Packers Power Rankings Roundup: Experts are down on Green Bay early

Six major outlets ranked the Packers between No. 7 and No. 17 to open the season, citing thin depth and Micah Parsons' injury as reasons for early skepticism.

by Mike Santa Barbara

Sep 8, 2026

Green Bay Packers head coach Matt LaFleur

Junfu Han / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

The Green Bay Packers are one of the hardest teams to predict in the NFL. With plenty of unanswered questions, there is reason to doubt whether or not they’re a contender this season.

Here’s how the Packers rank on NFL power rankings entering their Week 1 contest against the Minnesota Vikings.

How the Packers are Rated on NFL Power Rankings

ESPN’s preseason power rankings (Aug. 31, 2026): No. 7
Bleacher Report Week 1 power rankings (Sept. 7, 2026): No. 16
The Ringer’s Week 1 power rankings (Sept. 7, 2026): No. 12
The Athletic’s Week 1 power rankings (Sept. 8, 2026): No. 17
NFL.com Week 1 power rankings (Sept. 8, 2026): No. 12
Sports Illustrated Week 1 power rankings (Sept. 8, 2026): No. 15

What National Pundits Are Saying About the Packers

“In 2024 and 2025, the Packers ranked in the bottom six in pass attempts. Love has the playmakers to lead a productive passing attack, but he’ll have to compensate for a potentially leaky defense and unproven running backs in the ground game. Green Bay could stumble to the NFC North basement early if he can’t.” — Maurice Moton, Bleacher Report

“Green Bay’s depth on both sides of the ball is less impressive than it was just last year, especially in the trenches. And the defense will have to go for at least a month without edge rusher Micah Parsons, so I’m concerned that we’ll see some significant holes in Green Bay’s back seven. Even if this team starts out hot against a weak schedule for the first month of the season, I’d still advise holding out on buying any stock in the Packers.” — Diante Lee, The Ringer

“Running back Josh Jacobs’ placement on the commissioner’s exempt list removes a major contributor from Green Bay’s offense, but I believe Matt LaFleur can game plan around this absence, especially if Tucker Kraft can suit up at tight end. I also expect Minnesota DC Brian Flores to cause problems for Green Bay in Week 1, making this one of the more precarious placements in this edition of the Power Rankings.” — Nick Shook, NFL.com

The Packers Have the Opportunity to Prove Doubters Wrong

There may be a lot of doubt surrounding the Packers, and that’s understandable considering last season’s collapse and how shorthanded they are to start this year. If they can weather the early storm and get healthy, the season is salvageable.

Luckily for Green Bay, its first three opponents on the schedule failed to make the postseason last season, including the rival Vikings (9-8), New York Jets (3-14), and Atlanta Falcons (8-9). That creates a unique opportunity to start hot despite entering the year without several key pieces.

This season, the Packers may never look like the squad that started 2025 9-3-1, but they should certainly be in the playoff hunt and avoid dropping to the bottom half of the NFL.