Empty feeling
Away games dot early schedule
The Packers are preparing for the ‘strange’ experience of playing football without fans in the stands.
GREEN BAY – The Green Bay Packers are coming off a rebound season in which they improved by seven wins in Matt LaFleur’s first campaign as a head coach — one that ended with a trip to the NFC championship game.
That game ended with a 37-20 defeat at the hands of the San Francisco 49ers, but after a 2019 that was full of change on the coaching staff and roster, the Packers feel continuity will set them up for a repeat run at a Super Bowl.
In a football year greatly affected by the coronavirus pandemic, which forced the cancellation of all on-field work from May through July and a shortened training camp for every team, the Packers hope a second year together can help them navigate through a tougher schedule.
Unlike 2019, in which the Packers opened with five of their first seven games at Lambeau Field, they will end 2020 with five of eight at home. They get to see Tom Brady and Philip Rivers again, but in new cities, along with Drew Brees and DeShaun Watson … and yet another trip west to take on the 49ers.
Here’s a game-by-game preview of what lies ahead for the Packers as they try to stack back-to-back winning seasons for the first time since 2015-16:
at Minnesota Vikings, noon Sunday
The league elected to get some division games out of the way in the first few weeks in the hopes of teams being smart and healthy through training camp, and that has happened. But, there will be no fans in U.S. Bank Stadium to create any kind of atmosphere. One of LaFleur’s professional mentors, Gary Kubiak, is now running the Vikings’ offense and Mike Zimmer has retooled the defense. With no preseason games, this game could be a total tossup.
vs. Detroit Lions, noon Sept. 20
The home opener will be a strange one as the Packers take to the field in Green Bay without any fans cheering for them for the first time in a century of play. The Lions shuffled their coordinators on defense and special teams and hope that a healthy Matthew Stafford can get them off to a good start. If not, it’s possible GM Dan Quinn and/or head coach Matt Patricia are not around for the rematch.
at New Orleans Saints, 7:20 p.m. Sept. 27
The Packers’ first prime-time game of 2020 may also be the first with some fans in attendance. At the time of publication, the Saints were not going to have anyone in the Superdome to begin this season, but by Week 3 they anticipate having a “partial” fan base indoors. It could be the first real test of league officials insisting the team-by-team (and state-by-state) decisions for attendance doesn’t create a competitive disadvantage for visiting teams, especially as this season is Brees’ swan song with the Saints.
vs. Atlanta Falcons, 7:15 p.m. Oct. 5
The Packers get an extra day of rest and come home for their first Monday night appearance against a Falcons team that is betting on a late-season 2019 rally that saw them finish 6-2 after a 1-7 start. It is also a reunion of sorts for LaFleur, who worked in Atlanta under head coach Dan Quinn and was Matt Ryan’s position coach in the year the Falcons went to the Super Bowl.
at Tampa Bay Buccaneers, 3:25 p.m. Oct. 18
The Packers get a bye week to prepare for a road trip to take on Brady’s new squad in Florida. The Aaron Rodgers vs. Brady marquee hasn’t been lit up often in their long careers, and this will mark just the third time the two quarterbacks have shared the field in a game that means something. At this point in the season, it’s possible the Bucs are finding themselves with Brady learning a whole new offense for the first time in his career.
at Houston Texans, noon Oct. 25
Last year the Packers didn’t get the chance to see one of the game’s top young quarterbacks when Patrick Mahomes was injured in Kansas City, so the hope for fans would be that the Texans’ Deshaun Watson is on the field. The Texans are not the same team that came to Green Bay in 2019 for joint practices, having traded away DeAndre Hopkins but signed former Packers receiver Randall Cobb along with Brandin Cooks. They also got running back David Johnson in the Hopkins deal.
vs. Minnesota Vikings, noon, Nov. 1
The Vikings head into Lambeau Field and it’s possible that, at this point, many of the faces on their defense have found a groove. Rookie wide receiver Justin Jefferson, pass rusher Yannick Ngakoue and rookie corners Jeff Gladney and Cameron Dantzler likely will have found some semblance of a routine and chemistry within their groups.
at San Francisco 49ers, 7:20 p.m. Nov. 5
The Packers head back to last season’s house of horrors in the Bay Area, and on a short week to boot. The 49ers smacked the Packers around twice inside Levi’s Stadium in 2019, a 37-8 loss in the regular season and the 285-yard rushing effort in the NFC title game. The Packers may be running on fumes off a divisional game and then a long flight.
vs. Jacksonville Jaguars, noon Nov. 15
Who knows who will playing for the Jaguars at this point, as they jettisoned many of their better players before the season began and the regular-season trade deadline will have come and gone. The Jaguars may not be “tanking,” but clearly this is a rebuilding season and could be exactly what the Packers need off a mini-bye after the 49ers game.
at Indianapolis Colts, noon Nov. 22
The Packers get to see Rivers for a second straight year, as the 38-year-old has left L.A. and the Chargers for the Midwest. Rivers had one of his five best games against the Packers last year and averaged 10.5 yards per attempt. The Colts would prefer to have him play off a powerful run game and offensive line, so the Packers will have to be ready for a physical game on turf.
vs. Chicago Bears, 7:20 p.m. Nov. 29
The Bears and Packers are back in prime time and usually it leads to some sort of “moment,” usually in favor of Rodgers and the Packers. It’s impossible to say who will be the quarterback for Chicago in late November, but it’s fair to believe Khalil Mack and that Chicago defense will be formidable.
vs. Philadelphia Eagles, 3:25 p.m. Dec. 6
The Eagles head back to Lambeau Field for the second straight year after winning a 34-27 thriller in 2019, a game that saw the Packers lose Davante Adams and Jamaal Williams to injury. It also exposed the Packers’ defense to high-level tight end play. No doubt the Packers will be looking for some getback in a game that could have playoff seeding implications.
at Detroit Lions, noon Dec. 13
The Lions feel they will be competitive this season, but it’s possible that if they’re not there is an interim head coach roaming the sideline of Lambeau Field at this juncture. If Patricia’s group is in contention, it could be a good game as the Lions have been very competitive with the Packers in his two seasons, with last year’s losses coming by a combined four points.
vs. Carolina Panthers, TBD
For some reason the league still hasn’t released any details on this game – along with the details of every other game that weekend – so it’s possible this is a Saturday contest. Outside of that, the Panthers pushed the Packers to the brink in a snowy Lambeau Field in 2019 and the Packers needed a fourthdown stop of Christian McCaffrey to win. This could be a sneaky good game.
vs. Tennessee Titans, 7:20 p.m. Dec. 27
One of the league’s final four teams from a year ago head to Lambeau Field in yet another reunion for LaFleur, as he served as the Titans’ offensive coordinator under head coach Mike Vrabel in 2018. Expectations remain high in Tennessee and no doubt the network would love to build this as a potential Super Bowl preview, one that may see both teams run it a combined 60 times.
at Chicago Bears, noon Jan. 3
I mean, 2021 has to be better, right? The first game of the new year will be in Chicago and it very well may determine playoff positioning, if not the NFC North title. The Bears went 8-8 a year ago despite having a terrible offense, and they do give the Packers fits, so regardless of who is playing quarterback for the Bears this game should be close.