Green Bay dropped to 4-3 with Sunday’s 26-17 loss to New Orleans, meaning they have now suffered back-to-back defeats after a promising start to the campaign.
All is not lost but they will probably be shorn of star quarterback Aaron Rodgers for the rest of the season.
The 33-year-old has had successful surgery on a broken clavicle, with the Packers suggesting that he could be back in action in around eight weeks, but with any surgical procedure there is always the risk of a setback which could be terminal to his chances of playing again this year.
Rodgers’ importance to the club cannot be overstated as he has led the side with authority since his first full season in 2008.
After modest beginnings, the California-born ace has been at the heart of the Packers’ offense, with 310 touchdowns and a career passing percentage of 65.2.
Rodgers had completed 66.7 percent of his passes for 1,367 yards, 13 touchdowns and three interceptions this term before he took the hit from the Vikings Anthony Barr.
Any side in the NFL is going to miss that productivity and it has been left to third-year Phoenix man Brett Hundley to take up the slack.
The 24-year-old completed just 12 of 25 attempts against the Saints for 87 yards and no touchdowns although he did manage to run one into the end zone with a creditable 44 yards on three carries.
The youngster’s lack of experience at the top level looks like it may well be a problem for Mike McCarthy as the campaign draws on and he is sure to have have one eye on the medical bulletin board with his star man crocked.
He did throw a TD when coming on against Minnesota but was intercepted three times and sacked on four occasions and it is obvious that the running game is now of even more importance to The Pack.
Rodgers rarely gets injured and, when he does, normally plays through them, and it took a fractured collar bone back in 2013 to send him to the injured list for nine games.
That was the last time that number 12 missed a match and the Packers are therefore in unfamiliar territory without their talisman taking the snap and will have to find a new way to get the job done.
Whether or not Rodgers does make it back at the tail end of the regular season only time will tell but the Packers have gone from Super Bowl hopefuls to a club that will now have to fight tooth and nail for a place in the play-offs.
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Having one of the best of all time at QB with a record low interception percentage of 1.5 has given The Green and Gold a healthy advantage over opposition teams and is the reason they have made the post season for the past eight years.
His sublime display in winning the MVP at Super Bowl XLV with 304 yards and three TDs proved to everyone just how good he was, and a man of his ability needs another winner’s ring.
It is unlikely to be this season but there is no question that the two-time NFL MVP will be back for another shot at glory.