Packers Can't Take Their Eyes Off Rivals Cincinnati Bengals During Week 5 Break
Posted October 5, 2025
With the Green Bay Packers able to sit back and somewhat relax following a confusing tie between themselves and the Dallas Cowboys in Week 4, they can also get a glimpse at what's to come on their schedule after their much-needed bye week.
Green Bay has a lot to figure out before they continue on their course towards contention this season, especially as they're now second in the NFC North behind the 3-1 Detroit Lions. Detroit isn't going to be doing them any favors this week, either, as they're set to square off against the currently lowly Cincinnati Bengals for their Week 5 matchup.
There's a lot to take away from this game for Green Bay despite the fact they'll be avoiding the field altogether this Sunday. The Bengals, just like the Browns, present some unique challenges that could rear their head against an unprepared Packers defense.
Packers must not take Bengals matchup for granted in Week 6
Two key things that the Packers cannot take for granted against the Bengals in Week 6 are the threat of their receiving corp as well as the work of Trey Hendrickson on the edge. Ja'Marr Chase and Tee Higgins haven't gotten off to the start they would have hoped for this year, having to catch passes from backup Jake Browning rather than star signal caller Joe Burrow.
But, Browning still has the chance to settle in if the Packers' defensive line can't make Cincinnati's offensive line feel the heat. Micah Parsons is obviously a big piece of that strategy, but the Packers need players like Rashan Gary, Colby Wooden, and Edgerrin Cooper to also step up in order to prevent them from heating up.
Cooper has been struggling, specifically, so a good game from him that leads to stopping this corp from getting going could be a huge confidence booster.
Hendrickson is another beast. While he hasn't been the most adept pass rusher so far this season - that honor goes to Parsons at the moment - this Packers O-line has been dealing with injury woes that could allow for him to find an opening to Jordan Love. Rasheed Walker has been doing some heavy lifting on that front with Zach Tom still on the outs.
The Packers probably have nothing to really worry about with these Bengals, especially since they just seem primed to punt yet another year due to injuries that could've been preventable had they simply invested in their trenches. But, Week 5 should be a good litmus test for them, as they get to see how Cincinnati gets handled by a team that's just a few steps ahead of Green Bay at the moment.
Jalen Hurts poses dual-threat problem for Broncos defense
Saquon Barkley is a problem enough for the Denver Broncos defense.
But when you throw in Jalen Hurts as a dual-threat quarterback, that makes the Philadelphia Eagles offense that much tougher to defend. Hurts is capable of beating defenses with his arm or his legs. Yes, the Eagles are experiencing some drama with their receivers at the moment, and A.J. Brown and DeVonta Smith have been underutilized in a bizarre way. But it’s all just a matter of one game.
All that matters is that Philadelphia wins games. The Eagles are now 20-1 in their last 21 games and 18-0 in their last 18 games started and finished by Hurts.
Now the Broncos will need to find a way to contain Hurts and that dual-threat ability today.
“How we rush this guy is obviously key,” Broncos defense coordinator Vance Joseph said to the media this week. “If everyone’s covered and you have irresponsible rush lanes, (Hurts) will take off and gain the first down, and you’ll never see third-and-long or second-and-long ever. If you don’t contain the quarterback, I think he’s an accurate passer, but when he pulls the ball down, if everyone’s back is turned, he can make a big play on it.
“How we rush him is important. How we stop Saquon is important. They have a lot of weapons that we have to account for, but the quarterback is obviously the main guy. That’s where it starts.”
One of the best ways for the Broncos to slow down Hurts and the Eagles’ offense is to control the ball and time of possession. That starts with a consistent and effective running game.
If J.K. Dobbins and RJ Harvey get going, that spells success for Denver. It starts by achieving success in the running game early.
“I think that’s just a constant in football,” Broncos offensive coordinator Joe Lombardi said to the media this week. “When you’re able to run the ball efficiently, it helps everything. I know when you’re calling plays and the run game’s effective, it feels a lot easier than when it’s not. I think both of our runners are averaging over five (yards) a carry, and it’s something that we have confidence in and we’ll lean on going forward for sure.”
Lombardi added that splitting series is how the Broncos envisioned using Dobbins and Harvey based on their differing skill sets as runners.
“They’re really good runners, they’re both effective as pass catchers, both effective as blockers,“ Lombardi said. ”I think getting RJ, making sure that we’re confident that he has the protections down, not physically, but just mentally. He came along quickly with that. I think it’s something we feel good about going forward.”
How successful Denver is in running the ball today will go a long way in helping the defense at least slow down Hurts and the high-flying capability of the Eagles offense.
But as Hurts and Philly have shown, they don’t need much to be dangerous.
