Green Bay Packers: 3 Matchups to Watch in Week 11

Kenny Clark vs. Quenton Nelson

This will be a heavyweight matchup of two of the best interior players in the game. Kenny Clark made his first Pro Bowl in 2019 and signed a monstrous contract extension, making him the fourth-highest paid interior defensive lineman in the league, based on average value per year.

Nelson is only in his third season, but has made himself known already, making the Pro Bowl and being named an All-Pro in both of his first two seasons. This season, he is sixth among all NFL guards in Sports Info Solutions’ Total Points Earned stat for offensive linemen. 

This matchup will be huge all game in both the run and pass games. Both guys are completely capable in both phases of the game. Nelson is tied for second in Pass Blocking Points Earned, while Clark has been a great interior rusher the last few seasons, making 16.5 sacks over the last three years.

In the run game, where Clark thrives even more, Nelson is slightly worse, ranking tied for 11th in Run Blocking Points Earned. Clark has made a living off of eating double teams and making plays in the backfield his entire career. He racked up 24 tackles for loss in his first four seasons and against the Colts rushing attack, he’ll need to continue to do that because of how lackluster the rest of the team is at stopping the run.

This matchup is both a glimpse into the future of the league, as both players are under the age of 26, and a rare matchup, because they play in different conferences. It’s two great players that will go at each other all game and that we won’t see for another few years, barring a Super Bowl matchup.