NFL Playoff Predictions: Weak Offensive Line Will Doom Packers' Super Bowl Hopes

The Green Bay Packers lost their first game of the season on Sunday against the woeful Kansas City Chiefs, but that didn't have me doubting their Super Bowl chances.

However, after losing their third tackle, rookie Derek Sherrod, on Sunday, there is now cause for concern.

Before Sunday's game, the Packers were already dealing with the injury to left tackle Chad Clifton, who missed his ninth straight game on Sunday. They had plugged natural guard Marshall Newhouse in place of Clifton.

After right tackle Bryan Bulaga re-injured his left knee in the first half against the Chiefs, Sherrod, the No. 32 overall pick out of Mississippi State, was carted off the field in the fourth quarter after bending his right leg the wrong way.

That left the Packers with no choice but to insert guard T.J. Lang into the right tackle spot for the remainder of the game, meaning they had two guards playing both important tackle positions.

There's no word as of yet on the extent of Bulaga and Sherrod's injuries, but Sherrod's injury looked pretty bad.

If the Packers are left without Bulaga and Sherrod headed into the playoffs, you have to wonder if it will affect their Super Bowl hopes. Quarterback Aaron Rodgers was sacked four times on Sunday and the Packers only managed 14 points after averaging 35.8 points headed into the contest.

It shouldn't matter much against the non-elite defenses moving forward, and the San Francisco 49ers appear to have the only defense in the NFC capable of creating problems for the Packers before the Super Bowl.

But the Packers could face the Baltimore Ravens or Pittsburgh Steelers in the Super Bowl, and the offensive line problems would surely be exposed against those teams.

I've already said the Ravens in particular have the best chance of knocking off the Packers in the playoffs, and if the offensive line is in shambles late in the playoffs, there's a good chance the Packers could fall.