The Green Bay Packers are at the halfway point of the season, and there are more questions than answers at this point.
They began the season with two huge wins over the Detroit Lions and Washington Commanders at Lambeau Field, which felt like a message to the rest of the NFL.
Since that time, however, they’ve scuffled.
They lost games in Cleveland and at home against Carolina.
The Panthers are 5-4, but the Packers were a double-digit favorite in that game and were playing at home.
They had no business losing that day.
The midway point of the season is usually a good time to look at expectations and see what is in the cards for any given team.
This Packers team has plenty of talent.
Most importantly, they have talent at quarterback.
Jordan Love has shaken off his injury-riddled 2024 season and looks like one of the best quarterbacks in football.
Love has had one bad game this season. That happened against Cleveland.
Apart from that, he’s been mostly brilliant.
That’s been true despite the lack of a consistent run game and a rotating cast of characters both on the offensive line and at the skill positions.
The biggest question going into the second half of the season is how does Green Bay’s offense evolve without Tucker Kraft?
Kraft was on his way to a first-team all-pro type of season.
Without him, the return of Christian Watson and imminent return of Jayden Reed are two ways the Packers could likely pick up the slack.
From an injury standpoint, Kraft is the only player who has been lost for the year.
While that is a massive blow to Green Bay’s offense, it is not a death sentence.
The offense has the pieces to go on a run. They need some of their high-priced veterans, especially on the offensive line, to start playing better in the second half of the year.
On the defensive side of the ball, Micah Parsons has been as advertised.
He’s become one of the leaders in the locker room and ingrained himself as one of the team’s best players.
His presence has helped Rashan Gary pile up big sack numbers, and Lukas Van Ness was having a strong season before being sidelined with a foot injury.
Quay Walker has taken a step as well, with Matt LaFleur and Jeff Hafley consistently pointing out that Walker has played at an elite level.
The biggest concern on defense is in the secondary, where cornerback play has been spotty to say the least.
Nate Hobbs will be sidelined until later this month. Keisean Nixon and Carrington Valentine have been up and down.
Xavier McKinney has been good, but not as impactful as he was a season ago taking the ball away with just two interceptions on the season.
That’s largely a byproduct of teams not wanting to hold the ball against Green Bay’s pass rush.
As far as expectations in the second half, the Packers are going to earn everything they’re going to get.
After this weekend’s game against the Giants, they’ll play four games against their division out of five.
The one game in between their tour of the NFC North, including two against Chicago, is a trip to Denver, where the Broncos are emerging as one of the toughest teams in football.
Nonetheless, the Packers made their statement in late August.
Their plan is to win, and it’s to win right now.
Expectations should remain as such.
If they do not meet expectations, there are going to be some tough conversations to be had when this season ultimately ends.
