Green Bay Packers: 5 BIG Questions heading into Matchup with Eagles
By Paul Bretl
Can OL continue high level of play against Eagles’ pass rush?
To put it simply, the Green Bay Packers’ offensive line has been fantastic this season. In fact, they are the only NFL team in which all five of their regular starters rank in the top-10 at their respective positions in ESPN’s pass-block win rate metric, which measures how often an offensive lineman can hold his block for at least 2.5 seconds.
But this week, they will be up against a very good Eagles’ pass rush. Brandan Graham leads Philadelphia with seven sacks, and the Eagles also have three other players who have tallied at least four sacks this season. And as a unit, their pressure rate of 25.2 percent is the seventh-highest rate in the NFL.
Corey Linsley is out, which means Elgton Jenkins is back at center, and Jon Runyan will make his first NFL start. Runyan held up quite well against Chicago, and it’s going to be important that he does so again. As we all know, the years may go by, but the name of the game remains the same in Green Bay, and that is keeping Aaron Rodgers upright.
What is going on with Carson Wentz?
This is the million-dollar question this season, and it’s one that I don’t think anyone has the answer to. Carson Wentz isn’t the only reason for Philadelphia’s issues, but when you’re quarterback isn’t playing well, it’s going to be the biggest reason.
It wasn’t that long ago in 2017 that Wentz was in the MVP discussion before suffering a season-ending injury. However, in 2020, he leads the NFL in interceptions, his completion rate is only 58.1 percent, and out of 40 eligible quarterbacks, he ranks 37th in passer rating.
A few obvious reasons for his demise have been poor offensive line play, although Wentz doesn’t help by holding the ball for so long. And as mentioned above, he just hasn’t been accurate, not to mention that he’s not going through his progressions either.