Green Bay Packers vs. Minnesota Vikings: Full Green Bay Game Preview

The Green Bay Packers will take on the Minnesota Vikings Sunday afternoon in a Week 11 showdown for NFC North bragging rights. 

Green Bay (6-3) relinquished its spot atop the division this past week after losing its third straight game. Meanwhile, Minnesota (7-2) is on a five-game winning streak and will have home-field advantage in the first of two meetings between the rivals this season.

The Packers, playing their third road game in four weeks, have won four of their last five contests with the Vikings, including two victories last season. In the all-time series, the Packers also hold a 58-49-2 advantage over their divisional foes in 109 meetings. 

However, Sunday's matchup will feature two teams heading in opposite directions.

Green Bay has looked like a completely different squad in its three-game skid than the one that began the season 6-0. On the other hand, the Vikings look poised to take the division by storm with a rejuvenated Adrian Peterson and an impressive defense.

Let's now look ahead to everything you need to know before the Packers and Vikings battle it out on national television in Week 11.

Viewing Info

Location: TCF Bank Stadium, Minneapolis, Minnesota

Date: Sunday, November 22

Time: 4:25 p.m. ET

TV: Fox

Week 10 Results and Recap

Mike Roemer/Associated Press

NFC North Standings

Team	W	L	T	PCT	Div.	PF	PA	Streak
Minnesota Vikings	7	2	0	.778	3-0	198	154	W5
Green Bay Packers	6	3	0	.667	1-1	219	185	L3
Chicago Bears	4	5	0	.444	0-3	199	234	W2
Detroit Lions	2	7	0	.222	2-2	167	261	W1

Week 10 Recap

By any stretch of the imagination, Green Bay's loss last week to the lowly Detroit Lions was an upset for the ages. 

The 1-7 Lions hadn't won on the road in Wisconsin since 1991—a streak that spanned 24 straight games—while the Packers were riding a 12-game home winning streak of their own at Lambeau Field. 

Nonetheless, an 18-16 loss to their last-place divisional foes was anything but pretty from a Green Bay standpoint. 

After their field goal on the game's opening drive, the Packers were held scoreless the rest of way until the fourth quarter when Aaron Rodgers led a brief comeback to make the score look closer than the contest actually was. 

Green Bay, ironically, even had a chance to steal a win when Mason Crosby lined up for a 52-yard game-winning field goal with two seconds left. Yet Crosby missed—the kick had no chance from the start—and Detroit left Lambeau victorious. 

The main storyline afterward was how badly Rodgers and the offense performed—especially in the early part of the contest.

In their eight drives before the fourth quarter began, the Packers managed just six first downs, while five of those eight drives resulted in three-and-outs.

In the end, a 12-3 deficit with 10 minutes remaining proved to be too much for Green Bay to overcome, as it lost its third game in as many weeks.  

News and Notes

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Obama Compares Himself to Rodgers

In an interview with Bill Simmons and GQ Magazine this week, President Barack Obama compared himself to Aaron Rodgers in the pocket. 

Here's what Obama had to say: 

"

In the sense of you can’t be distracted by what’s around you, you’ve got to be looking downfield. And I think that’s a quality that I have—not getting flustered in what’s around me. So there was never a point, even early on—even in the first six months, where we weren’t sure whether we were going to dip into another Great Depression, we weren’t sure whether the steps we were taking on rescuing the auto industry or stabilizing the financial system were going to work—there weren’t moments where I thought, “Sheesh, feels like we’re in over our head.”

"

It's certainly some high praise for the Packers quarterback, who's been going through some struggles of his own during his team's three-game losing streak. 

This also wasn't the first time Obama has talked glowingly of Rodgers. When the Packers visited the White House following their Super Bowl XLV win, the President—who's a noted Chicago Bears fan—jokingly supported a trade to send Rodgers to the Bears.

Rodgers was flattered when he heard of Obama's recent comparison. 

"Well, I know that's probably tough for him because he's a big Bear fan, I appreciate that," Rodgers said Wednesday, via ESPN's Rob Demovsky. "He has a lot more responsibility, I think, than I do, and a tough job to do. I appreciate the comment. That's the highest form of respect that I can get from him, so I really appreciate that, especially being a Bear fan." 

Crosby's Missed Kick

Following Green Bay's loss to Detroit last week, the big talking point quickly centered on how and why did Mason Crosby miss his potential game-winning 52-yard field goal attempt as time expired.

