Same old story for Packers after throwing away lead against Vikings

Another late game collapse

The Green Bay Packers are searching for answers after throwing away another big lead. They lost 39-22 to the Minnesota Vikings on Sunday in their season opener. This was their sixth straight defeat, including the playoffs, going back to last season. In four of those games, they held leads of more than one score.

The team led 22-10 in the third quarter and was up 22-17 in the fourth quarter before everything fell apart. They were outscored 22-0 in the final quarter. Packers coach Matt LaFleur said finishing games is going to remain a topic of conversation until they actually do it.

Costly decisions and penalties

A major turning point came in the fourth quarter. Kicker Trey Smack made a 40 yard field goal to give Green Bay an eight point lead. However, a Vikings offside penalty gave the Packers a fourth and one. LaFleur decided to take the points off the board and go for it. Jordan Love was stopped on a quarterback sneak. Instead of holding a 25-17 lead against a team playing backup quarterback Carson Wentz, the Packers gave the Vikings momentum.

Green Bay also hurt themselves with penalties. Defensive stops were wiped out by penalties on Javon Bullard and Chris McClellan. An interception by Evan Williams was also taken away because of a holding call on Xavier McKinney. Cornerback Keisean Nixon said they cannot leave the game in the hands of the referees.

Love under heavy pressure

Quarterback Jordan Love threw for 389 yards and two touchdowns, both to Christian Watson. However, he faced heavy pressure all day. The Vikings blitzed constantly, hitting Love 15 times and sacking him four times. Love also lost a fumble during the game. Tight end Tucker Kraft said players are making error after error and must correct their mistakes.