3 X-Factors for Green Bay Packers against Vikings in Week 1
By Paul Bretl
In order to win on Sunday, we know that most likely, the Green Bay Packers will need their star players to play at a high level. This group includes Aaron Rodgers, Rashan Gary, and Jaire Alexander, among others.
But football is the ultimate team game, and winning is also going to require contributions from those non-star football players. The ones who can do that and make the biggest impact are my X-Factors. We all may define that term a bit differently, but that is my criteria.
So without further ado, here is a look at who those three Green Bay Packers players are.
Packers rotational edge rushers: Jonathan Garvin, Kingsley Enagbare, or Tipa Galeai
Right off the bat, I might be cheating a little bit since I’ve chosen three players from one position group. However, it doesn’t matter who makes an impact, as long as someone does.
Edge rusher depth is perhaps the biggest concern on this Packers team entering the season. There were few impact plays a season ago from rotational players, and the inconsistency we saw in training camp from this group — excluding Rashan Gary and Preston Smith, of course — didn’t exactly give us confidence that things will be different in 2022.
The Packers’ defense will be tested right away against a Vikings’ offense that has several playmakers and an offensive system under new head coach Kevin O’Connell that is somewhat similar to what the Packers utilize under Matt LaFleur and is meant to maximize the quarterback position.
Edge rusher is a heavily rotated position, so whoever ends up being the third and fourth edge rushers may see around 20-25 snaps. If the Packers do what they did a season ago and often rest Smith and Gary at the same time, that means roughly one-third of the total defensive snaps will be without either of them on the field. And a lack of pressure against this Vikings offense could result in some big plays.