On a close-up replay, it's tough to tell if anyone blocked the try. Considering the path and distance of the kick, fans and reporters needed an answer as to why the veteran Crosby missed so badly.

One theory was holder/punter Tim Masthay's hand grazed the ball right from the start. 

"We heard this rumor, and it caught me off guard because I didn’t see it or feel it," Masthay said Monday, via Demovsky. "And I just wanted to clarify it by getting a close-up on the video. But no, it doesn’t appear to touch my hand."

Here's more from Masthay, who was pretty adamant he had no part in the missed kick.

"It’s a reasonable thing to ask because it was an unusual ball flight," Masthay said. "But no, it doesn’t appear to have touched or glanced my finger or anything. Mason and I work together as a unit, and it’s not like anybody’s pointing fingers in this locker room or anything like that. But we wanted to check it out because it’s something that has to be addressed if it had happened, but it doesn’t appear like that."

After the game, Crosby told reporters he felt his plant foot slip in the turf causing him to hit the ball too high up (H/T Ryan Wood of the Green Bay Press-Gazette).

"I flat missed it," Crosby said Sunday when asked about the kick, via Mike Spofford of Packers.com. "I think I caught a little turf behind the ball. Disappointed. We had a chance to win there."

Latest Injury News

Mike Roemer/Associated Press

Week 11 Injury Report

Player	Position	Injury	Status
Jared Abbrederis	WR	Rib/Chest	DNP
David Bakhtiari	OT	Knee	LP
Bryan Bulaga	OT	Knee	DNP
Morgan Burnett	S	Ankle	FP
Micah Hyde	DB	Hip	LP
James Jones	WR	Quadricep	FP
Eddie Lacy	RB	Groin	FP
T.J. Lang	OG	Shoulder	DNP
Clay Matthews	LB	Ankle/Knee	LP
Ty Montgomery	WR	Ankle	FP
Mike Neal	LB	Hip	FP
Nick Perry	LB	Shoulder/Hand	FP
Aaron Rodgers	QB	Right Shoulder	LP
Josh Sitton	OG	Knee	LP

** Official injury report courtesy of Packers.com ** 

DNP = Did not participate in Wednesday's practice; LP = Limited participation; FP = Full participation

Injury Notes

For the second straight week, the Packers list 14 names on their early injury report—this Week 11 version, though, might make fans a little more worrisome for more reasons than its length.

Aaron Rodgers, who was limited in Wednesday's practice with a sore right shoulder, appears on the report for the first time all season.

Although Rodgers was seen throwing softly to receivers in the walk-through portion of practice open to media, via Tom Silverstein of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, it's especially concerning to see the Packers openly admitting their quarterback doesn't have a fully healthy throwing shoulder.

ESPN's Rob Demovsky points out how we shouldn't be surprised to see Rodgers on the injury report after all the hits he's taken lately.

"

It's not a surprise that Rodgers landed on the injury report. However, that it was his right shoulder was unexpected because Rodgers took a shot to his left knee late in Sunday's loss to the Detroit Lions from defensive end Ezekiel Ansah and came up limping slightly.

Rodgers has been sacked 11 times in the last three games—the same sack total he had in the first six games combined—prompting McCarthy to say that his quarterback has gotten hit "way too much."

"

On a more serious note, wide receiver Jared Abbrederis will be out for "several weeks" with a rib injury, according to head coach Mike McCarthy. The second-year wideout left last week's game in the fourth quarter following a 32-yard reception and didn't return to action—he caught four passes for 57 yards as the No. 4 receiver against Detroit.

The rib injury adds to a series of unfortunate setbacks Abbrederis has had in his brief time with Green Bay. The Wisconsin product missed his entire rookie season after tearing his ACL in the first week of training camp last year and sat out a month after suffering a concussion on the first day of training camp this year. 

When asked Monday of his injury, Abbrederis wouldn't say whether tests revealed signs of broken ribs or not, via Weston Hodkiewicz of the Green Bay Press-Gazette. Yet it's not a promising sign to hear McCarthy rule him out for more than one week.

A few other big names to appear on Green Bay's injury report in Week 11 are the majority of its starting offensive line. 

Guard T.J. Lang and tackle Bryan Bulaga both sat out Wednesday's practice with shoulder and knee injuries, respectively. Meanwhile, tackle David Bakhtiari (knee) and guard Josh Sitton (knee) were both limited in practice and only took part in walk-throughs, according to Silverstein. 

