The Houston Texans offered the biggest test of the year for the Green Bay Packers.
The Texans entered Lambeau Field with a 5-1 record. Whether this is a sign of the talent they have in Green Bay or more of an indication of how much was missing in Houston, the Packers passed their big test. They beat Houston 24-22 despite being minus-3 in the turnover battle.
This day belonged to Jeff Hafley’s pass defense, which smothered star Texans quarterback C.J. Stroud.
Love struggled with turnovers in the early portion of the 2023 season, as well. He took much better care of the ball down the stretch as the Packers’ offense lit up the league en route to a surprising appearance in the divisional round of the playoffs.
The big plays are great, but against teams like the Texans, taking care of the ball is even more important than it is on a weekly basis.
LaFleur says taking care of the ball is the quarterback’s top priority. Love has not done a good enough job at his first job.
Pass protection, which was good early, started to wither late against Houston’s powerful pass rushers.
The Packers had multiple chances to go up two scores while leading 21-19, but could not due to an inability to block Danielle Hunter and Will Anderson Jr.