GREEN BAY, Wis. -- Five things to watch for in the Week 5 Thursday night matchup when the Green Bay Packers (2-2) host the Minnesota Vikings (2-2) at Lambeau Field:
1. Rodgers' follow-up performance
Even for as great as Aaron Rodgers is, he can't be expected to play every game at the level he did in Chicago. That was among the best games of Rodgers' career, and he may not top it for the rest of this season. But, with a lot fewer doubters out there this week than there were last week, there won't be that extra dose of motivation that Rodgers thrives under. The statistics of how Rodgers performs after a subpar game are outstanding. Now, he's coming off an incredible game. Carrying the momentum and chemistry over from that will be key, even if it's not a 151.2 passer rating-esque repeat performance.
Minnesota's passing defense has been average in many ways. The Vikings are ranked 17th in passing yards allowed, 13th in sacks and 11th in interceptions. By the ProFootballFocus ratings system, Minnesota is the 19th-best pass rush team and the 14th-best pass coverage team. Not bad in any area, not great in any area. Average. But average can win a game on a short week, especially if Rodgers is only able to put together a so-so night.
Rodgers has gotten consistently All-Pro-caliber output from Jordy Nelson (who leads the NFL in receiving yards), but he needs another big game from Randall Cobb. The Packers will be without Jarrett Boykin again, who's out with a groin injury, so rookie Davante Adams (and Jeff Janis, if he gets more than one snap) will need to step up. Getting the tight ends more involved would help, too, as that position group is responsible for just 11.6 percent of Green Bay's total receptions so far.
2. Lacy's slump , Starks' role, team's total carries
Playing a 26th-ranked Chicago Bears run defense didn't snap Eddie Lacy out of his sophomore slump. Lacy has struggled in all four games this season.
Sitting at 161 total rushing yards and a 3.0 yards-per-carry average is something that no one (at least within the Packers organization) expected. It's been a significant dropoff statistically, and Lacy has started to run like a player who's unsure what to do. He's broken 13 tackles (ranking him No. 8 in the league in that category among running backs), but when he has a bit of room to run, there's a bit of uncertainty in his reads and cuts that wasn't there last season.
After James Starks had zero carries in Week 4, head coach Mike McCarthy said that was a mistake and one that would never happen again. McCarthy wants to run the ball 25-30 times combined between Lacy and Starks, and it will be interesting to see how Lacy's lack of success recently factors into how those 25-30 snaps are split between the two of them.
Just like in the passing game, Minnesota is a very average run defense that ranks No. 16 in yards allowed per game and rates 13th in the NFL by ProFootballFocus.
3. Teddy or not Teddy
The Packers are preparing as if Teddy Bridgewater will start. In Bridgewater's first career start last weekend, he suffered an ankle sprain and was unable to finish the game. He's listed as questionable, but Vikings head coach Mike Zimmer has remained hopeful that the rookie quarterback will be ready.
Bridgewater is solid as a passer, completing 62 percent of his passes and having not yet thrown an interception. He has two good wide receivers to throw with Greg Jennings and Cordarrelle Patterson, both of whom could present challenges to Green Bay's secondary.
But Bridgewater is not just a pocket passer. He's shown the ability to make plays with his feet, already compiling 15- and 13-yard rushes and a touchdown run. The Packers don't need to look any further than their struggles in stopping Colin Kaepernick on the ground in their last two playoff losses to see how a running quarterback can beat them.
Of course, the NFL definition of questionable is "50/50," so there's technically just as good of a chance that Christian Ponder starts. But it sure seems like Bridgewater will get his first taste of Lambeau Field on Thursday night.
4. Improving on a last-ranked run defense
Clay Matthews was impressed with the Vikings running back duo, even though he didn't know that their names were Matt Asiata and Jerick McKinnon. In Adrian Peterson's absence, Asiata and McKinnon combined for more than 200 rushing yards in Minnesota's win over the Falcons last weekend, and they have the Vikings rushing offense ranked No. 8 in the league.
Defensive coordinator Dom Capers was pleased with the way his group stopped the run in Week 2 against the New York Jets and in Week 3 against the Detroit Lions, but Green Bay is still the NFL's worst run defense in terms of yards allowed per game.
Matthews believes it just comes down to fixing "very simple assignment issues and technique." With barely any practice time available between games, correcting that entirely in four days is impossible.
And, even without the name recognition of Peterson, Matthews knows fixing these issues against Minnesota won't be easy.
"You'd think with the dropoff of (Peterson), or that there would be a dropoff, but there really isn't," Matthews said.
5. Jennings is back, again
Go ahead and boo him, Packers fans. After all, Jennings claims he doesn't care one way or the other.
This will be Jennings' second trip back to Lambeau Field after leaving in free agency in March 2013. Jennings said in a conference call this week that he made some mistakes after his departure from Green Bay, but he also made it clear that he's very happy now that he's jumped across state borders.
Last season, Jennings only had two catches for 29 yards when the Vikings played at Lambeau Field. But he's playing much better this season, and, assuming Bridgewater plays, Jennings has a good -- albeit inexperienced -- quarterback throwing him the ball. Jennings has been the most-targeted Minnesota receiver this season and leads the team in catches and yards.
It will be an interesting matchup for Jennings' former teammates, Sam Shields and Tramon Williams. There's no doubt that Jennings wants to have a great game on national television against the Packers, but Shields and Williams know him well.
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