Packers at LionsSUNDAY AFTERNOON · Ford Field, Detroit
No Wednesday practice report had been confirmed when this page was written. ESPN's Packers injury page (fetched Oct 21) lists Micah Parsons (DE, knee) on PUP-R. Its note: LaFleur said he will not practice in Week 7 and has more hurdles to clear first, so this page plans without him. The same page shows Javon Hargrave (DT, Achilles, return listed Feb 15) and Jonathan Ford (DT, calf), both placed on IR Saturday, plus Edgerrin Cooper (LB, Achilles) on IR since Oct 6. Cooper had 3 sacks and 7 tackles for loss in four games. Aaron Banks (LG) and Benjamin St-Juste (CB) are QUESTIONABLE.
That leaves Green Bay starting Karl Brooks, Chris McClellan and Devonte Wyatt up front, with Lukas Van Ness (3.5 sacks) as the lead edge rusher (ESPN depth chart, Oct 21). Detroit's line has allowed 11 sacks in five games.
Detroit's side: safeties Brian Branch (Achilles) and Kerby Joseph (knee) are both on PUP-R. On Joseph, Campbell says he "is in a good headspace" (ESPN). C Cade Mays (wrist) is on IR-R. LB Devin White and G Ben Bartch went to IR Friday, and CB Rock Ya-Sin is QUESTIONABLE. Keith Abney II and Chuck Clark start at safety.
Sources: ESPN team injury pages for GB and DET and ESPN game page 401873020 (all fetched Oct 21). Re-check Thursday's practice report.
Player matchups ESPN season statistics, depth charts and injury pages, fetched Oct 21 (Packers six games, Lions five)
Watson and Golden vs. a patched Detroit secondary
Edge: Packers
Packers
Christian Watson 29 rec, 538 yds, 6 TD (18.6 avg, long 81) · WR 
Matthew Golden 30 rec, 501 yds, 3 TD
Lions
D.J. Reed 3 PD · NB 
Roger McCreary 7 PD · CB 
Ennis Rakestraw Jr. · S 
Keith Abney II 1 INT · S 
Chuck Clark 1 INT · S 
Brian Branch PUP · CB 
Rock Ya-Sin QGreen Bay's two outside receivers have 1,039 yards between them at 17-plus a catch. Detroit has 3 interceptions in five games and is playing without both of its regular safeties. This is the Packers' clearest path to points.
St. Brown and Williams vs. Green Bay's coverage
Edge: LionsPackers
Xavier McKinney 3 INT · S 
Evan Williams 52 tackles, 2 INT, 5 PD · NB 
Javon Bullard 6 PD · CB 
Keisean Nixon 1 INT · CB 
Brandon Cisse 1 INT, 4 PD · CB 
Benjamin St-Juste QLions
Amon-Ra St. Brown 37 rec, 372 yds, 5 TD · WR 
Jameson Williams 18 rec, 276 yds (15.3) · WR 
Isaac TeSlaa 9 rec, 187 yds (20.8)Green Bay's safeties take the ball away: 9 team interceptions, 5 of them by McKinney and Williams. But Goff has thrown none in 191 attempts, and St. Brown has 5 touchdowns. Detroit gets the edge on volume and ball security.
Detroit's pass rush vs. Green Bay's line
Edge: LionsPackers
Jordan Morgan · LG 
Aaron Banks Q · C 
Sean Rhyan · RG 
Travis Glover · RT 
Anthony Belton — 13 sacks allowed, 68 ydsLions
Aidan Hutchinson 4 sacks · LB 
DJ Wonnum 5 · DT 
Alim McNeill 3.5 · LB 
Derrick Barnes 3, 5 TFLDetroit has 20 sacks in five games to Green Bay's 15 in six, and four different Lions have three or more. If Banks sits, Laken Tomlinson is next at left guard.
Green Bay's pass rush without Parsons vs. Detroit's protection
Edge: LionsPackers
Lukas Van Ness 3.5 sacks · DT 
Devonte Wyatt 2 · DE 
Dani Dennis-Sutton 1.5 · 
Micah Parsons PUP · 
Javon Hargrave, 
Jonathan Ford, 
Edgerrin Cooper IRLions
Penei Sewell · LG 
Christian Mahogany · C 
Juice Scruggs · RG 
Tate Ratledge · RT 
Blake Miller — 11 sacks allowedFour of Green Bay's front-seven players are out, and Cooper's 3 sacks left with him. Goff has gone down 11 times in 202 dropbacks. Without Parsons, Green Bay has nobody who forces Detroit to change its protection.
Gibbs vs. Green Bay's run defense
Edge: LionsPackers
Zaire Franklin 41 tackles · LB 
Ty'Ron Hopper · NT 
Chris McClellan · DE 
Karl Brooks 2 TFLLions
Jahmyr Gibbs 105 car, 504 yds, 7 TD · 27 rec, 243 yds · RB 
Sione Vaki 15 car, 51 ydsGibbs averages 100 yards a game on the ground, and he has 9 total touchdowns. Green Bay is down two interior linemen and its best young linebacker, so Detroit gets the edge.
