Steven Helmer Publications

 Here are my thoughts from today's 39-22 Green Bay Packers loss at the Minnesota Vikings: That first Christian Watson catch was a thing of beauty. After Jordan Love had his career-long touchdown pass, Packers' fans should be salivating about the potential that pairing offers if Watson can stay healthy. Based solely on this game, I think Love finally has a number one receiver in Watson as well. They haven't had a true go-to guy since Davante Adams was traded Watson's rookie year.  At minimum, I like Love's weapons. Less was more this season, reducing the number of receivers on the roster but giving him players who can make plays. Even Matthew Golden, who unfairly was criticized for not being a big enough part of the offense last year, was earning his draft status. The PAT miss by Trey Smack brought back some bad memories of Green Bay's recent history of kicking problems.  He's young so I'm going to give him the benefit of the doubt though, especially aft...

 Here are my thoughts from the Green Bay Packers 33-13 win at the Denver Broncos last night: There was quite a bit of improvement versus last week. The offense was finding the endzone all night and the defense was making things difficult for the Broncos. Considering Denver was one game away from the Super Bowl last season, that was an impressive task. Jordan Love may finally have his weapons. Obviously, health remains a concern, especially with receiver Christian Watson, but he seems to have receivers he has full confidence in. I think the less-is-more approach Green Bay took this season, allowing Romeo Doubs and Dontayvion Wicks to leave, gave him more of an opportunity to build a rapport with the ones who stayed, especially second-year player Matthew Golden. I liked the aggressiveness on defense. It's something that could be high risk but also has the potential to keep opposing offenses off rhythm, something that becomes important when your secondary is still a work in progress a...

Here are some of my thoughts from today's 27-25 Green Bay Packers ' loss at the Minnesota Vikings : If Green Bay wants to have a chance in the playoffs, they need to stop beating themselves. Some mistakes, like the first-half Josh Jacobs' fumble and the pass interference against Keisan Nixon are unfortunate but forgivable. Others, like giving your opponent a second chance on a missed field goal by being offsides or not lining up properly when trying to convert on third and one, aren't. I am going to include Head Coach Matt LaFleur in the above comment as well. Yes, hindsight is 20/20 and I would have a different opinion if they picked up the 1st down. However, had Green Bay kicked the field goal rather than going for it on fourth early in the game, the game's outcome might have been different. All things considered; the defense played pretty well tonight. The secondary is beaten up and other key players, like Quay Walker, were out while facing a loaded offense. T...

Here are some of my thoughts from the Green Bay Packers ' 34-0 victory over the New Orleans Saints at Lambeau Field last night: Green Bay Packers fans received an early Christmas gift. The Packers are in the playoffs with two games to go. While the division title is off the table, they still have an opportunity to improve their seeding spot or, depending on the outcome of their upcoming game against the Minnesota Vikings, may be able to rest players in the final week of the regular season. This was as dominating of a performance as you could ask for. Yes, the Saints have been plagued by injuries and are a shell of the team they were at the start of the season. However, pitching the NFL's first shutout of the season isn't something that should be overlooked, especially against a team that took the Washington Commanders down to the wire just a week ago. Green Bay's defense, after all, was missing key personnel too. And the best part of that (for Packers fans at least)...

My thoughts from last night's 30-13 Green Bay Packers ' win at the Seattle Seahawks : The Packers exorcised some of their Seattle demons. Green Bay has had some infamous defeats against Seattle, whether it was the Fail Mary game or the fake punt disaster that cost them a trip to the Super Bowl. Most of the current roster wasn't around the last time they lost in Seattle and the reboot seems to be working. This game was mostly about Green Bay's defense. Despite injuries in the secondary and losing linebacker Quay Walker, the defense ended the game with seven sacks and two interceptions. Just as important, that unit kept Seattle from ever getting into the game, even when the offense fizzled out a bit in the second half. Once key pieces, like cornerback Jaire Alexander, return, it theoretically could even be better. Jordan Love is growing as a passer. It's sometimes easy to forget he only has 30 career starts and probably hasn't peaked yet. However, the growth is...

Here are some of my thoughts from last night's 34-31 Green Bay Packers ' loss at the Detroit Lions :  The loss was disappointing but also encouraging. The Packers have the youngest team in the league and theoretically still haven't reached their full potential. This game, against arguably the best team in the NFC, came down to who had the ball last. Had Lions' coach Dan Campbell chosen to kick the field goal with nearly a minute remaining rather than be aggressive and let his team pick up another first down to run the clock down, there's no reason to believe Jordan Love couldn't have orchestrated a game-tying or even game-winning drive. If they meet in the playoffs (which is likely), it'll likely be a similar game with potentially a different outcome. The injuries in the secondary are becoming a concern . The Packers were already down Jaire Alexander and Corey Ballentine and lost safeties Evan Williams and Javon Bullard during the game with Keisan Nixon ap...

