Green Bay Packers: 3 Matchups to Watch in Week 16

The Green Bay Packers find themselves facing one of their biggest challenges of the year in the Titans, and they’ll need to win some big matchups to prevail.

Last week, the Green Bay Packers only beat the Panthers by eight points, making it much closer than any of us would have wanted. This was due, in large part, to the Panthers’ playmakers winning their matchups and slowing the Packers’ offense to a halt.

One of the biggest factors in this was Brian Burns, who was Carolina’s half of the first big matchup that I outlined last week. It was set up to be a tough week for Burns, often facing off against one of the best pass protectors in the league, David Bakhtiari. However, he flipped the script and made two sacks that were huge in stopping the Packers and getting the offense out of rhythm.

The next pairing was Robert Tonyan against Jeremy Chinn in the middle of the field. Tonyan did manage to get free for a touchdown but only totaled three catches for 18 yards last Saturday night. Chinn, meanwhile, was all over the field for the Panthers, making seven tackles, which tied for the team lead. His speed and athleticism were seemingly always front and center, and he played a huge role in the Panthers’ defensive success in the second half.

Finally, the one true constant every week came to play once again. When all else fails, Jaire Alexander Island is always welcoming new challengers, and Saturday was no exception. Robby Anderson’s success has a high correlation to the Panthers’ offense as a whole, so taking him out of the equation was huge, and having a stud like Jaire who can hold top receivers like him to just two catches for 21 yards is such a luxury for Mike Pettine. This was one of the biggest factors in the Green Bay Packers’ defensive success all game and undoubtedly the biggest win of all three matchups last week.

This week, we’ve got three fresh matchups for you that will be absolutely critical to pulling out a big win against the Tennessee Titans.