Jordan Love and the Green Bay Packers hope for better results in their second straight prime-time matchup when they visit the Las Vegas Raiders on Monday night.
Green Bay (2-2) is coming off a 34-20 loss to the Detroit Lions in front of a national audience on Thursday, Sept. 28. The Packers fell behind 27-3 before halftime and never recovered in what proved to be their most lopsided loss of the season.
Love completed 23 of 36 passes for 246 yards, one touchdown and two interceptions. He said the Packers’ slow start proved costly, and it is something the team will look to fix in Week 5.
“I think just offensively as a whole, we’ve just got to start faster,” said Love, who has thrown for 901 yards, eight touchdowns and three interceptions in his first four starts. “We don’t start fast and we kind of get behind and it’s hard running the ball.”
It’s a pattern that also has plagued Las Vegas (1-3), which will try to snap a three-game losing streak as it returns home. The Raiders lost 24-17 on the road against the Los Angeles Chargers a week ago.
An efficient ground game could help Las Vegas, but so far that has proved to be a challenge. Raiders running back Josh Jacobs is averaging 2.7 yards a carry through four games.
The Raiders’ top receiver is no stranger to the Packers or their fans. Davante Adams, who has hauled in 33 passes for 397 yards and three touchdowns this season, spent his first eight seasons with Green Bay before joining Las Vegas in 2022.
Adams seems to thrive in the national spotlight. He has notched at least 100 receiving yards in each of his past four games on Monday nights, and he could become the first player in league history to do so five times in a row, according to NFL Communications.
Green Bay linebacker Rashan Gary will try to add to his team-high 3.5 sacks. Fellow linebacker Quay Walker, who enters the contest with a team-leading 47 tackles, will focus largely on limiting the Raiders in the running game.
QUICK PICK
The Packers have been the more popular choice as the line has shifted from Green Bay -1 to Las Vegas -1.5 at BetMGM. The Packers have been backed by 66 percent of the spread-line bets and 51 percent of the money at the book. Their moneyline has been even more popular, drawing 80 and 71 percent of the handle, respectively.
The line has shifted in large part due to the improving health of Raiders quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo and Adams. But the game will likely hinge on the play of Love, who has been inconsistent through the first quarter of the season.
He faces a favorable matchup in the Raiders’ 16th-ranked defense allowing and average of 337 yards per game with just one interception thus far.
Prediction: Packers 26, Raiders 23
PROP PICK
All eyes are on Adams, who played his first eight seasons with the Packers (2014-21) before being traded to the Raiders last year. He leads the Raiders (1-3) with 33 receptions for 397 yards and three touchdowns through four games.
The six-time Pro Bowl selection has 802 catches for 10,034 yards and 90 touchdowns in 137 games (130 starts).
The top two most popular player props at BetMGM involve Adams — +700 that he will be the first player to score a touchdown Monday night and -165 that he will score at some point in the game. We like the latter despite the short odds, as Adams has three touchdown catches in the past two games Garoppolo has started.
KEY STAT
The Packers want to keep the game close into the second half, where Love has been far more effective this season. He has a 66.0 passer rating in the first half of games this season, compared to 104.7 after intermission. Love also has thrown four touchdowns against no interceptions with Green Bay leading in games.
INJURY REPORT
Garoppolo cleared concussion protocol this week and returned to practice in full on Friday. Adams has barely practiced since sustaining a shoulder injury in Week 4 and is officially listed as questionable, but reportedly will play after being limited in practice Saturday.
The Packers’ offense could return to better health this week. Running back Aaron Jones and wideout Christian Watson both returned from injuries last week but were limited in snaps.
This week, both could play a bigger role.
“We have some of the best training staff in the world and they take great care of us and keep our best interest in mind,” Jones said. “Now, I feel like I’ll be able to go out there against Vegas on Monday night and be 100 percent.”
THEY SAID IT
“I think we’re in a good spot. We had a good practice out there, had a good rhythm and a good tempo to us. It’s just about doing the little things right now. That’s what we’re focused on.” — Garoppolo on Friday.
–Field Level Media