Green Bay Packers fans should be pleased with how the 2025 season has begun. The team began by adding one of the best defensive players in the league in Micah Parsons, dominated the division rival Detroit Lions in their opening game, and are now coming off a primetime win against franchise legend Aaron Rodgers. As the current #1 seed in the NFC, Matt LaFleur’s team is sitting right where they want to be. That being said, as the halfway point of the season approaches, just how impressive is the 5-1-1 record with the knowledge of hindsight?

Wins that may have appeared to be against quality opponents earlier in the season may no longer be thought of as such. Close wins against middling teams may have aged better.

Week 1 – Packers 27 Lions 13

Green Bay’s opening weekend matchup with Detroit pitted the Lions, one of the league’s most exciting teams, against a Packers team with perhaps the most preseason hype of anyone thanks to the Micah Parsons trade. The result was rather one-sided.

The Packers dominated the game from the jump and held a monstrous Lions offense to under 4 yards per play. Dan Campbell’s group was only able to muster 46 yards rushing. Parsons got his debut sack and Evan Williams snagged an impressive interception.

Detroit went on to win 5 of their next 6 games and is still among the NFC’s best teams. A dominant win over a team like that is a demonstration of what these Packers are capable. This is still Green Bay’s best win of the season.

Week 2 – Packers 27 Commanders 18

Week 2 was marketed as an exciting offensive showcase between Jordan Love and reigning Rookie of the Year Jayden Daniels. However, only one offense was firing on all cylinders on Thursday night in the nation’s capital.

The Packers rolled to 404 yards of total offense, with Love leading the way with 292 yards passing and a 113.9 rating. Josh Jacobs led the rushing attack with 84 yards and a TD. Meanwhile, the defense piled up 4 more sacks and held Washington to 230 total yards.

Another impressive win for Green Bay against what was supposed to be another one of the NFC’s top teams. However, now in Week 9, Washington is just 3-5. With Daniels battling injuries and the defense regressing, the Commanders are taking a step backwards, making this win somewhat less impressive. Still, a primetime road win is always something to feel good about.

Week 3 – Packers 10 Browns 13

The less said about this game, the better. Green Bay’s defense put on their third strong performance, but the offense mightily sputtered and Love sank the team with a costly 4th quarter interception. What should have been a lopsided affair became the Browns stealing their first win of the season.

Since then, Cleveland has benched and then traded their starting QB, lost 4 of their next 5 games, and resurrected media speculation about a Myles Garrett trade. In short – this loss was very concerning at the time, and has remained equally as problematic in hindsight. Performances like this are why experts can still poke holes in the Super Bowl buzz around Wisconsin.

Week 4 – Packers 40 Cowboys 40

Another truly perplexing game for Green Bay. It’s hard to not feel good about 40 points on offense, particularly when Love bounced back from a woeful day in Cleveland to then throw for 337 yards and 3 TDs. Yet the offense had a shot to win the game at the end and proved incapable of having enough composure to take advantage of the opportunity.

Defensively, Jeff Hafley’s boys put their first dud on tape, surrendering 436 yards of offense and achieving a grand total of 0 sack yards. Parsons was impactful but not productive in his return game and after the game, apologized to the offense for not holding up defensively. Serious questions about the team emerged following this one.

Dallas is now 3-4-1 and still has a chance to be a playoff team. Green Bay could be 6-1 if they had gotten this one right, and it feels just as frustrating now as it did then.

Week 6 – Packers 27 Bengals 18

After the bye, the Packers faced yet another orange team led by Joe Flacco – who had joined Cincinnati since the Cleveland loss. Determined not to lose to the former Super Bowl MVP again, the Packers thankfully emerged as winners: but it wasn’t pretty.

What was a 10-0 game at halftime became 24-18 and felt like a game the Packers could find their way to lose. However, the team made enough plays and LaFleur described the win as a “relief.”

The Bengals are now coming off of a loss to the previously winless Jets. To have just eked out a win at home against such a team does not feel like such an achievement. It was a necessary pick-me-up in the moment after having the sour taste of Dallas remain through a bye week, but this is not a performance the team will look back on as one that represents who they can be moving forward.

Week 7 – Packers 27 Cardinals 23

In sort of a similar case, the Packers took on a reeling team with QB issues and yet found themselves in a close game. Against Arizona and backup quarterback Jacoby Brissett, Green Bay was losing for most of the game until 4th-quarter touchdowns from Tucker Kraft and Josh Jacobs saved the day.

Another narrow victory against a bottom-half team meant that questions about Green Bay’s legitimacy as a tier 1 contender remained. The 2-5 Cardinals are going nowhere this season and the Packers playing from behind against such a team feels pretty bad.

Week 8 – Packers 35 Steelers 25

Beating Aaron Rodgers feels pretty darn good. Especially on the road in primetime. Especially when Jordan Love outdueled him to a historic extent and brought himself into the MVP conversation after a ridiculously good showing.

However, there’s definitely some validity to those that want to pour cold water on this performance. It’s not surprising that Green Bay had such a good day on offense given that the Steelers are the worst defense in the NFL.

While this win will stand out as a moment in Packers history due to the Rodgers element, it will likely not stand out as one of Green Bay’s highest-quality wins by the end of the season. Although the Steelers are probably a playoff team, they don’t seem like an outfit capable of making much postseason noise.

Summary

It is true that Green Bay doesn’t have a flawless resume. In fact, they’ve only beaten 2 teams currently in playoff positions. However, the roster talent is undeniable. It will be critical for the Packers to continue demonstrating that as the schedule stiffens up into the winter months. 5 division games remain, meaning there will be plenty of hard-fought contests going on in the NFC North. To keep the #1 seed, the Packers will need to excel against their division.

In conclusion: has it been perfect? No. But to quote Bill Parcels, “you are what your record says you are.” And that record says only one loss in seven games and #1 seed in the NFC.

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