Last Sunday was a reality check for Green Bay Packers fans and players. This is still the NFL. Despite how poor you may think a team is, on any given Sunday, if you are not on your A game, things can get away from you against anyone.
However, for a team that was feeling as high as they did after Week 2, this humbling may be a good thing in the long run. It should readjust their perspective. Rather than focusing on going undefeated for the entire season, the priority should be on going undefeated every week. That starts this week with the Dallas Cowboys.
The leading storyline heading into Sunday night will be Micah Parsons' return to Jerry World, and everything is lining up for this game to be a bounce-back spot for the team. It’s also lining up for this to be a legendary Micah Parsons revenge game, for a plethora of reasons.
Jerry Jones Says No Tribute Video
Those reasons start before the teams even take the field.
On Monday, Jones told reporters that they will not have a tribute video for Parsons on Sunday night because it's “not appropriate this week.”
I get it. Parsons was only there for four years. It’s only been a month since Dallas traded him, and the situation ended on bad terms. The fans are likely still upset about how both sides handled the situation. It might not be appropriate right now, and Parsons may say it’s not disrespectful on the outside, but that doesn’t mean it won’t add some extra fuel to the fire that’s already lit on the inside of him heading into this game.
Parsons said he expects a round of applause from the Dallas faithful. He has no hard feelings. We’ll see if the fans share the same sentiment.
The Cowboys’ Injury Woes
Following the Parsons trade, the Cowboys entered the season with a roster that appeared somewhat flawed defensively. However, with Dak Prescott, CeeDee Lamb, George Pickens, Jake Ferguson, and a strong offensive line, the unit still ranks among the top in the league. However, they’ve had a plethora of injuries over the first three weeks that have started to catch up with them.
Center Cooper Beebe, guard Tyler Smith, and Lamb suffered ankle injuries and are expected to miss this week's game. Parsons and this pass rush should be able to tee off on this beat-up Cowboys line. Without Lamb, it’s up to Pickens and Ferguson to get open before the pass rush gets home, and I’m betting on the pass rush.
The Cowboys’ Woeful Defense
The Cowboys’ defense wasn’t projected to be great after they traded Parsons, and it has been bad. They’ve given up 30.7 points per game (sixth worst) and 397.7 yards per game (third worst), and they’re the worst passing defense in the NFL, giving up 288 yards per game.
Trevon Diggs and Daron Bland are questionable to play Sunday, and they haven’t gone through a gauntlet of great passing quarterbacks. At least the run defense is 17th in yards allowed!
Green Bay's offense should get back on track. If they can build a lead, it will force Dallas into passing situations, allowing the pass rush to get after Prescott.
Green Bay’s Dominant Defense
Despite the loss last week, Green Bay’s defense still held up its end of the bargain. They were again dominant and, throughout the first three weeks, looked like one of, if not the best, units in all of football.
Rashan Gary leads the league in sacks with 4.5. They’re the only defense with four guys with 10-plus pressures. The secondary is playing at a high level, and Jeff Hafley is primed for a head coaching gig this offseason. And there’s still some room to improve because they’ve been doing all of this without causing turnovers.
Parsons makes the jobs of the players around him easier, but they still need to do those jobs, and they are all at a high level. If the D continues to click on all cylinders along with the injuries to the Cowboys, there will be opportunities to add to the counting stats for Micah and others Sunday night.
SNF In Jerry World
The final thing that adds to the lore of this game is that it is in Jerry World in a primetime slot on Sunday Night Football. The Packers have had a history of success in Jerry World and played some
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