We have arrived at week three of the 2015 season. The
Packers are coming off a solid week two win at home against Seattle 27-17, a
game that we were expecting them to lose. Here is our preview for tonight's game against Kansas City.
How will the injuries affect the Packers? The Packers have
been hit hard with injuries so far this season. Sam Barrington, Jordy Nelson,
and Josh Boyd are all done for the season and Brian Bulaga is out until the end
of October. They also have been very lucky. Randall Cobb's shoulder injury
could have been devastating but he has played through it, and the pain is
subsidizing each week. The ankle injuries to Davonte Adams and Eddie Lacy could
have been bad as well. However both are probable for tonight at the moment.
Morgan Burnett will miss tonight's game though, so that will hurt the tackling
on defense.
Even though Adams and Lacy are probably, we wonder how
effective they will be. We expected limited action for the both of them. We
believe Lacy will finish with about 15 carries for 70 yards or so. Predicting
Adams is a lot harder though, as most wide receivers numbers fluctuate from
week to week.
Can Aaron Rodgers have an “Aaron Rodgers game” against
Kansas City? In week one against Chicago Rodgers went 18 of 23 for 189 yards
and three touchdowns. In week two against Seattle Rodgers went for 249 yards
and two touchdowns. A very pedestrian performance by his standards. When we say
“Aaron Rodgers game”, we mean 32-38 for 340 yards and five touchdowns, or
somewhere along those lines. The Chiefs secondary is tough, although rookie
cornerback Marcus Peters will provide an inviting target for Rodgers to attack.
Can the front seven keep up this pace of play? A week ago,
the front seven of the Packers defense had one of their best games as a
collective unit in recent memory. They shut down the Seahawks rushing attack
all night, which allowed the defense to repeatedly get off the field all night,
a nice change of pace from the usual up and down the field play we are used to.
Can Micah Hyde and Sean Richardson play better in Burnett's
absence? Safety Morgan Burnett missed week one and the Packers secondary look
below average against Jay Cutler. Burnett played last week, and the secondary
shut down the Seahawks passing game all night. Burnett will miss tonight's
game, so that gives Richardson and Hyde a second chance to vindicate themselves
in Burnett's absence.
Final Score: We expect the Packers to win this one by the
score of 34-20.
