The Oakland Raiders will face the Green Bay Packers on Sunday, and heading into the matchup, we sat down with Freddie Boston, Site Expert at Lombardi Ave.
With Week 7 of the 2019 NFL schedule bringing another road game for the Oakland Raiders, we decided to sit down with the enemy this week for a quick Q&A session. The Green Bay Packers come into their game with the Silver and Black as one of the better teams in the NFC, but they are coming off a short week, after beating division rival Detroit on Monday Night Football in Week 6.
Here is our interview with Lombardi Ave site expert, Freddie Boston. You can follow Freddie on Twitter @freddieboston .
JustBlogBaby: With the Raiders winning two straight, including one against NFC North rival Chicago, are the Green Bay Packers fans looking at this game a bit differently than when the schedule first came out?
Freddie Boston: Absolutely. When the schedule was released in April, this looked to be a favorable matchup in the middle of some tougher games. Not anymore. The Raiders have played some great football this season and deserve a ton of respect.
Oakland’s performance against Chicago, particularly in the first half, was impressive. The Packers need to be prepared for a tough challenge when the Raiders visit Lambeau Field.
JBB: Do you feel the short week will end up hurting the Packers on Sunday?
Boston: Not only is it a short week for the Packers, but the Raiders will be well rested off their bye week. That’s not ideal for Green Bay. The Packers have also been dealing with some big injuries.
Davante Adams has missed two games with a toe injury, and his status is up in the air for Sunday. Now they could also be without Geronimo Allison. Talented rookie Darnell Savage also missed Monday’s game. The Packers have been hit with injuries early in the season, and the short week won’t help that.
JBB: Oakland’s rookie running back Josh Jacobs has been dominant in recent weeks. What do the Packers have to do to stop him?
Boston: Stopping the run has been a concern for the Packers this year, although they did a much better job on Monday night against the Lions, holding Kerryon Johnson to just 34 yards from his 13 carries. Kenny Clark is the Packers’ best defensive lineman, and he’ll need to put in a strong performance. Inside linebacker Blake Martinez is the most consistent tackler on the team and will need to back up the work of the defensive line.
The Packers’ best bet to take away the Raiders’ rushing attack is to do what they did to the Cowboys — build a big lead early and force Oakland to throw the football. As Green Bay pulled ahead early on, Ezekiel Elliott only had 12 carries even though he was efficient.
Jacobs only has six receptions this season, so the best way to limit his success is to take the run game out of the equation. He hasn’t done enough yet as a pass catcher to be concerned. Easier said than done, of course.
JBB: Green Bay is in the driver’s seat in the NFC North, is there any weakness the Raiders should look to target on Sunday?
Boston: The Packers’ pass defense has been up there with some of the best in the NFL, but they’ve struggled stopping the run. Green Bay has allowed 124.5 yards per game on the ground, 10th most in the league. They were better against the Lions, but it’s still an area of concern.
If the Raiders can get the ground game going and control the tempo of the game, it’ll create opportunities in the passing game. That would be a real concern for the Packers.
JBB: What is your prediction on how this game plays out on the scoreboard?
Boston: The Packers have found a way to win this year, even when they’re not at their best. With the game being played at home, I think they overcome the short week and just edge it in a close on. The Raiders are talented enough to win this game, but I’m going with the Packers, 27-21.
We at JustBlogBaby would like to thank Freddie for sitting down and talking with us, and his insight on the Packers is always appreciated. This will be one exciting matchup inside Lambeau Field on Sunday, and it was nice to get a view of the game from the opponent.
Thanks again Freddie!