 My thoughts from today's 20-19 Green Bay Packers ' win at the Chicago Bears : The Packers' special teams won a game! After seeing so many games over the past few years lost as the result of a missed field goal, missed extra point or blocked punt, seeing what looked to be a Bears' victory ended with a blocked field goal was big. I'm still catching my breath from that. Eleven victories in a row against Chicago for the Packers. Jordan Love's interceptions are becoming a real problem. The ugly throw in the first half changed the tone of this game. In addition to taking at least three points off the board, it was the last time they possessed the ball in the first half, not counting the kneel down at the end. You just can't waste opportunities like that. It was, however, great seeing Love healthy enough to use his legs. I don't think Green Bay will ever let him be a rushing quarterback (for good reason) but the man can make some plays on scrambles when nee...

 My thoughts from today's 17-9 Green Bay Packers' win over the Chicago Bears. Playoffs, baby! Let's just take a moment to reflect on what this team has accomplished, regardless of what happens in the post season. This was supposed to be a transition year with a first-year starter at quarterback and the youngest roster in the league. Plus, the guy they were counting on to help with that transition, veteran running back Aaron Jones, missed seven games. A six-or-seven-win season would have been a reasonable expectation. 9-8 and the playoffs is bonus and there's no reason to believe they don't have a chance of pulling an upset next weekend. The most amazing part of their accomplishment is the offense still isn't at full power. I've seen the difference Jones can make when he's healthy. I've also seen how wide receiver Christian Watson forces defenses to play the offense differently because of his speed and playmaking potential. We have yet to see both o...

 My thoughts from the Green Bay Packers' 33-30 win over the Carolina Panthers earlier today: This was a little too close for comfort. It was essentially a repeat of last week's game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers only with a win rather than a loss. The offense played well, the special teams didn't have any game-changing mistakes, but the defense was once again a liability. In fact, if it wasn't for some great clock management by the offense on the final scoring drive, there's no reason to believe the defense could have prevented the Panthers from tying or winning. I know there are benefits to being in the booth but after seeing Matt LaFleur lighting up Devonte Wyatt following his second offsides penalty, I have a hard time believing the defense wouldn't be better with Joe Barry on the sidelines, where he can be part of the action. That said, part of me wonders if maybe things have deteriorated to the point LaFleur wants to keep him as far away as possible. I...

 My thoughts from last night's 24-22 Green Bay Packers' loss to the New York Giants: Don't think of it as a loss. Think of it as a learning experience, and not just for the team. I think fans (me included) were clearly a little too quick to crown this year's Packers' squad as playoff worthy. That may still prove to be the case with four games left on the schedule but for the time being, fans need to take the team at face value - talented enough to get a win against the top teams in the league but still inexperienced/inconsistent enough to lose the games they are expected to win. The offensive struggles seemed to be more about execution than game planning.  There were open receivers. Jordan Love just couldn't get on the same page with them. Plus, the turnovers and negative yardage plays (like the screen pass that lost 10 yards) didn't do them any favors. This is to be expected with a young team though. Teams are learning how to attack Love in the pocket and ...

 My thoughts from last night's Green Bay Packers' 27-19 win over the Kansas City Chiefs: Green Bay is giving a new definition to the term "rebuild." The Packers, like most teams, might not have used that word but that's what this season was supposed to be. The willingness to part ways with a veteran player like Rasul Douglas mid-season is evidence of that. However, Green Bay is proving a rebuild year doesn't need to mean you finish near the bottom in the league. If the season ended today, they'd be in the playoffs with two key wins that should make the higher seeded teams a bit nervous. Jordan Love for League MVP? OK, this is admittedly an overreaction from the Packers reaching .500 on the season. Or is it? Statistically, he's right up there with the MVP favorites and he's putting up those numbers with rookie and second year receivers. If the Packers finish the year in the playoffs, I think he needs to at least be in the conversation. I mean, did...

My thoughts from today's 29-22 Green Bay Packers' win at the Detroit Lions. This felt like David defeating Goliath. Or maybe a better description would be it was like watching a sports movie, the kind where a team gets their asses handed to them early on then faces the same team later and wins. At minimum, this was a completely different game than the Packers 34-20 loss earlier in the season and brought and brought an end to a recent losing streak against the Lions. Another great thing about this win was there wasn't a "but." The Packers beat the Los Angeles Rams, "but" Matt Stafford wasn't playing. The Packers beat the New Orleans Saints, "but" they lost David Carr. This time they beat one of the best teams in the league with no excuses. Jordan Love just might be the real deal. Not that I had much doubt about that. Two not perfect but solid games in a row and he seems to be feeling comfortable in the pocket. Just as important, the Packer...

