The Green Bay Packers had a dominant showing in Week 1 against the Detroit Lions. While the Packers only gained 266 yards on offense, they scored 27 points. Defensively, Green Bay held Detroit's offense to 246 total yards and sacked Jared Goff four times.
Despite Packers fans leaving the game impressed with those two phases of the game, the special teams unit also had a great start to the season. Given the Packers have struggled on special teams over the past few seasons, watching the unit have a near-perfect game was a positive change.
If the Packers' special teams unit continues this throughout the season, then their chances of making the Super Bowl are fairly high.
Packers Special Teams Excels in Week 1
In October of last season, Green Bay signed veteran Brandon McManus to be their kicker. This came after two years of struggles from Andres Carlson and Brayden Narveson. Narveson, the more recent of the two kickers, started out the 2024 season 12/17 on field goals.
Those struggles led to his release. McManus immediately stabilized the Packers' kicking game, making 20/21 field goals and all his extra points in 2024. As a result, Green Bay awarded him a contract extension this offseason.
The Packers' punting game, on the other hand, has not been an issue over the past few seasons. Since signing punter Daniel Whelan as an undrafted free agent in 2022, the 26-year-old has been spectacular. In both of his first two seasons, Whelan has averaged 46 yards per punt. Like McManus, he also earned him a contract extension before the 2025 season.
That said, the one area on special teams Green Bay has struggled in has been the return game. Their kickoff unit was solid, ranking fifth in 2023 with 25.3 yards per return. But the punt return game was a liability, finishing 28th with only 7.3 yards per return.
Last season, neither return unit ranked within the top 10. In 2024, the Packers averaged 28.2 yards per kick return (14th) and 8.3 yards a return on punts (24th). Through one game, the return units already look much better.
On Sunday, Green Bay averaged 16 yards on two kickoff returns and 10.7 yards on three punt returns. If they are able to keep building on that success, the Packers will have the ability to dominate all three phases of the game every week.