Top Matchups

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Packers Run D vs. Vikings RB Adrian Peterson

The Vikings offense, despite being led by a talented young quarterback in Teddy Bridgewater, relies heavily on their star tailback. Adrian Peterson has long been the face of Minnesota football, and the nine-year vet is in the midst of a career rejuvenation after missing most of last season with ongoing domestic violence issues. 

The 30-year-old Peterson leads the NFL in rushing yards (961) and yards per game (106.8) through the first 10 weeks of the season. He's also racked up at least 100 rushing yards in five of his nine games in 2015—highlighted by a season-high 203 last week against Oakland. 

This is the Adrian Peterson that Green Bay fans have known all too well ever since he was first drafted by Minnesota in 2007. In 14 career games against the Packers, Peterson has rushed for over 100 yards eight times—including in four of the last five meetings. 

Whether it's the 112 he racked up as a rookie in 2007 on just 12 carries in his first matchup with Green Bay, or the 210 and 199-yard games he posted in 2012—Peterson has routinely burned the Packers over the years. 

Defensive coordinator Dom Capers will have to specifically game plan this week to stop Peterson—or at least slow him down.

Green Bay's run defense—which has given up, on average, 116.2 rushing yards per game (ninth-worst in the league)—will need to step up this week if they want any chance of beating the Vikings.

Aaron Rodgers vs. Vikings Defense

If the Packers are to start winning again, they'll need to do so on the back on their quarterback. Yet Aaron Rodgers and the offense will have one of their toughest tasks of the season Sunday when they visit Minnesota and a dominant defense. 

The Vikings have allowed just 17.1 points per game—the second-best mark in the NFL—while their pass defense is giving up the eighth-fewest yards through the air (228 per game).

On the other side, though, Rodgers has been struggling at the helm of Green Bay's offense.

He's posted an 86.0 passer rating in the Packers' current three-game losing streak compared to 115.9 in the first six games. He may have thrown for 333 yards last week, but they came on a career-high 61 pass attempts. Furthermore, Rodgers has been sacked 11 times in the last three games—the same number of sacks the Packers allowed in their 6-0 start.

It's a tall ask for any offense to best Minnesota's dominant D, but Rodgers will have to do just that on Sunday to eek out a victory—especially with a huge question mark at the running back position in Green Bay right now.

X-Factor

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Packers X-Factor of the Week: WR Davante Adams

Ever since Jordy Nelson was lost for the season with a torn ACL, the Packers have been looking for someone to fill that void in the offense. 

Now, it's impossible to completely replace one of the league's best wideouts, but Green Bay has still been haunted by one question all season long: Who will step up in Nelson's absence?

Davante Adams was the team's leading candidate heading into 2015, but early-season injuries and poor play forced the second-year receiver to a slow start. 

Still, if the last two weeks are any evidence as to what's to come, Aaron Rodgers and the offense may have their answer in Adams as a viable receiving option opposite Randall Cobb.

Adams has been targeted 32 times in the last two games—including a team-high 21 targets against Detroit a week ago. In his other four games this season, Adams had just 17 combined passes thrown to him.

While he's certainly experienced a recent rise in attention from his quarterback, Adams' increased number of targets have yielded mixed results. He caught seven passes for 93 yards two weeks ago and 10 for 79 on Sunday—yet failed to score in either contest. 

Although Minnesota boasts one of the league's best pass defenses, look for Adams to continue to play a large part in Green Bay's offense as the secondary receiver—whether it's acting as a decoy to draw coverage away from Cobb or being the go-to guy for Rodgers in crunch time.

Prediction: Vikings 24, Packers 20

Jim Mone/Associated Press

If only there were any silver linings in a matchup with these NFC North-leading Vikings.

You could point to Green Bay's recent dominance over Minnesota—9-1-1 in the last 11 meetings—or the Packers' two wins last season over their division rivals. 

Yet both squads would agree that neither is the same team they've been in recent years. 

The 2015 Packers have had trouble stopping the run all year, and a date with the great Adrian Peterson will be the toughest test so far. 

Peterson has notoriously killed Green Bay on the ground, and Sunday will be no different. Except this time, Vikings quarterback Teddy Bridgewater offers a nice complement alongside his backfield mate. Defensive coordinator Dom Capers and his unit have yet to face Minnesota with both Bridgewater and Peterson on the other side. 

On the flip side, Aaron Rodgers and the Green Bay offense will equally have their hands full with the No. 2 scoring defense in the league that's been stingy against the pass this season.

If the Packers don't fix some of the glaring problems that have cost them the last three games, Sunday's division showdown could be a long one. 

Prediction: Vikings 24, Packers 20