 My thoughts from today's 23-20 Green Bay Packer's win over the Los Angeles Chargers. That was a win to build on. A lot of the game admittedly looked a little too familiar but for a team that is learning how to win in spite of adversity, this was a good start. If the offense played like this against the Denver Broncos and Las Vegas Raiders, Green Bay would be 6-4 right now. Gotta love seeing Jordan Love throwing for more than 300 yards. Aaron Rodgers didn't manage that all of last year so, once again, it's hopefully a sign the offense is starting to turn a corner. In addition to moving on from Rodgers, Green Bay moved on from long-time kicker Mason Crosby this season. I think Love is starting to prove the former was the right choice, but Anders Carlson is keeping the jury out on the latter. A missed field goal and missed extra point nearly dropped Green Bay to 3-7.  Speaking of special teams, given the questionable depth in the secondary, is it wise to keep Keisan N...

 Here are my thoughts from the Green Bay Packers 23-19 loss at the Pittsburgh Steelers today. The outcome was disappointing and there were still quite a few mistakes, but the improvement was there. The offense had the best first half it’s had in weeks and the Packers team stayed in it until the final whistle and continued to fight even as things progressively went against them. Joe Barry’s defense struggled against the run early but once again kept the score close enough to make the game winnable and got a key stop (albeit thanks to a Pittsburgh penalty) at the end to give the offense one more shot. It’s going to be a long season but if we look at it as a rebuild year, the improvement is encouraging. It looked like there was a very deliberate attempt to get receiver Christian Watson involved early and often, perhaps hoping he would repeat the performance he had during the second half of last season. I don’t think it worked out the way the Packers hoped. While I get he’s the team’...

 My thoughts from the Green Bay Packers' 19-17 loss to the Denver Broncos today. The offense is young, but at some point, that ceases to be an excuse and other explanations for the struggles on that side of the ball need to be considered. Matt LaFleur's offense tops that list. Is the Packers' head coach really an offensive genius? Or were Aaron Rodgers and Davante Adams bailing him out in his first seasons? On that note, defensive coordinator Joe Barry gets a lot of grief from Packers' fans but other than the game against the Detroit Lions, the defense has kept the team in games. With the league rules giving advantages to the offense, that's really all you can ask for. Jordan Love needs to play better. It's his first year as a starter and it's not all on him. However, back-to-back late game interceptions aren't exactly something that makes it easy to have faith in him. In this game, Romeo Doubs looked wide open with the first down when Love forced the ...

Just some thoughts from the Green Bay Packers 18-17 win against the New Orleans Saints today: Jordan Love is the real deal. Was he perfect today? No. But the way he took the team on his shoulders and practically willed them to a 18-0 scoring run in the fourth quarter shows why the Packers were ready to move on from Aaron Rodgers. It's worth noting Rodgers himself was often criticized, especially early in his career, for his inability to come from behind in games. You can't say we weren't warned. It was clear from the start there would be plenty of ups and downs this season. Love is exceeding expectations in his first three games as the Packers' full-time starter but there were plenty of times when the rest of the team didn't seem to be on the same page as him. On that note, penalties nearly killed the Packers today. There are youthful mistakes, and then there is sloppiness. Nobody is perfect but it is very hard for a team to get into a rhythm when it is going backwa...

 Some thoughts from the Green Bay Packers' 24-25 loss in Atlanta earlier today: The loss stings but there were positives. Jordan Love, in particular, is far from a finished product and is going to have some growing pains but for most of the game he looked the part of a franchise quarterback. At minimum, he's not turning the ball over, though there was at least one close call in this game. All three of his touchdowns were to rookie receivers too, that's a positive sign as well. This was a game that could have easily gone the other way. Green Bay's defense dropped two interceptions. Jordan Love's quarterback sneak in the fourth quarter could have been enough for a first down and made a difference in the game had the rest of the team known what he was doing. A miscue on the first drive took them out of field goal range (and even then, Green Bay might have been better off attempting it anyway). It was a loss but a little extra from the football gods and it could have ea...

Now that quarterback Aaron Rodgers has officially been traded to the New York Jets, a new era is starting in Green Bay. For some, the change at quarterback is signaling a rebuild year in 2023. I am not one of the people who believes that. I'm not saying the team won't have its struggles but there are three big reasons why the Packers aren't starting over from scratch even without their former 4-time MVP. First, Jordan Love isn't a rookie. While he may not have played much since the Packers drafted him in 2023, fans shouldn't dismiss the experience he has gained in practices. This includes practicing with the starters throughout much of the regular season last year because of Rodgers' thumb injury. This isn't unlike Rodgers, who sat behind Brett Favre for three years before getting his chance. Rodgers only played in 7 games during his first three seasons, attempting 59 passes. Love has played in 10 games and has attempted 83 passes. And unlike Rodgers when Fa...