Packers Plunge in NFL Consensus Power Rankings

The Green Bay Packers, predictably, tumbled in the latest NFL Consensus Power Rankings after losing Jordan Love and the game against the Philadelphia Eagles.
Green Bay Packers defensive tackle Devonte Wyatt (95) celebrates with teammates after recovering a fumble against the Eagles.
Green Bay Packers defensive tackle Devonte Wyatt (95) celebrates with teammates after recovering a fumble against the Eagles. / Kirby Lee-Imagn Images
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GREEN BAY, Wis. – The Green Bay Packers took a hit at quarterback with Jordan Love’s knee injury and a hit in the NFC North standings as the only winless team following their Week 1 loss to the Philadelphia Eagles.

They also took a hit in Packers On SI’s Consensus NFL Power Rankings.

The Packers are 12th in the rankings, down seven spots from last week.

Our Consensus NFL Power Rankings take nine national power rankings and boil them all down to one. Green Bay ranges from No. 3 at Sports Illustrated to No. 24 at Yahoo.

The Kansas City Chiefs swept the nine first-place votes.

Here are the individual rankings, with longer reviews of the Packers available at the links, along with the Top 10 and views on this week’s opponent, the Indianapolis Colts.

Sports Illustrated: 3rd

The Packers plummeted in just about every set of power rankings, but Conor Orr kept them firmly within his Top 10. “Jordan Love’s availability obviously impacts how we feel about this team long term, but I still can’t stop thinking about the receiver depth and how it produces a stunning related statistic: Josh Jacobs ran against eight or more defenders in the box on just 6 percent of his 16 carries, according to NextGenStats. Only one player, David Montgomery, had a better percentage Week 1. This … could yield some massive rushing numbers once Love returns to the lineup healthy.”

Pro Football Talk: 10th

Green Bay is down seven spots from last week. Credit to Mike Florio for the extra letter here: “They need Jordan Love back, ASAFP.”

NFL.com: 11th

Green Bay dropped two spots from last week. Wrote Eric Edholm of the loss of Love: “The schedule is semi-manageable during the 3- to 6-week period he’s expected to miss, but … it’s hard not to be frightened about the road ahead. There is a lot on Willis’ plate as he prepares for the Colts in Week 2. The Packers have to find a way to hang on until Love returns.”

ESPN: 12th

The Packers were 10th last week. Wrote Packers beat writer Rob Demovsky: “There were plenty of miscues from the defense in new coordinator Jeff Hafley's debut, but he got what he wanted from the safety position: more splash plays, thanks to (Xavier) McKinney.”

Fox Sports: 14th

The Packers were sixth to open the season. It felt “miraculous” that Jordan Love didn’t suffer a much more significant injury, Dave Helman said. “Here’s hoping Malik Willis can keep them afloat, because this team looked exactly as fun as we thought it might before Love got hurt.”

CBS Sports: 15th

The Packers, who were Pete Prisco’s prediction to win the Super Bowl, were second last week. Wrote Prisco: “With Jordan Love down for maybe six weeks, their season is in jeopardy of going bad in a big way. Malik Willis has to win at least two games.”

USA Today: 16th

The Packers were third last week. Wrote Nate Davis: “New QB2 Malik Willis' brief track record in the league isn't especially encouraging as he prepares to stand in for injured Jordan Love (MCL). But at least Willis had a few extra days to prepare for a Colts team he's already familiar with.”

The Athletic: 21st

Josh Kendall said it’s time to overreact, and he did: The Packers were sixth last week. “The ink is barely dry on Jordan Love’s new $220 million contract, and he’s now facing an extended absence because of a knee injury suffered late in the game. As worrisome? Love didn’t look great before the injury, completing only 50 percent of his passes and throwing an interception.”

Yahoo: 24th

The Packers were 10th last week. While the short-term absence wasn’t “disastrous” news to Frank Schwab, “Green Bay might struggle mightily without Love and even when Love returns, the injury is likely to affect his play for a long time. It's possible this team is in a big hole by Halloween, especially if fill-in Malik Willis looks like he has in his other NFL regular-season appearances.”

Next Opponent: Indianapolis Colts

The Colts are 17th at SI.com after losing to the Houston Texans 29-27 on Sunday.

Wrote Orr: “I think (quarterback Anthony) Richardson has all the difficult parts of the QB game sorted out. He’s got God-given size and traits. Speed. Fearlessness. From there, learning to work the middle of the field should take time but it won’t be impossible. Shane Steichen has a kind of reverse Jalen Hurts surgery to perform on his quarterback but Sunday showed that both coach and QB are up for the challenge.”

No. 17 was the highest ranking for the Colts.

The Colts were No. 18 at The Athletic, with the note that Richardson provided 268 of the Colts’ 303 yards.

Packers on SI’s Consensus Top 10

1, Kansas City Chiefs (9 points); 2, San Francisco 49ers (19); 3, Detroit Lions (33), 4, Philadelphia Eagles (50), 5, Buffalo Bills (53), 6, Houston Texans (57), 7, Baltimore Ravens (59), 8, Dallas Cowboys (68), 9, Miami Dolphins (91), 10, Tampa Bay Buccaneers (101).

More Green Bay Packers News

Willis will start if Love’s not cleared | Three reasons to believe after Week 1 win | Three reasons to worry after Week 1 loss | Ryan Tannehill to the rescue? | Can Willis save the season? | No ACL tear, no surgery for Love | Three Overreactions | Packers-Eagles report card | Three reasons for optimism in 2024 | Three reasons for disappointment in 2024


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Bill Huber
BILL HUBER

Bill Huber, who has covered the Green Bay Packers since 2008, is the publisher of Packer Central, a Sports Illustrated channel. E-mail: packwriter2002@yahoo.com History: Huber took over Packer Central in August 2019. Twitter: https://twitter.com/BillHuberNFL Background: Huber graduated from the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater, where he played on the football team, in 1995. He worked in newspapers in Reedsburg, Wisconsin Dells and Shawano before working at The Green Bay News-Chronicle and Green Bay Press-Gazette from 1998 through 2008. With The News-Chronicle, he won several awards for his commentaries and page design. In 2008, he took over as editor of Packer Report Magazine, which was founded by Hall of Fame linebacker Ray Nitschke, and PackerReport.com. In 2019, he took over the new Sports Illustrated site Packer Central, which he has grown into one of the largest sites in the Sports Illustrated Media Group.