Jeff from Indian Lake, NY

Every year and every team are different. The only constant is that every team deals with adversity at some point. The 2024-25 Green Bay Packers got served an early dose. Not many things harder than being without your QB1, especially when he just happens to be one of the rising stars of the league. How will we respond? The Colts game got a lot tougher but the storylines that could be written must be even more tantalizing.

And one storyline we learned Monday is the Packers aren’t ruling out Jordan Love yet. Twists and turns define every NFL season. Last year, it was Aaron Jones’ hamstring and Aaron Rodgers’ thumb the year before that. Attacking adversity is the path to progress and that journey begins in earnest for the 2024 Packers this Sunday against the Colts whether Love is cleared or not.

Who do you think will be the backup quarterback now?

Spoff did a great job outlining everything following Matt LaFleur’s Monday news conference, but the plan calls for Malik Willis to start and Sean Clifford to be the backup if Love isn’t cleared on Sunday.

Neither the Packers nor the Colts played good run defense in Week 1 and they both lost. The chances of winning an NFL game without decent run defense are very small. I think the team that plays better run defense in their matchup will win the game on Sunday.

Perhaps. The odd thing is the Packers (163 yards, 7.8 yards per carry) actually outperformed Philadelphia (144, 3.8 ypc) on the ground, but the Eagles played better situationally. The same exact script came into play with Saquon Barkley Friday. Green Bay bottled him up early before getting gashed a few times in the second half. Green Bay’s run defense needs to do it for four quarters. That’s it.

Lots of concerns from the game, but here’s a positive. On several plays, I noticed Rasheed Walker throwing blocks far downfield. Must be fun for a corner or safety to see that coming at them.

As improbable as it may be, the Packers appear to have found their bookends during Day 3 of the 2022 NFL Draft in Walker and Zach Tom. Tom missed most of the offseason program but sure hasn’t skipped a beat since returning. Walker has a lot of talent and athleticism but his willingness to battle is what separates him as a tackle.

Mike from Menomonee Falls, WI

Good morning II. While Friday night’s result was disappointing, and the injury to Love is concerning, I came away from the game more encouraged than discouraged. Josh Jacobs getting untracked in the second half, Jayden Reed‘s exploits, and three turnovers. While this resembled the early losses last year, the quality of opponent was much different. I also love much of what I heard from the players postgame. Considering the Colts coming in this week, which lines will be the bigger challenge, O or D?

With respect to everything Jonathan Taylor can do, I gotta go with the Packers’ offensive line. That group is responsible for not only blocking for either Love or Willis but also helping set up Jacobs and the ground game. As much as we talk about Matt Flynn in 2013, I’d argue Eddie Lacy playing at an NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year level was the biggest reason Green Bay stayed alive in Aaron Rodgers’ absence.

Josh Jacobs started flashing his talents as the game went along, thank goodness. In a way similar to how a QB has to make some throws trusting that a receiver will be open when the ball gets there, does a running back go all-out to a spot expecting that a hole will open up by the time he gets there?

It’s scheme and instincts. You have play calls for a reason, but it’s also how the back reads the front and sets up blocks. Jacobs and the O-line found their rhythm in the second half. As LaFleur mentioned, the answer was as simple as adjusting quicker to Philly’s front and blocking better, particularly when it came to linebackers shooting gaps.

Will from Stewartville, MN

Do you think it was coincidence or something else that seemed to allow Emanuel Wilson to have more success early/mid game versus Josh Jacobs? I know Jacobs had more success later, but it seemed like Wilson had more success in his first few drives.

First, Wilson is a talented back. All he’s done since coming to Green Bay is run the football well. On 18 attempts, the second-year running back is averaging 7.3. yards per carry in his young NFL career. The blocks were there, too, Friday when Wilson was on the field. It all fits together.

Are there enough hours in the week for Tom Clements and Matt LaFleur to get Malik Willis (or Sean Clifford) ready to play in Week 2?

That’s the job. When the starter’s out, it’s the coaches’ responsibility to develop a winnable gameplan for QB2. You have to accentuate the strengths and conceal the weaknesses.

My son was surprised to learn during the game that a running back was allowed to score a receiving touchdown, and that a wide receiver could score a rushing touchdown. Would it be appropriate to tell him that the Packers once had a wide receiver wearing No. 88 start lining up in the backfield as a running back? Or is this the sort of thing that we as parents are supposed to protect our children from?

I think you need to forgo discussing No. 88 from the past and focus your father-son talks more on No. 11 in the present.