Green Bay Packers: 3 Reasons They Will Beat Seattle

The Green Bay Packers will take on the Seattle Seahawks in the NFC Divisional Round and these are three reasons that they will come away with the win.

The NFC Divisional Round is set and what many would consider a bit of a surprise, the Green Bay Packers drew the Seattle Seahawks after Minnesota was able to upset New Orleans on Sunday.

Given the outcome the last time these two met in the playoffs, I think many fans are a bit worried about this Russell Wilson team, and to some extent rightfully so, they’re a good football team.

But with that said, with the Packers are coming off of a bye and have a number of the key matchups that are in their favor, along with a few other factors. So truthfully, I’m confident that this is a game they will win. And if that holds true, these will be three big reasons why.

Green Bay keeps Russell Wilson in the pocket

Throughout the years we’ve all seen Russell Wilson extending plays outside of the pocket with his legs and finding open receivers downfield. And for a Green Bay Packers’ defense that has given up plenty of big plays this season, a broken play with Wilson on the move could be troublesome.

However, if they are able to keep him in the pocket, it will allow the Green Bay pass-rush to take advantage of the Seattle offensive line who has allowed Wilson to be sacked a league high 48 times in 2019.

In past matchups between these two teams we’ve seen Wilson pick apart the Packer defense, especially when they blitz. But what we haven’t seen yet is Wilson up against this new and improved Green Bay defense – led by Za’Darius Smith and Preston Smith – that has been one of the top teams in creating quarterback pressures while also being one of the fewest blitzing teams as well.

This will certainly bode well for them against Wilson and when it comes to The Smiths, while their sack and pressure numbers are very impressive, they’ve also been really good at containment and not letting runners get outside. Not to mention that we saw Fletcher Cox of Philadelphia blowup the interior offensive line of Seattle on Sunday and we should expect much of the same from Kenny Clark.

As you can see, this Green Bay Packers team has the players and ability to keep Russell Wilson from scrambling too much and creating big plays. But this is also the same Russell Wilson who has done some incredible things over his career, so it isn’t going to be an easy task by any means.

Aaron Jones

It’s no secret that this Packers offense is not only better when going through Aaron Jones but it looks completely different, and of course, in a good way. With the consistency issues in the passing game all season long, the Packers have been able to rely heavily on Jones who has been a huge factor, both in the run game and as a pass-catcher.

This year, Jones would rush for 1,084 yards – his first 1,000 yard season – at 4.6 yards per carry, with an additional 479 receiving yards and 19 total touchdowns. While regardless of the opponent Jones should always be a focal point of this offense, this matchup with Seattle is a particularly good one for him.

For one, this is a Seattle defense that gives up 117.7 rushing yards per game, which ranks 22nd in the NFL and includes five straight games of allowing at least 120 rushing yards. But they also struggle with defending running backs in the passing game. During the regular season, running backs would average 9.5 yards per catch, the 3rd most in football, as well as 51.1 total receiving yards per game, which was the 4th most.

This game could potentially be a big one for Aaron Jones and an opportunity for him to lead the Green Bay Packers’ offense to victory in the playoffs.

The game is at  Lambeau Field

Dating back to when Seattle first joined the NFC, in 13 of the 14 meetings between these two teams the home team has been the winner. And while when most people think of Seattle and Green Bay, they are reminded of the NFC Championship Game from five years ago, since then the Packers have dominated the Russell Wilson led Seahawks at Lambeau Field.

Back in 2015 the Packers won 27-17 and Wilson would complete 63 percent of his passes for 203 yards, with two touchdowns, one interception and he was sacked two times. Then in 2016 Green Bay would win 38-10 in a game that Wilson threw five interceptions, would complete 56 percent of his throws for 240 yards with one touchdown and he was sacked three times.

Most recently was in 2017 where the Packers would win 17-9 while Wilson completed 52 percent of his passes for 158 yards, with no touchdowns and he was once again sacked three times. So it’s not as if Wilson has had a ton of success at Lambeau Field.

When many first think of the Green Bay Packers and the Seattle Seahawks, I believe the initial thought is that Seattle has been the boogeyman for Green Bay. But that just hasn’t been the case. Overall the home team has been in control of this series and Wilson has really struggled at Lambeau. Which if I remember correctly, is where Sunday’s game is being played.