Packers: One International Game & Five Prime-Time Slots
With Aaron Rodgers committing to Green Bay for the 2022 season and beyond, the NFL schedule makers had every reason to assign the Packers several prime-time game slots.
The defending NFC North champions were given five prime-time slots, to be exact. The first will be a Week 2 home tilt against the archrival Chicago Bears on NBC’s Sunday Night Football program (8:20 p.m. EST).
The Packers have several other notable games that aren’t in the prime-time slots. They’ll play the New York Giants at London’s Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in Week 5 (9:30 a.m. EST). as part of the NFL International Series. One week later, the Pack will come home for an early afternoon home tilt against the New York Jets.
Online sports betting launched in the Empire State earlier this year, and New York football fans will be able to place wagers on their teams throughout the season. The BetRivers New York sportsbook is currently offering $250 in risk-free bets to new customers who deposit $250.
Both New York teams figure to be giant underdogs in their games against the Packers. Giants and Jets fans will have the option to bet on the straight-up winner, the betting line and the over/under totals for those contests.
Making their first visit to Buffalo in eight years, the Packers will take on the Bills on Sunday Night Football in Week 8 (8:20 p.m. EST). In Week 11, the Cheeseheads will host the Tennessee Titans on Amazon Prime Video’s Thursday Night Football program (8:15 p.m. EST). 10 days after that, the Pack will visit the Philadelphia Eagles 8:0 p.m. EST) in Week 12 on Sunday Night Football.
Green Bay’s final scheduled prime-time game will be an ESPN Monday Night Football showdown against the defending Champion Los Angeles Rams at Lambeau Field in Week 15 (8:15 p.m. EST).
Other notable Packers’ games not in the prime-time slots include their Week 3 road game against Tom Brady’s Tampa Bay Buccaneers, a Week 4 home game against the New England Patriots and the highly-anticipated Week 10 home tilt vs. old friend Mike McCarthy and the Green Bay Packers.
Packers Game Predictions
Green Bay’s 2022 strength of schedule is ranked a measly 22nd, as their opponents combined for a mediocre .478 winning percentage last year.
Aaron Rodgers is virtually unbeatable at Lambeau Field during the regular season. Fortunately for the Packers, most of their tough games will be played on home field (Patriots, Titans, Cowboys and Rams).
Even if you take Green Bay’s hardest road games — at Tampa Bay, at Buffalo and at Philadelphia — it’s not as if the Packers are going to definitely lose all those games. They’ll likely be underdogs against Tampa and Buffalo, but the two games are really coinflips.
Rodgers has statistically owned the Eagles throughout his career, and Green Bay’s retooled defense promises to cause problems for Jalen Hurts.
Though we shouldn’t be surprised if Green Bay manages to go undefeated at home (again), you get the feeling that they’re due to drop at least one of these difficult home games.
The high-powered Rams offense can provide plenty of problems against Green Bay’s pass defense, and Jalen Ramsey can shut down half the field without having to worry about Davante Adams anymore. We’ll predict that the Packers go 8-1 at home, with the lone Lambeau Field loss coming against the defending champions in Week 15.
Todd Bowles’ defense caused plenty of frustration against Rodgers and the Packers in their Week 6, 2020 and NFC Championship meetings. With the fortunes of home advantage, Tom Brady will move his head-to-head record against Rodgers to 3-1.
The Packers will have it tough in Buffalo when they visit the well-balanced Bills in Week 8. Josh Allen should have a field day against a Green Bay defense that has been vulnerable against the run in recent years, and the league’s No. 1 D of 2021 should give Rodgers numerous headaches throughout. Buffalo will top Green Bay in a high-scoring thriller.
The fourth and final projected loss for Green Bay will come against the Miami Dolphins in Week 16 on Christmas Day. Tua Tagovailoa and Miami’s speedy offense, which added Tyreek Hill and Cedrick Wilson Jr., can go toe-to-toe with Rodgers. Throw in a revamped pass rush and Xavien Howard’s All-Pro talents in the secondary, and the Dolphins have all the recipes for an upset.