The sky has been falling for the Green Bay Packers so far through the first few weeks of the 2026 season. It still might be falling, just a little more slowly at the moment, because the team left Raymond James Stadium with a .500 record after a 17-14 win against the winless Buccaneers. There’s a lot to talk about. Let’s dive in.
Winner: Edgerrin Cooper (Loser: all of us)
One of the NFL’s brightest young stars, Cooper maintained that status as he had quite the game on Sunday. He forced a punt in the Bucs’ opening drive with a huge third down
stop on QB Jalon Daniels. As Tampa looked to score before halftime, he had another huge play: an interception, and a big 18 yard return to go along with it.
Then, midway through the third quarter, the earth stood still as Cooper went down with a non-contact injury. The cart was immediately brought out, and it was later confirmed that the star LB had suffered an Achilles injury, and that it looked to be season-ending. The impact of this loss cannot be overstated: the defense has immediately gotten worse. With the news this week that Micah Parsons might not be ready to go for another month, this is about as “worst-case scenario” as it gets for the team. Here’s to a speedy recovery for future 2027 Comeback Player of the Year Edgerrin Cooper.
Winner: Evan Williams
The safety had himself a DAY in Tampa. To start things off, just as the Bucs seemed to get a drive going for themselves, Williams came in with one of the best picks I’ve seen in some time, creating a massive momentum shift which saw the Packers score the first points of the game on the next drive.
Then, on the same drive as Cooper’s interception, Williams had a colossal PBU on 3rd and 1 (the Bucs would pick up the first down on the next play, but that wasn’t Williams’ fault now was it?). During the Buccaneers’ final drive of the game, Williams got his first NFL sack (can’t believe it) for a loss of 6 yards. Two plays later, he applied heavy pressure on Jalon Daniels, which led to a turnover on downs after a dropped pick by Nixon. Williams finished the day with 7 tackles, 1 sack, 2 QB hits, and 1 INT. The kid’s a star.
Not Losers: The Offensive Line
POP THE CHAMPAGNE; THEY WERE FINE.
Loser: Guys with Hands
There were some really great moments from the pass catchers today. TE Tucker Kraft had some big first downs early in the game, and a really nice TD catch to cap off the team’s opening drive of the second half.
You know what wasn’t nice? THIS DROP.
We’ve also got WR Matthew Golden, who had a gorgeous TD catch in the second quarter to give the team their first points of the day.
You know what wasn’t gorgeous? THAT DROP, FOR WHICH I CONVENIENTLY CAN’T FIND THE FOOTAGE.
And then we have WR Bo Melton, who dropped an absolute dime of a pass from Love. Oh, Bo.
I am simply begging for someone to give Jordan Love a break at this point. If it’s not the offensive line, it’s the pass catchers. If it’s not the pass catchers, it’s the run game. Oh, it was indeed the run game today!
Loser: The RB Room
Congratulations, you’ve fixed your offensive line, and now your RBs all have The Itis™. On 25 rushes today, the Packers had 86 yards. You may be thinking “Sam, that’s 3.4 YPC. That doesn’t seem THAT bad”. Dear reader, two of those rushes went for a combined 58 yards. What does that mean? The Packers had 23 carries for a total of 28 yards, which amounts to a whopping 1.2 yards per carry. Not only are they slow and lacking vision, but they also can’t hold onto the ball. This Kaleb Johnson fumble is about as brutal as it gets.
Aside from the team giving us their two longest rushes of the season (Johnson: 31 yards, Brooks: 27 yards), the one bright side from today’s RB room: MarShawn Lloyd gave us one of the funniest hurdles I’ve ever seen. Even this was in slow motion. He looks like me trying to hop over a baby gate.
The Packers face one of their biggest tests of the season next week, as they head back home to face off against the Chicago Bears during Sunday’s early slate of games. The 3-1 Bears could very well still be missing QB Caleb Williams, who suffered a season-ending week to week injury in Week 2. The 2-2 Packers will likely have yet another variation of starting offensive linemen for this game, as Kevin Zeitler is brought up to speed after signing with the team this week. Can Green Bay pull off the upset?
