Green Bay Packers

This Will Be A Week Of Obstacles For Green Bay

Photo Credit: Mark Hoffman/Milwaukee Journal Sentinel-USA TODAY NETWORK

It’s never easy to win on Sunday and then turn around and win again four days later. So far this season, teams who’ve tried have gone about 50/50, and the Green Bay Packers will have quite a challenge against the Arizona Cardinals this week.

After beating teams like the Chicago Bears and Washington Football Team pretty handily, the Packers now have to travel to Arizona, who are perched atop the NFC standings at 7-0. The Packers only have one loss as we reach the regular season’s halfway point, but the Cardinals will be one of their true tests as a football team.

And now, with reports that one of the coaches and one key player tested positive for COVID — and the possibility of other coaches and players having to stay behind, too — flying across the country to face an undefeated team could culminate in a brutal loss. Or the challenging news could be extra motivation for a team that is hungry to beat a possible playoff opponent.

Here are some key obstacles stand between the Packers and their seventh win.

Avoid More Positive COVID Tests

The Packers appear to be down a coordinator and their top wideout right now.

Word came Monday morning that Packers defensive coordinator Joe Barry tested positive for COVID-19. That means he will be away from the team for at least this week and will not make the trip to Arizona.

There is no word yet on whether he will call the plays virtually, if someone else will call them, or if it will be a collaborative effort. Another potential obstacle is exposure. We have no idea right now if other coaches were around Barry and if they will also test positive before the game.

Barry could have also been around other defensive and offensive players. And for a team that is already missing multiple key pieces of their defense, it would be a huge blow to lose another starting player if they also test positive this week.

There is not much the team can do now. They are already in advanced protocols, and whoever has been exposed is at risk for a positive test. The team will just have to play the waiting game until boarding the plane for Glendale.

And wouldn’t you know it, it came out Monday afternoon that Davante Adams has also hit the COVID list. If he tests negative Tuesday and Wednesday, he should be able to play. But it’s a long shot.

Packers Returning From Injury

Green Bay is already beat up. A short week doesn’t allow extra time for the players to heal or return from injury.

The team just lost rookie center Josh Myers to injured reserve. Preston Smith and Kevin King both sat out against Washington. Darnell Savage was questionable before the game but still played.

It looks like both King and Smith could be good to go on Thursday, but nothing is guaranteed. LaFleur also said that offensive lineman David Bakhtiari is making progress but is still day to day. It would be great to see him return this week, but another 10 days of ramping back up would be the smarter option. Having him healthy down the final stretch of 2021 is way more important.

The Packers’ offense has done a good job spreading the ball around, but they could also see another receiver return for the trip to Arizona. Marquez Valdes-Scantling could be back this week after being on injured reserve since the beginning of October.

The team is still without corner Jaire Alexander as well. The Packers are still hoping he can avoid season-ending surgery, but Jaire might not hit the field again this season. The same goes for Za’Darius Smith.

The Arizona Cardinals Are Good

The Packers’ defense will face their greatest challenge yet this Thursday. The Cardinals have an emerging star quarterback in Kyler Murray. Their offense just added tight end Zach Ertz to an already-stacked receiving corps of DeAndre Hopkins, Christian Kirk, A.J. Green, and Rondale Moore.

Their defense is considered one of the best in the league right now, too. The Houston Texans are not a great football team, but the Cardinals’ defense still only gave up around 50 rushing yards, 150 receiving yards, and held the Texans to five total points. And all of that was without Chandler Jones. Arizona has the No. 1 scoring defense in the NFL right now as well.

Green Bay has themselves a challenge in just three short days. An undefeated opponent. A good team on both sides of the ball. You’re already injured and asking a lot out of your backups on defense. And now you get to throw positive COVID tests in there.

It’s going to be a good game, and it’s very possible the Packers will win. But also, don’t be shocked if they leave Arizona with their second loss of the season.

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