Three Reasons Why Packers Will Beat Commanders

The Green Bay Packers faced the toughest opening two-game stretch for any team this season. Can they complete the sweep with a victory over the Washington Commanders tonight?

Green Bay Packers linebacker Edgerrin Cooper (56) celebrates after an interception at Seattle last season. | Steven Bisig-Imagn Images

GREEN BAY, Wis. – The Green Bay Packers started the 2025 NFL season with the most impressive victory in Week 1, a 27-13 thumping of the Detroit Lions. Can they build on that with the most impressive start for any team this season by beating another powerhouse, the Washington Commanders, on Thursday night?

Yes, and here are three reasons why.

1. Green Bay’s Defensive Front

Green Bay’s defensive front overwhelmed the Lions on Sunday. Detroit’s vaunted “Sonic and Knuckles” backfield knuckled under Green Bay’s defensive pressure. They combined for 20 carries for 44 yards, even with Gibbs’ 14-yard run.

It was a huge statement considering the run defense was the big question mark for Green Bay after trading Kenny Clark to Dallas in the huge Micah Parsons deal.

The Packers should have the edge on Thursday, too. While Washington traded for premier left tackle Laremy Tunsil, a Pro Bowler in each of his last five healthy seasons, the rest of the Commanders’ front lacks clout.

Tunsil will be joined by Brandon Coleman at left guard, Tyler Biadasz at center, Nick Allegretti at right guard and rookie Josh Conerly at right tackle. Coleman, a third-round pick last year, played out of position at left tackle last season and gave up 10 sacks, according to PFF. Biadasz, a fourth-round pick by Dallas in 2020 who played at Wisconsin, is a solid and experienced starter. Allegretti is a below-average guard who is filling in for Samuel Cosmi as he recovers from last year’s torn ACL.

Parsons spent most of Sunday’s game going against the Lions’ All-Pro right tackle, Penei Sewell. If Parsons lines up over the right tackle again, it will mean a matchup against Conerly, this year’s first-round pick who gave up one sack against the Giants in his debut.

Parsons’ impact was swift and strong. Playing 10 days after the trade, the Lions lost 2 yards on the seven rushing plays in which Parsons was on the field. When he was on the field for passing plays, Jared Goff’s time-to-throw was 2.80 seconds compared to 3.36 otherwise.

Parsons has been a hit on the field and is trying to be a fit in the locker room.

“You can rub people the wrong way if you come out and say, ‘Naw, this is the way I want to do things,’” he said this week. “It’s just a respect thing. I understand this was their organization first. This is their team. They put in the work with them in the offseason and through training camp. 

“So, I’m just trying to find a way to fit in myself and join their brotherhood. I’m going to do that by playing hard, running to the ball and just buying into them and pouring into them.”

2. Middle of Green Bay’s Defense

Washington quarterback Jayden Daniels lit up the Giants with passes between the numbers. According to PFF,’s charting, Daniels was 5-of-5 for 47 yards and one touchdown on passes thrown between 0 and 9 yards downfield, 5-of-10 for 77 yards on passes thrown between 10 and 19 yards downfield and 1-of-2 for 21 yards on passes thrown 20-plus yards downfield. That’s 145 yards between the numbers.

That goes into the teeth of Green Bay’s defense. Just a few years ago, that might have been Green Bay’s weakness with mediocre linebackers and less-than-mediocre safeties. With Quay Walker and Edgerrin Cooper at linebacker, Javon Bullard in the nickel and Xavier McKinney and Evan Williams at safety, the Packers’ excellence hasn’t gone unnoticed.

“The thing that I was super-impressed with was the speed of their defense,” Commanders coach Dan Quinn told reporters this week. “When you watch through the draft, linebacker, yes, linebacker, yes. Then adding safeties. (Rashan) Gary on the outside (and) adding Micah to that.

“So, it was the speed – the D-line, linebackers through the safeties, like that battery inside. And when you have that kind of speed on defense, that also can lead into some takeaways. The ball pops up, you feel the guys go. So, that type of speed is certainly something that has impressed me so far with them.”

Packers defensive end Micah Parsons (1), linebacker Edgerrin Cooper (56) and cornerback Keisean Nixon (25) team up to stop Lions running back Jahmyr Gibbs. | Tork Mason / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

The speed isn’t just about the stopwatch. It’s about the mentality, which Packers defensive coordinator Jeff Hafley was thrilled to see against Detroit.

“They’ve got to know what they’re doing and they can’t be afraid to make a mistake, so they’re kind of tiptoeing into things and you’re not worried about missing a tackle,” Hafley said. “You’re going to go run as fast as you can, take a shot and you’re not going to break down because you know there’s 10 other guys following you.

“I think it started at the end of last year, it continued into OTAs, it continued in training camp, and then I just think they let it all out. It’s a confident group that loves to play football, that loves to play with each other, they’re coachable and that’s how hard they played. But that’s the standard now and if they’re not doing it, then they shouldn’t be on the field and someone else should go in the game.”

Cooper had 12 tackles and Walker added nine, including two for losses, against Detroit. They’ll have to be at their best to handle Daniels, who is an excellent thrower and elite runner.

“We just lined up and tried to be more physical than them,” Cooper said. “Just do our assignment and it’s a man-to-man ballgame, so just trying to whoop the man in front of you and just got to win every snap.”

3. Home Sweet Home

Homefield advantage means almost nothing. So, while the “Lambeau Mystique” has disappeared, Green Bay’s home record from the beginning of the 2019 season through Week 1 of this season is a second-best 39-12. Overall, however, home teams have won 53.1 percent of their games during that span.

The one time when the home team has a significant advantage is on Thursday nights. With all the challenges that go into playing on a short week from a rest and prep perspective, at least the home team has the benefit of avoiding a flight. Last year, the overall home team winning percentage was right in line with recent history at 53.3 percent. The home team playing a short-week Thursday game was 12-6, or 66.7 percent.

“I would say yesterday I was a little sore,” running back Josh Jacobs said on Tuesday. “Today I feel pretty good. I think by tomorrow I’m going to feel normal. But the thing that I always try to tell myself – if I’m sore coming into Thursday, I know they got some players who are sore, too. We’ll figure it out.”

The Packers will be dressed in their all-white uniforms, which they wore in last year’s victories at home against Houston and at Seattle. The players are “hyped” to wear them again, Jacobs said.

“The all-whites is icy, man. All-whites is icy.”

Added Cooper, “Look good, feel good. I’m 100 percent a believer in that so I can’t wait to put those things on.”

Of note, Jordan Love’s career completion percentage at home is 65.5 percent, better than his road mark of 61.7 percent. However, Daniels’ road passer rating of 108.2 is significantly better than his home mark of 94.2.

As always, I'll write the other side of thie story, too, but here are three reasons why the #Packers will lose to the Commanders tonight. ⬇️https://t.co/D9Vo3EbtHv

— Bill Huber (@BillHuberNFL) September 11, 2025