Green Bay Packers bold predictions for Week 7 vs. Texans
The Green Bay Packers are facing a crucial portion of their schedule as they attempt to get to stretch their winning streak to three games when they host the Houston Texans in Week 7. The Packers are playing in the NFL's toughest division, the NFC North, and they are trying to chase down the Minnesota Vikings (5-0) and the Detroit Lionss (4-1).
The Packers have played quite well this season and bring a 4-2 record into their home game against the Texans. They have been quite balanced on both sides of the line of scrimmage, as the Packers have the 4th-ranked offense in total yards and the 9th-ranked scoring defense in the league.
They will need to be at or near their best against the Texans (5-1), who have a two-game lead over the Indianapolis Colts in the AFC South. There is no reason to believe the Packers won't be at that level, since they have played well in every game. They nearly beat the Philadelphia Eagles in the season opener, and came from a 28-0 deficit to close to within the final score of 31-29 against the Vikings in Week 4.
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Quarterback Jordan Love was still feeling the impact of a sprained MCL suffered against the Eagles in the early part of the game against Minnesota. However, he seemed to regain his mobility and agility in the second half and the Packers nearly came all the way back.
Love will throw for 275 yards and 3 touchdowns against the Texans
Love has shown he is a big-play quarterback who can be at his best against elite opponents. He earned much of that reputation last year when the Packers won their last three games of the regular season and then rolled to a 48-32 victory on the road against the Dallas Cowboys in the Wild Card game.
They moved on to the divisional playoff game against the heavily favored San Francisco 49ers and nearly won that game before the Niners had a late rally to advance.
The Packers rewarded Love with a 4-year, $220 million contract shortly before the start of the season, and they clearly believe that he is a worthy successor to Aaron Rodgers. Love has excellent mobility and he can buy time with his feet and get away from the pass rush.
Love has completed 86 of 146 passes for 1,131 yards with 12 touchdowns and 6 interceptions. He has an average of 7.7 yards per pass attempt.
Love is not the kind of quarterback who is going to be attempting a lot of short passes so he can pad his completion percentage. He is often looking to go downfield, and he has a strong crew of receivers that can deliver big plays on a regular basis.
The QB1 should be able to make several big plays against the Texans throughout the game.
Jayden Reed should lead the Packers receivers with 90 receiving yards and 1 TD
Reed may be the most dangerous threat among the Green Bay WR crew . He has explosive speed — as does fellow wideout Christian Watson — and he is also an outstanding route runner who can make the difficult catch in traffic and also keep his feet after absorbing contact.
Love has several other receivers he can depend on, including tight end Tucker Craft, wideout Romeo Doubs and Watson. This means that Reed is likely to be operating against single coverage throughout the majority of the game.
Reed has been targeted 34 times this season and has 27 receptions for 442 yards and 3 touchdowns. He has a long play of 70 yards and has 8 receptions of 20 yards or more. The Texans are going to have to be concerned with Reed's ability to break the game open even though he has been troubled by an ankle injury in practice this week.
Kraft (groin) is proving to be a tight end who can make key plays in the red zone and also convert third-down situations for the Packers. He has caught 18-231-3 to this point in the season, and Love knows he can deliver big plays when he finds his tight end.
Safety Xavier McKinney will add at least 1 more interception to his league-leading total
The Packers have been playing excellent team defense. Nobody on the team has more than defensive end Preston Smith's 2.5 sacks, and linebacker Quay Walker has a team-leading 51 tackles heading into Week 7.
However, safety Xavier McKinney is playing at an All-Pro level this season. He has a league-leading 5 interceptions in Green Bay's first six games, and he also has 24 tackles and 6 passes defensed.
Defensive coordinator Jeff Hafley has been preaching takeaways this year. The Packers had 18 takeaways all of last season and they have 17 so far this season.
Cornerback Keisan Nixon explained the reason for the improvement. "We got Xavier McKinney," Nixon said , per The Athletic. "We really bought into what they were talking about with Haf (Hafley) and that's really what it is. Haf said we were going to lead the league in turnovers and he didn't lie about it, so he called it right."
McKinney excels at understanding where the quarterback wants to go with the ball and he will intercept at lead one of Texans QB C.J. Stroud's passes.
