Stock Report: Packers’ Defensive Front Punishes Lions in Week 1 Victory

GREEN BAY, Wis. – The NFL season is underway, and the Green Bay Packers had no time to ease into it.

After a dreadful season against NFC North competition, the Packers opened their season with last year’s division champion, the Detroit Lions. The Lions had won three in a row at Lambeau Field, including the last two by multiple scores.

Sunday’s game was not just an opportunity for the Packers to exorcise some demons but to make a statement that the newly crowned offseason champions were here to announce themselves as bona fide Super Bowl contenders.

The first drive of the game delivered a statement.

Jordan Love had a 20-yard completion to Romeo Doubs on his first pass of the season. He converted third downs with completions to Dontayvion Wicks, Matthew Golden and Tucker Kraft. The final conversion was a 15-yard touchdown pass to Kraft in front of Brian Branch to give the Packers an early 7-0 lead.

That was before the main event.

Sunday’s game began with a hero’s welcome for the newest member of the Packers, Micah Parsons. After two plays gained 3 yards, Parsons checked in for the first third down. He beat Penei Sewell to pressure Jared Goff, forcing a checkdown that Lukas Van Ness cleaned up to force a punt. The Packers turned that into a field goal for a 10-0 lead.

The fast start was a turn of events from a season ago, where the Packers were outscored in the first half 34-10 by the Lions across two games.

On Sunday, the Packers outscored the Lions 17-3 in the first half on the strength of their defense.

Two red-zone possessions by the Lions in the first half led to a field goal from Jake Bates and an interception by Evan Williams courtesy of pressure by Parsons.

Green Bay’s pass rush was quiet outside of Parsons for most of the first half but came to life late in the third quarter. Van Ness had a sack on third down that ended one series for the defense. After a Packers’ drive stalled, Rashan Gary ruined a Lions series with a sack that almost produced a safety. The Packers would pay off that defensive stand with a touchdown by Josh Jacobs to all but put the game away.

Following Green Bay’s 27-13 victory, here is our stock report of who is rising and who is falling after a statement victory.

Stock Rising: Micah Parsons

There are so many things different about Micah Parsons, and the way he entered the stadium today felt different. He received a hero's welcome. The crowd popped. That was before he even touched the field.

NO. 1 FOR NO. 1

📺: CBS pic.twitter.com/sJyhzbApfp
— Green Bay Packers (@packers) September 7, 2025

His first snap as a Packer resulted in a pressure that forced Jared Goff to throw a pass well short of the sticks, resulting in a Lions punt.

Later in the game, Parsons would beat All-Pro tackle Penei Sewell in the redzone resulting in Evan Williams’ first interception of the season.

Parsons’ impact on the game comes when he’s not sacking the quarterback, too.

On Devonte Wyatt’s exclamation point sack late in the game, two people blocked Parsons, leaving rookie center Tate Ratledge to Wyatt, who blew by the rookie with ease.

Not to be outdone, Parsons would get his first sack late in the game, chasing down Jared Goff from behind.

This impact came, by the way, in a game where Parsons did not even start. He was given a limited workload due to his late start to training camp.

The visions of what can be with Parsons and Green Bay’s defense once he’s able to play a full game, are exciting

One game in to his career in Green Bay, the Packers have to be feeling really good about their investment.

Stock Rising: Jordan Love

It’s rare that Jordan Love can have a passer rating of over 120 for the game and not be the main story, but that’s the world in Green Bay these days.

Love takes a back seat to Micah Parsons, but make no mistake, Love was excellent on this day as well.

Love was often not good enough in big games a season ago. The last time he was on the field, he was in the middle of a three-turnover dud against the Philadelphia Eagles.

No turnovers for Love today, thanks to an interception by Brian Branch being called back due to a holding penalty on Rock Ya-Sin.

Love was humming from the opening kickoff.

The Lions gave the Packers the ball first, hoping to get a three-and-out on defense to give their offense a chance to play from ahead.

Love had said earlier in the week that he was hoping to see the defense come out first with Parsons getting a sack on the first third down to force a punt.

Instead, he was tasked with scoring an opening touchdown.

Love converted two third downs on the first series of the game, one to Matthew Golden for the first catch of his career, and one to Tucker Kraft for Love’s first touchdown pass of the season.

Love would throw two touchdown passes on the day, including one big answer for the Lions’ first scoring drive of the day.

A 16-play drive from the Lions pulled them within 10-3 in the first half.

It took Jordan Love all of two plays to match and surpass the Lions’ previous drive.

LaFleur dialed up a deep ball to Romeo Doubs which Love hit him perfectly for a 48-yard gain.

The second pass of the drive was a 17-yard touchdown to Jayden Reed. The score was 17-3, and that would have been enough with the way Green Bay’s defense played today.

More importantly, the Packers trusted Love and the passing game to carry the day when their run game was not working.

It’s one game, but it’s a big one for Green Bay’s quarterback.

Stock Rising: Evan Williams

Evan Williams gets the honor of ringing the bell for the first turnover of the regular season.

Micah Parsons was immediately in Jared Goff’s face, and Williams flew up the field to get a diving interception.

Game changing plays were few and far between for Green Bay’s defense in games like these a season ago.

Evan Williams was a ball magnet in training cam last season before falling off late in the year.

