The Packers look to keep things rolling in Week 11 at a venue that has been friendly to them of late: the Green Bay offense has scored 55 points over their past six quarters played at U.S. Bank Stadium. Interestingly enough, they've lost just once when playing indoors since 2018.
This time around may not be as easy, however. Working to Minnesota's advantage will be the noise of U.S. Bank Stadium, with which the Packers didn't have to contend last season en route to scoring 43 points in the season opener.
If Minnesota needed a statement win to spark a midseason turnaround, this is it. Playing at home, and facing their division rivals for the first time this season, you can be sure the Vikings will come out hot. In the shoes of the increasingly unpopular head coach Mike Zimmer, this is a game you have to find a way to win.
On Offense
A still-banged-up Packers' offense will look to take advantage of what's also an undermanned Minnesota defense. Missing Danielle Hunter (now for the large chunk of a second-straight season) the Vikings will have to lean on an uninspiring pass rush, led by 11-year veteran Everson Griffen. This could mean a much cleaner pocket for Aaron Rodgers, who's only eclipsed the 300-yard mark once this season.
The big question on everyone's mind is how the Green Bay backfield will fare without lead back, Aaron Jones. This season, the Vikings' defense has, somewhat uncharacteristically, allowed the fifth-most rushing yards in the league. However, it's tightened up in recent weeks, holding Zeke Elliott and Austin Ekeler to 50 or fewer yards apiece.
On Defense
Coming off their most impressive performance of the season, it's easy to be bullish on the Green Bay defense. Without star defender Jaire Alexander, Joe Barry has architected personnel packages in the secondary that have stymied talented receiver corps, such as that of Seattle, Arizona and Cincinnati. Cornerbacks Eric Stokes and Kevin King have operated well on the bookends while veteran Rasul Douglas has been a surprisingly important asset in coverage all over the field in five games.
However, Minnesota's offense might be their greatest test to-date. They've been able to score regularly on good defenses, such as Cardinals, Seahawks and Ravens - and have done so with a nice combination of pass and run (similar to the Packers).
I imagine that Stokes will again be tasked with shadowing the opposition's most dangerous receiver - this time, second-year wide out Justin Jefferson, who can simply do it all. While I'm confident Stokes can contest deep ball to Jefferson, he'll be a much bigger liability on horizontal routes where Jefferson's crisp route-running may give the Packers' rookie some trouble.
PackerDay Prediction: Vikings 26, Packers 24
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