Consensus NFL Power Rankings: Where Are Packers, Lions Before Showdown?

Packers On SI’s Consensus NFL Power Rankings take eight sets of national power rankings and turn them into one consensus ranking. Here is what the national experts have to say about the Packers before their showdown against the Lions.

Bill Huber | Oct 29, 2024

Green Bay Packers wide receiver Christian Watson (9) is tackled by Detroit Lions cornerback Amani Oruwariye. / Tork Mason / USA TODAY NETWORK

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Green Bay Packers

GREEN BAY, Wis. – How big is Sunday’s Green Bay Packers-Detroit Lions showdown at Lambeau Field?

The Packers are a season-high fourth in Packers On SI’s Consensus NFL Power Rankings. The Lions moved into a tie for first.

What are the Consensus NFL Power Rankings? We take the eight best national power rankings and turn them into one better-than-the-best ranking.

Here’s what the national pundits are saying, with links to their full rankings and deeper analysis.

The Athletic: 3rd

The Packers are up two spots in Josh Kendall’s rankings, even with Jordan Love “an adventure” at quarterback before the groin injury.

“Love is 31st in the league among quarterbacks with more than 100 attempts in EPA when being blitzed this season. That’s worse than Bo Nix, Andy Dalton, Gardner Minshew and barely better than Deshaun Watson.”

Pro Football Talk: 3rd

Mike Florio moved the Packers up two spots. “With or without Jordan Love on the field, they keep playing well.”

ESPN: 4th

The Packers inched up a spot. This week’s theme was best offseason addition. Packers beat writer Rob Demovsky picked safety Xavier McKinney among a strong list of contenders.

“This was a close call considering the contributions the Packers have gotten from running back Josh Jacobs, quarterback Malik Willis and rookie defenders Javon Bullard, Evan Williams and Edgerrin Cooper. But McKinney helped transform the mindset of this takeaway-centric defense with a league-leading six interceptions, and the Packers already have forced more turnovers (19) in eight games than they did all of last season.

Fox Sports: 4th

David Helman moved the Packers up a couple notches after backup Malik Willis led the team to a third victory this season.

“Sending a seventh-round pick to Tennessee for a developmental backup quarterback felt like an afterthought back in August. Here in Week 9, it’s easy to argue Malik Willis is the biggest difference between Green Bay being 6-2 and 3-5. Fun storyline for a fun team.”

CBS Sports: 4th

Pete Prisco moved the Packers up one spot headed into Sunday’s showdown. “Jordan Love's injured groin could be a problem as they ready to face the Lions at Lambeau Field. It could be Malik Willis time again.”

Sports Illustrated: 5th

The Packers are up two spots in Conor Orr’s rankings.

Orr loved Xavier McKinney’s interception because of how he “influenced a bad decision,” and he likes the defense overall even after a rough second-half performance.

“This Packers defense is everything it should have been over the past handful of years and, finally realized in its potential, is the backbone of these stunning Malik Willis-led victories. All that said, the injury report is one to watch in Green Bay this week.”

Yahoo: 5th

The Packers gained a spot, with Frank Schwab pointing to the pros and cons of starting Jordan Love.

“Jordan Love’s groin injury doesn’t come at a great time. The Packers’ next game is at home against the Lions, and that could ultimately decide the NFC North champion. The Packers have to make sure they don’t rush Love back but it’s a huge game.

This Week’s Opponent: Detroit Lions

The Lions moved into a tie for first place with the Kansas City Chiefs in the Consensus Power Rankings. Both teams garnered four first-place votes and four second-place votes.

NFL.com’s Edholm moved the Lions up to No. 1 this week because every phase is capable of winning a game.

“Late in the third quarter on Sunday, the Lions had 49 points and Jared Goff had 57 pass yards,” Edholm wrote. “Goff had some tough moments behind a surprisingly leaky Lions offensive line early in the game, but the defense, special teams and run game took care of business in impressive fashion. Five of Detroit's first 10 possessions started in Tennessee territory, mostly thanks to turnovers forced and long special-teams returns, and the Lions scored touchdowns on all five of those drives. That's what good teams do.”

Packers on SI’s Consensus Top 10

T-1, Detroit Lions (12 points; four first-place votes); 2, Kansas City Chiefs (12 points; four-first place votes); 3, Buffalo Bills (26); 4, Green Bay Packers (34); 5, Washington Commanders (47); 6, Baltimore Ravens (48); 7, Houston Texans (54); 8, Minnesota Vikings (66); 8, Pittsburgh Steelers (69); 10, Philadelphia Eagles (74).

More Green Bay Packers News

You play to win the game.

Great answer by Matt LaFleur on a gutsy play call that helped the #Packers beat the Jaguars.https://t.co/gB6JnaS69F
— Bill Huber (@BillHuberNFL) October 29, 2024

Published Oct 29, 2024

BILL HUBER

Bill Huber, who has covered the Green Bay Packers since 2008, is the publisher of Packers On SI, 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.