Green Bay's run game vs. Detroit's front
Edge: LionsPackers
MarShawn Lloyd 48 car, 122 yds, 2 TD · RB 
Kaleb Johnson 28 car, 104 yds · RB 
Josh Jacobs (RB1 on ESPN's depth chart, no rushing line in ESPN's 2026 table) · RB 
Chris Brooks IRLions
Jack Campbell 43 tackles · LB Derrick Barnes 5 TFL · DT 
Tyleik Williams · DT Alim McNeill 4.5 TFLGreen Bay runs for 59.8 yards a game at 2.9 a carry, and its leading rusher has 122 yards. Detroit runs for 114.2 at 4.4. That makes this the widest statistical gap on the page.
Goff vs. Green Bay's ball hawks
EvenPackersXavier McKinney 3 INT · S Evan Williams 2 INT · LB Ty'Ron Hopper 1 INT, 2 PD · team 9 INT, 36 PDLions
Jared Goff — 128/191, 1,485 yds, 12 TD, 0 INT, 111.3 rating · backup 
Joshua DobbsThis is the strength-on-strength matchup of the game: the league's only interception-free starter with five games played, against a defense with 9 picks. One Green Bay takeaway changes the shape of a 53.5 total.
Tight ends
Edge: LionsPackers
Tucker Kraft 25 rec, 249 yds, 1 TD · TE 
Jonnu Smith 5 rec, 85 ydsLions
Sam LaPorta 27 rec, 316 yds, 3 TD · TE 
Brock Wright 5 rec, 31 ydsLaPorta has more catches, yards and touchdowns in one fewer game. Kraft is the third option behind two deep threats.
Kickers
Edge: LionsPackers
Trey Smack — 10 of 13, long 59; 11 of 13 extra pointsLions
Jake Bates — 8 of 8, long 54; 20 of 20 extra pointsBates has not missed. Smack has missed three field goals and two extra points, and that matters in a game priced at three points.
Punters
Edge: PackersPackers
Daniel Whelan — 49.7 gross, 14 of 25 inside the 20Lions
Jack Fox — 47.8 gross, 43.3 net, 8 of 19 inside the 20Whelan is two yards better gross and pins more than half his punts. ESPN's page shows two different net figures for him, so they are left out.
Returners
EvenPackers
Bo Melton 27.3 avg · PR Matthew Golden 13.5 avg · 
Skyy Moore (27.5 KR, 16.0 PR) IRLions
Jacob Saylors 26.0 avg · PR Amon-Ra St. Brown 18.0 on 2 returns · 
Tom Kennedy IREach side lost its main returner to IR last week. Team averages are close: Green Bay 27.1 KR and 15.5 PR, Detroit 25.5 and 14.4.
Where is Jordan Love? Love and Goff against the other teams' leading passers, through Week 6
Answer: Love is a volume passer with average efficiency. Goff is a top-three passer who has not thrown an interception. Among the 32 teams' leading passers, Love ranks 3rd in total passing yards (1,684) but 17th in passer rating (91.8) and 27th in completion rate (59.7%). His 7.5 yards per attempt is tied for 12th, and Watson and Golden's average catch gets him there. Goff (in five games) is 3rd in rating at 111.3, behind only Lamar Jackson and Brock Purdy. He is tied for 1st in interceptions with zero, and he is 3rd in yards per game.
| Stat | Love | Rank | Goff | Rank | Best |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Passer rating | 91.8 | 17 of 32 | 111.3 | 3 | Lamar Jackson 119.6 |
| Completion % | 59.7 | 27 of 32 | 67.0 | 7 | Caleb Williams 72.5 |
| Yards per attempt | 7.5 | T-12 | 7.8 | T-8 | Lamar Jackson 10.1 |
| Pass yards per game | 280.7 | 5 | 297.0 | 3 | Bryce Young 309.8 |
| Passing TDs | 11 | T-7 | 12 | T-4 | Lawrence, Cousins, Purdy 14 |
| Interceptions (fewest = 1st) | 4 | T-17 | 0 | T-1 | Goff, Jayden Daniels 0 |
Each team's leading passer by yards (32 players), ESPN 2026 passing leaders, fetched 2026-10-21. Ranks computed from that table. Several leaders have played three to five games, Goff included. Top ten is marked in team color, bottom ten in red.
Coaching staffs tenure, experience, and what the beat has said this season
Packers
- Matt LaFleur, head coach. Green Bay is 4-2 and coming off a 23-13 win over Dallas. On Parsons this week: he will not practice in Week 7 and has more hurdles to clear first (ESPN injury note, Oct 19).
- The defense has been rebuilt on the fly: Hargrave, Ford and Moore went on IR Saturday, after Cooper (Oct 6) and Brinson (Oct 3).
