More attention doesn't always equate to glory, as the Green Bay Packers will learn in the 2026 NFL season. Sometimes, drawing more eyes only makes you more susceptible to criticism. That's why, for as great as it is for ticket sales and promotions, the Packers having a historic number of nationally televised, primetime home games is more of a mixed bag than you might think.
During the 2026 regular season, the Packers will have five games at Lambeau Field during primetime slots. Those include matchups with the Atlanta Falcons (Sept. 24), Dallas Cowboys (Oct. 18), Carolina Panthers (Oct. 29), Buffalo Bills (Dec. 13) and Houston Texans (Jan. 4). According to the team, this will mark the first time in franchise history that five games will be nationally televised during a primetime slot from their home stadium.
If you thought the think pieces and Monday morning quarterbacks were loud before, let's see how that evolves once the Packers are playing live, national games against noteworthy opponents on their home turf all season.
The Packers' five primetime games at Lambeau Field are a gift in terms of home-field advantage, but will be a curse when they lose.
Yes, more home games for key matchups will work to the favor of the Packers, who boast one of the greatest homefield advantages in all of professional sports. With a 29-13 record in home games over the last five seasons, there will be a certain expectation that Green Bay defends its home field.
Those road matchups should stick out most when the Texans leave the safety of their warm winters for the hard, bitter cold of Wisconsin in January. For an opponent like the Bills, however, that weekend's work will be business as usual, since they're used to playing in the bitter cold.
Nonetheless, if the Packers find themselves in a compromised position on the football field — as most teams do at one point or another throughout an NFL season — fans need to brace themselves for the pundits and haters to use that as an opportunity to hold the Packers to an unreasonable standard.
Of everyone involved, there are two people who will face the most scrutiny during these primetime, big-game moments: quarterback Jordan Love and head coach Matt LaFleur. Generally, these are the two places where most of the blame falls on an NFL team anyway. Love has built enough of a reputation as a solid, reliable starting quarterback that if he falls short of expectations in any way, his doubters will come out of the woodwork to tell the world.
They won't look to his 2nd place ranking in EPA per dropback, or 3rd place ranking in overall quarterback rating from last season. They'll pinpoint the worst pass of any outing and make it the headline of their segment, unless he goes out and wins the game like he expects to.
In LaFleur's case, it's a bit more complicated. Although he's proven himself a force in the regular season, his 3-6 Playoff record leaves him open to attack whenever his teams underperform. If they start dropping games in the limelight at Lambeau Field, people are going to start calling for his job.
That's what makes it most important for this team to stick together and not let the outside forces infiltrate their locker room. There will always be doubters — and in this case, especially from jealous fans who wish their team got as many primetime slots as the Packers. So long as they focus on the game plan and capitalize on all their hard work, they'll be able to bask in the glory of victory on their home field instead of getting caught in an endless cycle of hot takes.
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