Packers-Lions Preview: 5 Questions with Bill Huber of SI Packer Central

Bill Huber of SI Packer Central answers five questions regarding the Detroit Lions' Week 18 matchup with the Green Bay Packers.

Bill Huber of SI Packer Central has covered the Green Bay Packers since 2008. He answered five questions heading into the Packers-Lions Week 18 divisional matchup at Ford Field Sunday. 

1.) The Packers have had another successful regular season. What has made this team gel and perform so well this season? 

Bill Huber: It helps to have Aaron Rodgers at quarterback, Davante Adams at receiver and Matt LaFleur as coach. They’re three of the best in the business. Beyond those guys, it’s been an unusual mixture -- a hero-of-the-week sort of thing.

In June, the Packers signed veteran linebacker De’Vondre Campbell. He’s been a starter throughout his career, yet nobody wanted him through the first wave of free agency. The Packers signed him to a one-year, $2 million contract and got a Pro Bowl alternate. He leads the NFL in solo tackles.

In October, after All-Pro Jaire Alexander suffered a shoulder injury, Green Bay signed cornerback Rasul Douglas off Arizona’s practice squad. He’s fourth in the NFL with five interceptions, including two pick-sixes and two game-winners.

Without All-Pro David Bakhtiari and his Pro Bowl replacement, Elgton Jenkins, due to ACL injuries, Yosh Nijman has started at left tackle. An undrafted free agent in 2019, he hadn’t played a meaningful snap from scrimmage in his career until being forced into the lineup. He’s been really good.

Without Pro Bowl outside linebacker Za’Darius Smith due to a back injury, Rashan Gary and Preston Smith have a chance to have 10-sack seasons.

Defensive coordinator Joe Barry was a disaster in that role with Detroit and Washington. Despite not having Alexander and Smith, he’s built a defense that is eighth in points allowed.

Turnovers win football games. The Packers are plus-16. So, it’s been the usual suspects -- Rodgers and Adams -- and a bunch of other players stepping up to offset the major losses of key personnel.

2.) What are you hearing about if the team will play or rest its starters this Sunday against the Lions?

Huber: The Packers are going to play to win. LaFleur said having a Week 18 bye and a first-round bye is too much time off. In theory, you’d treat this like an old-school third preseason game, but you can only have 48 players on the gameday roster. So, you can’t bench all the starters at halftime. I’d be surprised if Rodgers and Adams and Aaron Jones (who’s been slowed by a knee injury) were on the field in the third quarter, but just everybody else might have to play.

It will be interesting to see not just who they play, but also how they play. These are competitive guys, so you’d expect them to play to their fullest ability. At the same time, they could lose this game by 148 points and still host a playoff game in two weeks. So, maybe there’s some human nature involved in it.

3.) I'm hearing that Green Bay offensive coordinator Nathaniel Hackett interviewed for the Jacksonville Jaguars head coach opening. Do you see the Packers losing any members of their coaching staff next season?

Huber: Hackett said he’d be interviewing with the Jaguars during the bye. He was the offensive coordinator in Jacksonville when the Jags made their run to the AFC Championship Game a few years ago. Then, he was fired late the following season, when everything went off the rails. He’s a really good coach. If you want a guy who is going to change the look and feel of your franchise, he’s the one. He’s got a great personality, and he’s won with Blake Bortles, as well as Rodgers.

Samantha Madar, USA TODAY NETWORK-Wisconsin, USA TODAY NETWORK

Just spit-balling here, but if LaFleur were to promote quarterbacks coach Luke Getsy to offensive coordinator, I could see offensive line coach Adam Stenavich going with Hackett to Jacksonville as offensive coordinator. That’d be a huge loss for the Packers. Green Bay is 13-3, with four-fifths of its starting offensive line out with knee injuries.

4.) Aaron Rodgers has had another stellar, MVP-caliber season. How has he handled his toe injury, and are you concerned about his injury as the playoffs approach?

Huber: He’s a pro. It’s like Matthew Stafford, right? When you have so much experience, the mental reps are really what you need, especially late in the year. He’s been stupid-good down the stretch, with six consecutive games of two-plus touchdowns and zero interceptions, the second-longest streak in NFL history.

He practiced on Thursday and Friday this week, after practicing only three times the past six weeks. So long as he gets out of Sunday’s game unscathed, he should be somewhere around 100 percent for the playoffs.

5.) How do you see the Packers' regular season finale with the Lions shaping up?

Huber: Who knows, John. Like I mentioned, what team shows up? Is it the team of competitors who wants to continue the momentum built from the past five weeks? Or is it the group who knows there’s nothing at stake and wants to get to its "bye" week?

If I had to guess, the Packers will lead at halftime with Rodgers, and then be in a dogfight to the end with Jordan Love. Love didn’t play well against Kansas City when Rodgers was out with COVID. You’d think that experience will help him on Sunday, though.