Good, Bad and Interesting Following Packers’ Pivotal, Pitiful Loss to Vikings

GREEN BAY, Wis. – The Green Bay Packers were trounced by the Minnesota Vikings on Sunday, just like they were trounced at the end of the season-opening game.

Combined, the Packers gave up 49 consecutive points – the final 29 in Week 1 and the first 20 in Week 10 – and lost 30-10. By the end of the game, only purple-clad Vikings fans chanting “Skol” were left at Lambeau Field.

Here is the good, the bad and the interesting following a pivotal loss.

The Good, Including Xavier McKinney

Green Bay Packers safety Xavier McKinney (29) celebrates with cornerback Carrington Valentine after his interception. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Xavier McKinney’s sixth interception: About the only thing that went right in the first half was McKinney’s toe-tapping interception. Vikings receiver Tai Felton put both hands on top of his helmet, seemingly in disbelief.

The interception was McKinney’s sixth of the season, tops in the league.

“We did all right. We still lost, though, so it don’t really matter,” McKinney said. “It’s a team game. So regardless of what we did out there defensively, we’re still a team and the team lost.”

Carrington Valentine’s physicality: Valentine has never been renowned for his physical play. However, forced into action with Brandon Cisse’s rib injury that he sustained on Minnesota’s first touchdown drive, he helped stuff a perimeter run on his first play and then, after the Packers cut the margin to 20-7, he helped ruin a receiver screen to Justin Jefferson on third down. Early in the fourth quarter, he made an excellent tackle at the catch point against Jefferson.

Kaleb Johnson: The Packers might have a real running back with Johnson, who had 10 carries for 42 yards through three quarters. When there was nowhere to run, he broke a tackle or fought for something. When there was a hole to run, he stepped in the gas to get to the second level. By our count, he broke four tackles and had 40 yards after contact.

A little more wiggle or a second gear would be ideal, obviously, but he’s the best the Packers have without Josh Jacobs.

Speaking of Jacobs, he will push to play against the Rams. A backfield of Jacobs and Johnson would have some potential.

The Bad, And There Is a Lot

NFC North championship hopes: One picture says a thousand words.

Lions jump to the top! 🦁

What a race we've got going on in the NFC North 👀 pic.twitter.com/D8hhZdrecX
— PFF (@PFF) November 15, 2026

With the loss, the Packers are two games behind the other three teams in the loss column. Really, with the tiebreaker, they are three games behind the Vikings.

Pass protection: Trailing 10-0, Jordan Love was sacked on second down by defensive tackle Levi Drake Rodriguez and on third down by former Packers linebacker Eric Wilson. At that point, Love in four series had completed four passes and been sacked three times, and the run game had 19 yards on eight carries.

Left tackle Jordan Morgan gave up one of the sacks vs. Dallas Turner; more on that in a moment. On the next series, Mekhi Becton came in as an extra tight end alongside Morgan, presumably to help keep Turner at bay. Instead, Becton might not have laid a finger on Turner, who hit Love just as he completed a checkdown.

Late in the half, after Xavier McKinney’s interception, the Packers gained two first downs. With the ball near midfield, they had a chance to cut into a 17-0 deficit. Instead, Turner and Kyle Van Noy combined to sack Love on second down and Van Noy had a sack on third down.

Due in part to the blocking, the Packers had 57 yards at halftime with a 2.2-yard average. The high-powered passing attack averaged 2.0 yards per dropback, with Love’s seven completions offset by five sacks.

The adjustments, namely no-huddle offense, were too little and obviously too late.

“I think we had some success in the second half jumping the ball, doing some things, but I think to your point, when you’re facing a defense that’s pressuring that way, you’ve got to be able to get the ball out quick and have those answers and find the holes in the defense,” Love said.

“Because, obviously, there is holes out there when they’re bringing the pressure. It’s definitely something we’ll look at and how we can be better because you don’t stand a chance sometimes when you’re getting pressure and the routes are still developing. It’s definitely something we’ll look at.”

Love wound up being sacked eight times. The Packers hadn’t allowed more than five sacks during the Matt LaFleur era. It was their most allowed since the 2012 season at Seattle.

