
Bill Huber
Publish date:
Nov 4, 2022 2:07 PM EDT

In this story:

Green Bay Packers

GREEN BAY, Wis. – What happens when an unstoppable force meets an immovable object? That’s the unstoppable force paradox.

The opposite of the paradox will be on display on Sunday at Ford Field. The Green Bay Packers – aka the stoppable force – can’t score. The Detroit Lions – aka the movable object – can’t stop anyone from scoring.

It’s a matchup that perfectly summarizes Sunday’s clash at Ford Field. The Packers are 3-5 and losers of four straight. The Lions have dropped five in a row to crash to 1-6. Green Bay entered the season, as usual, on the short list of contenders. Detroit entered the season, thanks to Hard Knocks, considered at least a challenger in the NFC North.

Instead, combined, they’ve lost nine in a row. The Packers are in the unusual position of facing a must-win game during the first weekend of November. The Lions are in their usual position of trying to build a winning future.

In 24 career starts vs. Detroit, Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers has accounted for 56 touchdowns (including 52 passing) vs. eight interceptions.

This isn’t like most years, though. Green Bay entered Week 9 ranked 26th in scoring. In four road games, it’s averaged 14.8 points. The Lions, on the other hand, are averaging 35.8 points in four home games.

“A lot of good battles over the years,” Rodgers said. “They play hard. Obviously, their offense has scored a lot of points at home. They’ve scored on everybody, too. So, we’re going to have to come out and score some points on Sunday.”

Could this be the week Green Bay’s offense gets going? The Lions are last in the NFL with 32.1 points allowed per game. That’s 5.1 more points than any other team. They’re 32nd in total defense, yards allowed per play, yards allowed per passing play, opponent passer rating and third down, too.

“Well, they still have that guy, so as long as you have that guy, you have a chance,” Lions defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn said of Rodgers. “Listen, this is the NFL and I wish you can go and win the division every year, but you can’t. It doesn’t happen. League parity, free agents, all that. Things change, Draft, things change. That’s what we’re hoping for us as we continue to move on to be in that leadership position as far as this division. So, man, as long as they have that guy, man, anything’s possible for him.”

In four home games, Lions quarterback Jared Goff has thrown for 1,170 yards with 11 touchdowns and two interceptions, good for a 107.8 rating. He lost a big weapon this week when tight end T.J. Hockenson was traded to Minnesota. However, star receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown has a history of strong games without Hockenson. In the last five such gams, St. Brown caught 41 passes for 474 yards and four touchdowns. That includes last year’s finale in which he caught 8-of-10 targets for 109 yards and one touchdown.

“Definitely losing (Hockenson) is going to hurt us a bit, but that just means targets go elsewhere,” St. Brown said told reporters in Detroit this week. “I think for all of us, we've got to step up and make more plays. If we think what we did up to this point was enough, we have to do more.”