Lions
- Dan Campbell, head coach. Detroit is 3-2, 2-0 at home, and coming off its bye after a 45-21 win at Arizona. On Kerby Joseph: "in a good headspace," expected to play at some point this season (ESPN injury note, Oct 20).
- The extra week did not bring back Branch, Joseph or Mays, and White and Bartch went to IR Friday.
ESPN team injury pages and game page, fetched Oct 21. Coordinator assignments could not be confirmed from a page opened today and are left out.
Missed tackles what ESPN's tackle data shows for both teams (missed-tackle counts not available)
No missed-tackle counts for 2026 were found on a page opened today, so this section uses what ESPN does publish.
Green Bay: 433 tackles and 36 tackles for loss in six games. Two of its top five tacklers are safeties (Evan Williams 52, Javon Bullard 35), a sign of how often plays get to the second level. Detroit: 374 tackles and 34 tackles for loss in five games. Its second-leading tackler is a corner (D.J. Reed, 37).
Why it matters Sunday. Gibbs has 504 rushing yards and 243 receiving yards. Green Bay will tackle him with a thinned front and two safeties near the line, which is where his long plays come from.
ESPN 2026 team statistics, fetched Oct 21. Refresh if PFF or PFR missed-tackle data is published.
Reassessment Mack's frozen pick against DraftKings, and the inputs that would move it
| Mack | Market | |
|---|---|---|
| Line | Lions −2.5 | Lions −3 (open −1.5) |
| Lions win probability | 57% | ESPN predictor 58.4%; moneyline −166 |
| Straight-up pick | Lions | |
| Spread side | Packers +3 | |
| Total | Under | 53.5 (open 50.5) |
How they compare. Mack and the market agree on the winner and roughly on the probability. The difference is half a point, and it sits on three, the most common margin, which is why the Packers' side comes out of it. The market has moved 1.5 points toward Detroit and 3 points up on the total since the open.
What would change it. Parsons is already out. Detroit's side moves further if Banks misses at left guard, or if St-Juste's absence pushes Valentine into the lineup. Green Bay's side moves back if Ya-Sin or a Lions safety is added to the report. Detroit's five games have totaled 66, 58, 55, 72 and 61 points, and Green Bay's six have totaled 36, 38, 31, 49, 37 and 37. The Under is a bet that Green Bay's games are the better guide to this one.
Odds: DraftKings via ESPN game page 401873020, fetched Oct 21. Game totals summed from the ESPN scores in the teams' recent results.
Unit by unit ESPN 2026 team statistics, fetched Oct 21; each row says which side has the edge and why
| Unit | Packers | Lions | Edge |
|---|---|---|---|
| Scoring | 21.2 points a game; 127 scored, 125 allowed | 32.8 points a game; 164 scored, 148 allowed | Lions |
| Detroit scores 11.6 more a game but allows 29.6 to Green Bay's 20.8. Its games run very high. | |||
| Passing offense | 280.7 gross yards a game · Love 91.8 rating | 297.0 gross yards a game · Goff 111.3 rating | Lions |
| The volume is similar. Goff's efficiency and his zero interceptions are the difference. | |||
| Rushing offense | 59.8 yards a game · 2.9 a carry | 114.2 yards a game · 4.4 a carry | Lions |
| This is the widest gap on the board: Gibbs alone has more than Green Bay's whole team (359). | |||
| Protection | 13 sacks allowed, 68 yds | 11 sacks allowed, 87 yds | Lions |
| Sack rates are about even (5.4% each), but Green Bay may be without its left guard. | |||
| Pass rush and havoc | 15 sacks · 36 TFL · 36 PD | 20 sacks · 34 TFL · 24 PD | Lions |
| Detroit has more sacks in one fewer game, and Green Bay's rush is missing Parsons, Hargrave and Cooper. | |||
| Takeaways | 9 INT, 2 fumble recoveries · Love 4 INT thrown | 3 INT, 2 fumble recoveries · Goff 0 INT thrown | Packers |
| Green Bay has the turnover edge, which makes it the Packers' best path to an upset. | |||
| Explosive passing | Watson 18.6 a catch, Golden 16.7 | Williams 15.3, TeSlaa 20.8 | Packers |
| Green Bay's two starters produce it on volume, and Detroit's secondary is short both regular safeties. | |||
| Kicking | Smack 10/13 FG, 11/13 XP | Bates 8/8 FG, 20/20 XP | Lions |
| One kicker has not missed, and the other has missed five kicks. | |||
| Punting and returns | Whelan 49.7 gross · 27.1 KR, 15.5 PR | Fox 47.8 gross · 25.5 KR, 14.4 PR | Packers |
| Green Bay is slightly better in every column, though both lost their top returner to IR. | |||
Points from ESPN game page records (127/125 and 164/148). Other figures are ESPN 2026 player and team statistics fetched Oct 21: Packers six games, Lions five (bye in Week 6). Sack rate = sacks / (attempts + sacks).