“Yeah, it wasn’t great,” he said of the pass protection. “It wasn’t good enough up front, weren’t good enough at getting the ball out and, when you do those things, you’re going to take some hits. Obviously, we know what this defense brings and they’re going to bring pressure and things like that, and I don’t think we were good enough against it tonight.”

Jordan Love had one of the fastest time to throws of the season, and it didn't matter.

The Vikings still posted the second-highest pressure rate of any defense in a game this season. pic.twitter.com/gTazXhoFWh
— Ben Linsey (@benlinsey_) November 15, 2026

First-drive fumble: Green Bay’s first drive ended after two plays when backup tight end Mark Redman was stripped by Andrew Van Ginkel. The miscue gave the Vikings a gift-wrapped field goal to take a 3-0 lead.

The Packers knew they had to win the turnover battle; the Vikings were 6-0 when they had won it this season. Green Bay lost 4-1 and got smoked.

“Yeah, they can’t happen,” LaFleur said. “Started off, second play of the game, we fumble the football and set them up. That’s giving them three points. I thought all in all, our defense did a pretty good job responding to those difficult situations, but you can’t give up the ball, whether you’re deep in your own territory or you’re in scoring position to put points on the board.

“We knew points were probably going to be at a premium. That’s one of the best defenses if not the best defense in the National Football League right now, and you can’t take yourself out of those opportunities.”

Smack and line strike again: Green Bay’s second drive ended on the other side of the field. On third-and-7 after two horrendously blocked running plays, Dallas Turner ran over left tackle Jordan Morgan to sack Jordan Love. Trey Smack, who missed twice from 55 yards to the north end during pregame, was wide right from 53.

Tight ends: With T.J. Hockenson inactive, the Vikings’ tight ends entered the game with a combined eight catches. The Packers entered the game with Tucker Kraft.

Advantage, Green Bay, right? Not so much. Gavin Bartholomew caught three passes for 36 yards and one touchdown. Kraft caught 1-of-4 targets for 19 yards.

Aaron Banks: The Packers gave Aaron Banks a four-year, $77 million contract in free agency last offseason. The $19.25 million average ranks ninth at the position. Due to a litany of lower-body injuries, Banks has started only three games this season – and finished only one of those.

He was limited participation at all three practices this week with knee and hip injuries but not on the final injury report. So, the only way to look at it was Banks was benched for Travis Glover. Indeed, LaFleur said after the game the decision was to put Laken Tomlinson back at his “natural position,” left guard, and to have Banks “compete” at right guard, which is not his natural position.

The Interesting: A Pivotal Play

Offensive line: The Packers’ starting line had Laken Tomlinson shifting back to left guard and Travis Glover returning to the starting lineup at right guard after missing a couple games with the knee injury he played through at Detroit.

That means Aaron Banks was a backup after starting the last two games.

Only the coaches know whether Glover was the starter at right guard, plain and simple, or if he got the call because Kevin Zeitler was injured. Zeitler was limited participation at practice on Wednesday with an ankle injury. He must have suffered a triceps injury during Thursday’s practice, because he was limited on Thursday, did not practice on Friday and inactive for the game.

Matt LaFleur’s third-down decision: Late in the first quarter, the Vikings faced third-and-8 from Green Bay’s 23. Evan Williams came free on a blitz and smoked Kirk Cousins, with the Vikings flagged for a facemask. The choice for LaFleur? Fourth down at the 23, which would have positioned Will Reichard for a 41-yard field goal, or third-and-23 at the 38.

LaFleur took the penalty and the defense promptly gave up a 38-yard touchdown.

“If it was a 5- or 10-yard penalty, probably decline it, but 15, it would’ve made it a 56-yarder,” LaFleur explained. “You got to roll the dice there and certainly that was a pivotal play in the game. We can’t get beat in third-and-23. The odds of that are very, very low and they made us pay.”

From an ugly defeat, @JacobWestendorf has his weekly winners and losers for the Packers. ⬇️https://t.co/N5Zun8jI6F
— Bill Huber (@BillHuberNFL) November 15, 2026

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