Packers No Longer Favored to Win NFC North

GREEN BAY, Wis. – The Green Bay Packers, who won NFC North championships in each of coach Matt LaFleur’s first three seasons on the job, are no longer the favorite to win the division this year.

With Green Bay’s loss last week in London to the Giants, the rival Minnesota Vikings have vaulted ahead of the Packers in the NFC North race at FanDuel Sportsbook. The Vikings are -130 to win the North. That’s an implied probability of 56.5 percent. The Packers have fallen to +115, or 46.5 percent. The Detroit Lions (+3700) and Chicago Bears (+4800) are long shots.

Coming off a bad loss to the Giants and an ugly win over the injury-plagued Patriots that required overtime, Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers thinks better days might be just around the corner.

“I’ve been around a long time, I’ve played a lot of football, I know this game,” Rodgers said this week. “There’s ebbs and flows to it. It’s not going to affect my confidence. It actually makes you overcommunicate I think because you care about it so much and you want to have success. But I think we’re real close to getting this thing going and, hopefully, it starts this week.”

With the offseason practices almost wrapped up in mid-June, the Packers were -188 to win the NFC North at SI Sportsbook. With their new coaches, the Vikings were +275 and the Bears were +800, and the Lions rounded out the group at +1000.

The Vikings, who beat the Packers at home in Week 1, the Saints in London in Week 4 and the Bears upon returning home in Week 5, are 4-1.

The Packers are 3-2 after their London loss and are seeking a badly needed bounce-back win over the New York Jets (3-2) on Sunday at Lambeau Field.

The Packers are 8.5-point favorites at SI Sportsbook. While the Packers are struggling and the Jets have won two in a row, the line has moved from 6.5 on Tuesday.

With five games down and 12 to go, the Packers are currently the No. 7 seed in the NFC playoff race. That would get them a first-round matchup with the Vikings back in Minneapolis.

Packers-Jets: Six Things You Didn’t Know

1. Pick Parades

Unbelievably, the Jets have intercepted as many passes as the Packers have broken up. The Jets have intercepted seven passes, one off the NFL lead. The Packers have intercepted one pass, one off the Giants’ inept league low. It’s not just interceptions. The Packers have only broken up seven passes – seven less than any other team and two fewer than two individuals. Rasul Douglas has a team-high two; Eric Stokes (pictured) has zero.

Here is the full breakdown of those incredibly bad numbers.

2. 2/0 for 12

In defeat, Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers threw two touchdowns and zero interceptions against the Giants. That was the 100th game of his career with two-plus touchdown passes and zero interceptions. The Packers are 86-14 in those games.

3. Crushing the AFC

Including the Week 4 victory over New England, Aaron Rodgers is 18-1 in his last 19 home starts against the AFC. He completed 65.2 percent of his passes, averaged 280.4 yards, and threw 50 touchdowns vs. six interceptions in those games. Of course, that game against New England came with one black mark.

4. Rookie Receivers

The Jets’ Garrett Wilson, the 10th pick of the draft, ranks second in this year’s draft class with 23 receptions for 282 yards. The Packers’ Romeo Doubs, the 132nd selection in this year’s draft, is tied for third with 22 receptions. According to Pro Football Focus, Doubs is first with 130 yards after the catch; Wilson is first with eight missed tackles.

5. Breaking the Law

During last year’s Packers-Jets joint practices, New York’s big free-agent addition, defensive end Carl Lawson, suffered a torn Achilles. Lawson is back. He has 2.5 sacks and ranks second in the NFL with 14 quarterback hits. “I still think he’s got more to go, too,” Jets coach Robert Saleh said. “He’s slowly stacking up good days and he’s getting faster. I’m really pumped for him. He’s gaining confidence. He’s getting stronger and stronger every week.”

Early Home Cooking

The Packers under coach Matt LaFleur are 8-1 in noon home games. Their lone loss was against Minnesota in 2020, a 28-22 verdict in an empty Lambeau Field. Four of the eight wins were by double-digits points, including 24-10 against Washington last season while wearing their throwback jerseys.

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