This isn't how it was supposed to go early this season for the Green Bay Packers, especially after Thursday night's get-right opportunity against Atlanta in front of their home crowd. What followed was a deflating 35-14 loss without two of their top players, pushing the Packers to 1-2 — their worst start in eight seasons under coach Matt LaFleur. Punctuated by a chorus of boos in the second half, Green Bay had no answers defensively for the Falcons' dominance at the line of scrimmage.
It's all the more evidence the Packers are clearly struggling to fill production voids left by injured stalwarts Micah Parsons and Josh Jacobs. The Packers desperately missed Parsons in run support after Bijan Robinson galloped his way to 194 yards rushing and two scores on 29 carries, going downhill for much of the second half against a gassed defense. Green Bay only managed one sack and rarely pressured Michael Penix Jr., who was making his season debut after a season-ending injury in 2025's Week 11 last fall.
Parsons hasn't played this season after tearing the ACL and meniscus in his left knee last December. He's on the PUP list, meaning he will at least miss one more game before he's able to return. The Packers have not opened Parsons' 21-day practice window, however, and LaFleur said on Sept. 17 that he felt the defensive end was still "a couple weeks away" from getting back out there.
After putting together a nine-play, 87-yard touchdown drive on their second possession against the Falcons, Green Bay's next six drives resulted in no points, including three 3-and-outs. Over that stretch, a one-possession lead turned into a 20-point home deficit, leading to disdain from the Lambeau Field faithful. The Packers' 17 yards rushing was their lowest total in a game since 1999.
Marshawn Lloyd and Kaleb Johnson each had four attempts, while quarterback Jordan Love had a single scramble. "I think we've got to continue to work with these guys and try to figure out what we do well," LaFleur said. "Because right now I don't know what we're doing well offensively." Without Jacobs, their leading rusher the past two seasons, the Packers' offense averaged a league-worst 64.5 rushing yards per game coming into Thursday's faceplant.
Jacobs is currently on the commissioner's exempt list after an offseason arrest and groin injury during camp. Previous reports indicate that the NFL may count his time on the exempt list as "time served" in the event of a suspension. Over 32 games in his first two seasons with the Packers, Jacobs has rushed for 2,258 yards and 28 touchdowns, giving Love more than enough firepower behind him to balance the offense.
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