For one game, at least, Williams is off to a good start.

Stock Rising: Defensive Front

A mission statement for Green Bay’s defense was given this offseason.

Yes, they were happy with their pressure packages a season ago, but they wanted to be able to get after opposing quarterbacks with their front four to control games.

Their big four, if you will, for pass rushers, should be Rashan Gary, Lukas Van Ness, Devonte Wyatt, and Micah Parsons.

All four players had at least half-a-sack in today’s game.

Jared Goff never looked comfortable throughout the day.

He was hit. He was harassed. He never had anything open down the field. If he did, he never had time to find them thanks to Green Bay’s pass rush.

BIG STOP BY DEVONTE!

📺: CBS
pic.twitter.com/WZRehimyOE
— Green Bay Packers (@packers) September 7, 2025

The final tally for the day was four sacks, one interception, and one touchdown allowed late in the game when the outcome was already decided.

Furthermore, the big question with all these pass rushers was how they were going to defend the run.

There was no better test early in the year than seeing the Lions’ dynamic backfield.

David Montgomery had 11 carries for 25 yards.

Jahmyr Gibbs had nine carries for 19 yards, 14 of which came on one carry.

The linebackers were excellent on the day as well. Quay Walker looked like the player who had the lightbulb come on last year. Edgerrin Cooper looked like an impact player.

With all the focus surrounding offense in today’s NFL, this front, for one game at least, looked like one that could be dominant for most of the year.

Stock Rising: Daniel Whelan

Punters are people too, and the Green Bay Packers are happy Daniel Whelan is their punter.

After the mega contract extension was handed out to Micah Parsons, the Packers went right to work in re-signing Daniel Whelan.

Whelan has been a weapon throughout the summer, drawing rave reviews from his coach, Rich Bisaccia.

Whelan was excellent in his season debut. His first three punts include ranges of 66 yards, 61 yards, and a punt that was pinned inside the 10.

For the first time since Bisaccia became the special teams’ coach, Green Bay’s kicking operation has some stability.

As long as Whelan continues to hit kicks the way he did today, that puts the Packers in a very good situation.

Stock Rising: Matt LaFleur’s Aggression

Last season was a mixed bag for Matt LaFleur. He was unsure of his own identity as a coach.

He’d be aggressive to start games by taking the ball after winning the coin toss, which is unheard of in this day in age.

He’d follow that up by almost always deferring to his kicking game in situations that could have warranted using his offense to go for a first down.

Today, he was facing Dan Campbell, a mad scientist, who is almost always leaning in the opposite direction when deciding whether to kick or go for it.

Today, LaFleur salted the game away with an aggressive decision late in the game.

With a fourth-and-1 at the Lions’ 10 yard line, LaFleur could have kicked a field goal to go up 20-6, and trust his defense to keep the Lions out of the endzone twice.

Instead, he went for the kill.

Jordan Love’s quarterback sneak was met two plays later with a Josh Jacobs touchdown.

Jacobs’ touchdown gave the Packers a 24-6 lead.

The game, for all intents and purposes, was over. LaFleur’s aggression was rewarded.

Stock Falling: Matt LaFleur’s Challenge Flag

If there were one blemish on today’s game, it was Matt LaFleur’s decision to challenge a 19-yard catch by Amon-Ra St. Brown in the first half.

LaFleur has struggled with challenges, even by his own admission being emotional at times.

St. Brown’s catch resulted in a wasted timeout that could have been handy in Green Bay’s two-minute offense late in the first half.

Whether it’s LaFleur himself, or someone in his headset, the Packers need tob e better

Stock Falling: Sean Rhyan

With the competition between Jordan Morgan and Rasheed Walker during the offseason, perhaps there was thought that Morgan would rotate with Walker during games, as he did a season ago.

Instead, it was Walker rotating with Rhyan.

Rhyan did not play poorly, but being the man who rotates likely does not bode well for someone in a contract year.

Rhyan had the same situation a season ago, but ultimately beat Morgan out.

Perhaps he’ll do so again, but for now, he’ll have to share time on the field, leaving his future uncertain.

Stock Down: Run Game

Josh Jacobs had arguably the best year of his career a season go. It was certainly all the Packers could have hoped for when he replaced Aaron Jones.

For an encore? That was a work in progress.

The run game was going nowhere in the first half, as Jacobs carried six times for eight yards in the first half.

The second half didn’t begin much better. With the offense facing a third and one from its own 31, Jacobs tried to create too much, and did not trust his blocking to get one yard.

Three carries, nine yards, one punt later and the Lions had a chance to get back in the game.

The run game struggled in short yardage situations as well, including a third and one in the fourth quarter that was stuffed by Lions’ star Aidan Hutchinson before Jordan Love’s sneak got them a first and goal from the eight.

Jacobs, to his credit, would salt the game away two plays later with a touchdown in a franchise record ninth consecutive game.

The final tally, however was 66 yards on 19 carries for Jacobs.

It’s hard to build both a run game and pass game in one training camp. Maybe that is something that will progress as the season goes along, but for this game specifically, returns were not great.

No championships have ever been won in Week 1. But the #Packers made an emphatic statement by crushing the Lions 27-13. Here's the early story from Lambeau. https://t.co/qJNo7sW2li
— Bill Huber (@BillHuberNFL) September 7, 2025