The Green Bay Packers (5-3) overcame an ugly start and an unnecessarily stressful finish by dominating the Carolina Panthers (3-4) for the rest of the contest, and Jordan Love's three touchdown passes allowed Matt LaFleur's team to escape with a 27-19 win on "Thursday Night Football" to open Week 8.
Instant analysis of the Packers' win over the Panthers on TNF:
Final score: Packers 27, Panthers 19
It was over when...
Christian Watson, who missed time while getting precautionary tests at a local hospital, moved the chains on third down late in the fourth quarter, allowing the Packers to kill off most of the remaining clock and end any chances of a final comeback attempt.
Game balls
- WR Christian Watson: His 10 targets created eight catches and 113 yards, including a 53-yarder that sparked a scoring drive. He had a scary injury coming down with the deep ball, had to go to the hospital for testing and still returned to make an impact in the second half.
- QB Jordan Love: The passing game went quiet in the fourth quarter, but Love was dominant as a passer for the first three quarters.
- EDGE Lukas Van Ness: He made at least three stops in the run game, had a sack of Bryce Young and comfortably handled a few coverage snaps.
- LB Ty'Ron Hopper: He had a sack, two quarterback hits and three passes defensed, including an interception of a deflected pass.
Key stat
The Packers turned the ball over three times, but the Panthers scored just three points off the turnovers. Jonathan
Gannon's defense played well in adversity situations. The Packers were also 9-for-16 on third down and 3-for-3 scoring touchdowns in the red zone. Gannon's defense produced six sacks, while Jordan Love wasn't sacked. The run game gained no traction; Josh Jacobs turned 21 rushing attempts into 39 yards. Trey Smack missed an extra point but made his final three attempts.
Jordan Love watch
Love was truly excellent for the first three quarters, when he completed 26 of 33 passes for 262 yards and three touchdown passes, but the Packers let off the gas in the fourth quarter, and Love threw a point-killing interception. Love finished with 30 completions for 288 yards, and his passer rating was 106.6 despite the turnover. Of his 30 completions, 27 went to Christian Watson, Matthew Golden, Tucker Kraft and Josh Jacobs. Love was terrific from clean pockets, and he fearlessly attacked the middle of the field. His interception was a poor throw trying to force a ball downfield to Golden.
Injury updates
Wide receiver Christian Watson took an ambulance out of Lambeau Field for precautionary testing on a chest injury, but he returned to the stadium and finished out the game. Tight end Josh Whyle suffered a concussion and was ruled out.
Up next
The Packers get the mini-bye of playing on Thursday night, providing extra rest and recovery before taking on the New England Patriots on the road next Sunday. The Patriots face Jeff Hafley, Malik Willis and the Miami Dolphins on Sunday.
This article originally appeared on Packers Wire: Instant analysis of Packers' 27-19 win over Panthers on 'TNF' in Week 8
