Packers PFF grades: Best, worst players from Week 1 loss to Vikings
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The Green Bay Packers got explosive plays from the passing game to build a lead, but an inability to protect the passer and crucial mistakes late in the game allowed the Minnesota Vikings to score 29 straight points and run away with a 39-22 win in the season opener on Sunday in Minneapolis.
Another collapse has the Packers 0-1 to start 2026, and Matt LaFleur's team has now lost six straight games dating back to 2025.
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Based on grades from Pro Football Focus, here are the best and worst players from the Packers’ Week 1 loss to the Vikings:
Top 5 offense
- WR Christian Watson: 87.3
- TE Tucker Kraft: 76.7
- TE Jonnu Smith: 76.2
- WR Matthew Golden: 72.9
- TE Josh Whyle: 63.3
Watson caught six of eight targets for 147 yards and two touchdowns, and he created 72 yards after the catch. He also averaged 3.87 yards per route run and completed both of his contested catch opportunities. Kraft caught three passes for 65 yards and averaged 2.95 yards per route run over 22 routes run in his return from injury. Smith had two catches for 50 yards, including a 43-yarder. Golden turned 12 targets into 95 receiving yards. He ran a team-high 40 routes. Whyle graded out fine as a blocker.
Top 5 defense
- CB Keisean Nixon: 78.5
- S Evan Williams: 73.7
- DL Karl Brooks: 69.4
- DL Javon Hargrave: 61.4
- DL Chris McClellan: 58.1
Nixon had two pressures, including a sack, plus four tackles without a miss, three total stops and an interception. He did allow three catches for 35 yards. Williams had a penalty, but he made seven tackles without a miss and didn't allow a catch into his coverage. Brooks produced two hurries and two run stops. Hargrave didn't have a pressure over 20 pass-rush snaps but was good against the run. McClellan was the team's third-highest graded run defender.
Bottom 5 offense
- LG Donovan Jennings: 35.1
- TE Mark Redman: 47.3
- RG Jacob Monk: 52.0
- LT Jordan Morgan: 52.1
- RT Zach Bako-Bewele: 54.1
Jennings (two), Monk (three), Morgan (five) and Bako-Bewele (four) combined to give up 14 pressures, including six quarterback hits. The pass protection unit was charged with giving up 21 total pressures overall, and Jordan Love was under pressure on over 50 percent of his dropbacks. Redman gave up a pressure (sack) and graded out poorly as a run blocker. No one along the offensive line had a pass blocking grade of 60.0 or higher, and four of the five starters graded out under 50.0. Ugly.
Bottom 5 defense
- LB Zaire Franklin: 36.3
- S Xavier McKinney: 45.6
- EDGE Barryn Sorrell: 45.9
- EDGE Lukas Van Ness: 51.0
- CB Carrington Valentine: 52.9
Franklin earned a team-low run defense grade of 36.2, and he allowed three catches into his coverage. McKinney was charged with giving up the touchdown pass to T.J. Hockenson, and his penalty negated an interception. Sorrell struggled against the run. Van Ness had three pressures, including a sack, but he was penalized twice. Valentine gave up a touchdown pass to Justin Jefferson.
Special teams
Bo Melton had a 59-yard kickoff return and downed a punt inside the 10-yard line. Trey Smack made a 59-yard field goal but also missed an extra point. Barryn Sorrell and Dani Dennis-Sutton had penalties. Daniel Whelan had a 22-yard punt but did pin the Vikings inside the 20 twice in three punts. The Packers kickoff return unit gave up a 68-yard return, setting up a touchdown.
Quarterback play
- Jordan Love: 55.0
Love averaged 9.2 yards per attempt, and he was excellent, as usual, from clean pockets. But pressure and chaos killed the passing game. PFF had Love under pressure on 25 of 46 dropbacks, and he finished with three turnover worthy plays and zero big time throws. When he was kept clean, Love averaged 1.89 seconds from snap to throw, highlighting how fast he had to get rid of the ball to avoid pressure. But Love only completed seven passes when pressured, took four sacks and turned the ball over twice. The wheels really fell off late as unrelenting pressure took its toll on the quarterback.
Stat to know
PFF charted 32 total pressures from the Vikings defense, including nine from Dallas Turner and five from linebacker Blake Cashman. Of the 32 pressures, the Vikings had four sacks and 11 quarterback hits.
This article originally appeared on Packers Wire: Packers PFF grades: Best, worst players from Week 1 loss to Vikings