Welcome to the weekly Zone Coverage Packers mailbag, where I answer all your burning NFL and Green Bay Packers-related questions, submitted via Twitter to @m_widmeier.
Do the Packers have a shot at the No. 1 seed if they lose one of their last two games?
Yes. In fact, it wouldn’t take much for Green Bay to get the top seed in the NFC even if they did drop one of their last two games. All that needs to happen is one loss by the Dallas Cowboys.
Dallas faces the Arizona Cardinals at home and then will hit the road to play the Philadelphia Eagles in the final week of the season. Neither game will be a layup. The Cowboys could fall to either team.
For the Packers, it doesn’t matter what the Tampa Bay Buccaneers do in their last two games. It doesn’t matter what the Los Angeles Rams or Cardinals do either. Green Bay has the tiebreakers over the latter two. However, because of their conference record, the Cowboys would have the tiebreaker over Green Bay if they finish with the same mark.
The easiest solution for the Packers is to beat the Minnesota Vikings and beat the Detroit Lions and get that bye week. If they slip up once, they need a hiccup from the Cowboys.
There’s an interesting scenario at play where the Packers beat the Vikings on Sunday night and the Cardinals beat the Cowboys. Green Bay would have the top seed locked up before Week 18 against Detroit. In that case, Matt LaFleur could opt to rest a lot of starters and give them an additional week off on top of the bye.
There are a lot of moving parts with two weeks to go.
I’m most worried about the Cowboys knocking off the Packers in the NFC playoffs. What team worries you the most?
Even though last year the NFC went through Lambeau Field and it came to an end in the NFC Championship, I like the Packers’ chances against any of the pool of NFC teams that will make the dance if the playoffs once again go through the Frozen Tundra.
To answer the question though: It’s still the Buccaneers.
They are currently going through quite a string of injuries, but it’s still Tom Brady and it’s still a suffocating defense.
Dallas has had a really solid year, but I can’t wrap my mind around Mike McCarthy coming into Lambeau Field and getting the best of Rodgers and the Packers. That defense in Dallas has also been super susceptible to giving up big plays in bunches.
Los Angeles is really starting to find its groove but Green Bay has had their number in recent matchups. The idea of Matthew Stafford out-dueling Rodgers in the postseason is an idea that doesn’t worry many but the Rams have a tremendous roster. The Cardinals are a mess in the midst of a three-game losing skid but a lot could be solved for them if they get DeAndre Hopkins back for the playoffs.
When it’s all packaged together, there are many teams that will give Green Bay a plate full of problems. But none pose a greater threat to knocking out the Packers than the Buccaneers. Let’s hope Green Bay gets the bye and the Buccaneers match up with the New Orleans Saints, their kryptonite, on wild card weekend.
What are the odds Za’Darius Smith is back this season?
Your guess is as good as mine. It feels reckless to make any sort of assumption, but from putting the pieces of the puzzle together up to this point it sure doesn’t look great.
The three big names Green Bay has been keeping their fingers crossed on all year long to get back are Jaire Alexander, David Bakhtiari, and Smith.
Alexander has been practicing in a limited capacity for a couple of weeks now, while Bakhtiari has pinballed back and forth while dealing with at least one confirmed setback to his knee. As for Smith, it’s been crickets.
Smith played in Week 1 against the New Orleans Saints and hasn’t been on the field since. He underwent back surgery that sidelined him indefinitely to the point where he hasn’t even been practicing yet with Week 17 on the horizon.
If Za’Darius Smith isn’t even taking part in individual drills by the time Week 18 comes and goes, even with a bye, it would be hard to imagine him being ready for the postseason.
Thankfully for Green Bay, Preston Smith and Rashan Gary have been phenomenal on the edge for the Packers without Za’Darius in the fold — but getting him back would be mammoth.
For now, it feels safe to keep expectations low and be pleasantly surprised if Za’Darius Smith is able to get back on the field at some point in the next month.
