The Green Bay Packers are 9-4 entering Sunday night’s trip to Seattle, with losses to the Detroit Lions (twice), Minnesota Vikings and Philadelphia Eagles.
The Lions are 12-1. The Vikings and Eagles are 11-2. Counting the Lions twice, the combined record of the opponents who have beaten the Packers this season is 46-6, good for a win percentage of 88.5.
How rare is this season from the Packers so far?
According to Next Gen Stats, the 46-6 combined record is the best since 1929 among teams with at least four losses in a season. Back in 1929, the Frankford Yellow Jackets lost four games: three times to the New York Giants and once to the Packers. The combined record of the Giants (three times) and the Packers was 51-3-2 — a win percentage of 91.1.
It’s tough what to make of the stat. On one hand, the Packers have only lost to the NFL’s very best teams. On the other hand, the Packers have lost four games to teams that could easily block their path to the Super Bowl.
Matt LaFleur’s team has wins over the Los Angeles Rams (8-6) and Houston Texans (8-5), two teams with winning records. But that’s it.
Close only counts in horseshoes and hand grenades.
In Week 1, the Packers led the Eagles 26-24 in the second half and had the ball late with a chance to win.
In Week 4, the Packers fell behind the Vikings 28-0 but rallied back to within six at 28-22 and lost 31-29.
In Week 14, the Packers fell behind the Lions 17-7 but led 21-17 early in the second half and had a go-ahead touchdown pass late in the fourth quarter negated by penalty.
By DVOA, the Packers rank third in the NFL — suggesting this is a very good team that just hasn’t been able to put it all together against the best competition.
But at some point, a team that wants to be in the Super Bowl has to go on a run of beating elite teams. The final four games offer the Packers a few opportunities, including a road trip to play the Vikings in Minneapolis.
The Packers will face a good team on Sunday night in Seattle. The Seahawks are 8-5, have won four straight games and lead the NFC West. While the Seahawks might not be one of the juggernauts, this is still a chance for the Packers to prove that they can go on the road and beat a division leader after letting an opportunity to upset the Lions slip away last Thursday night at Ford Field.
