Packers vs Commanders: Green Bay wins 27-18 as Jordan Love, Tucker Kraft shine on Thursday Night Football
On a night built for quarterbacks, a tight end stole the show. Tucker Kraft bulldozed Washington defenders, turned short throws into long gains, and gave Green Bay the type of middle-of-the-field punch that swings games in mid-September. Behind his breakout and Jordan Love’s calm command of the pocket, the Packers handled the Commanders 27-18 at Lambeau Field on Thursday, improving to 2-0 and flexing both balance and bite in all three phases.
Yes, it was just Week 2. But the tone felt different. Green Bay played like a team comfortable with who it is—fast to the ball on defense, creative and composed on offense, and opportunistic on special teams when it mattered most. Washington made it interesting late, trimming the lead to one possession, but the home side had answers all night.
A night where Love looked in command
Jordan Love carved up Washington with a steady hand, throwing for 292 yards and two touchdowns while spreading the ball to multiple targets. He didn’t force throws. He took the easy gains early, stayed patient when the Commanders sank into zones, and picked his spots downfield when coverage loosened. The Packers finished with 404 total yards, and most of that felt earned—the product of timing, leverage, and clean protection on key downs.
Kraft was the engine. He posted his first 100-yard game as a pro—124 yards on six grabs—and didn’t just rack up numbers; he broke tackles and flipped field position. Several of his catches came in heavy traffic on second and medium, the kinds of downs that usually decide whether drives sputter or stretch. One of those ended with him in the end zone, dragging a defender the final few yards. If Green Bay needed a chain-mover, he was it. If they wanted a statement play, he was that too.
Romeo Dobbs added a touchdown of his own, finishing a methodical march that started deep in Packers territory. The drive had a little bit of everything: quick-game rhythm throws, a hard cutback run to set up second-and-manageable, and a clever formation shift that created a favorable matchup for the score. It looked like a drill straight off the practice script—and that’s the point. Green Bay’s offense felt organized, not improvised.
Josh Jacobs gave the ground game enough bite to keep Washington honest. He wasn’t asked to be a workhorse, but he was tough in the tight spaces, especially near the goal line. A first-and-goal from the five turned into points because the Commanders had to respect inside power. That threat opened windows for Love to operate off play-action, which is where he did some of his best work.
Inside the numbers, the story was simple: Green Bay owned early downs, avoided long third downs, and won red-zone snaps. The Packers kept their personnel packages fresh—two-tight-end sets, motion to force tells, backs flexing out to widen the underneath defenders—and never let the Commanders settle into a comfort zone. When Washington pushed safeties inside to clamp Kraft, Green Bay bounced throws outside. When corners backed off, the Packers took the hitches and made it second-and-short. It was mature football.
And it was clean. No frantic heaves. No panicked pockets. Love’s progressions were on time. Even on incompletions, the process looked right. For September, that’s a strong sign.
Defense throttles Washington, with the rush leading the way
On defense, the Packers were mean up front and organized behind it. The pass rush, supercharged by the offseason arrival of Micah Parsons, made the pocket feel tight on almost every Washington dropback. The Commanders’ first seven possessions produced just three points, and that wasn’t a fluke. Green Bay won with four, won with games and stunts, and won with effort on the edges. Multiple sacks and a steady diet of quarterback hits kept Washington’s timing off from the opening series.
Rookie quarterback Jayden Daniels didn’t fold. He adjusted protections, found quick outlets, and used his legs to escape when he had to. He bought the Commanders a chance, dragging the game into the fourth quarter and then cutting the deficit to one score with a composed late drive capped by a two-point conversion toss to Luke McCaffrey. That was a grown-up sequence from a young quarterback playing under real duress.
The problem was everything before and after. Washington’s line struggled to sort out Green Bay’s simulated pressure looks—walked-up linebackers threatening gaps, late safety creeps, then a backside rusher coming free as the protection slid the wrong way. That hesitation bled the clock and forced third-and-longs. When the Commanders did find rhythm, a holding penalty or a miscommunication would stall the series. It’s hard to live that way on the road at Lambeau, and it showed.
Austin Ekeler did provide a steady veteran outlet. He converted a couple of tough first downs, slipped out of tackles on angle routes, and gave Daniels a reliable option when the rush closed in. Terry McLaurin still found pockets of space—he always does—but Green Bay’s plan kept a cap over the top and trusted their rush to finish the job underneath. The net result: Washington moved the ball in spurts, not waves.
Special teams handled the final swing. After Daniels and McCaffrey made it 27-18, Washington tried the onside kick with the stadium on edge. Jayden Wicks pounced on it, and that was that. No late miracle. No second life for the visitors. The Packers’ sideline exhaled, fireworks cracked over the bowl, and Lambeau soaked up another prime-time win.
What does this tell us about Green Bay beyond the score? For starters, their identity is coherent. They can win with multiple targets—Kraft emerging as a go-to option in the seams, Dobbs as a red-zone finisher, backs who keep the structure honest. They don’t need one receiver to carry the night. That matters over a 17-game season, when injuries and matchups force teams to pivot week to week.
It also says the defense isn’t just fast; it’s connected. The rush and coverage married well—corners took away the first read often enough for the front to arrive, and the front arrived often enough that the back end didn’t have to plaster forever. That’s how you turn pressure into production instead of near-misses.
For Washington, there’s a clear to-do list. The protections need answers against simulated pressure—better rules, quicker checks, more answers in the hot game. Early-down efficiency has to improve, or every third down becomes a coin flip against a top-shelf rush. None of this is panic material for Week 2, especially with a rookie quarterback showing real poise. But it’s urgent enough that it needs attention by Sunday morning meetings.
Three moments, in plain view, swung the night:
- Kraft’s explosive touchdown: Not just six points—proof that Green Bay could bully the middle of the field. Washington had to change how it played the seams, and that opened space elsewhere.
- Dobbs’ drive-capping score: A clinic in execution. The Packers shifted, set the leverage they wanted, and hit the throw they designed all week.
- The onside recovery: Simple play, huge weight. Wicks ended the drama and protected a win that Green Bay had earned snap by snap.
Zooming out, Green Bay’s 2-0 start is more than a nice headline. It’s a runway. Fast starts reduce stress later, when December attrition bites and every drive feels heavier. Teams that stack wins early can manage snaps, get healthier, and pick spots for aggressiveness without chasing the standings. This looked like one of those nights that pays you back in a month.
There’s also the matter of trust—quarterback to target, coach to quarterback, defense to itself. Love trusted the call sheet and took the throws in rhythm. Kraft won leverage battles and punished arm tackles. The staff trusted the run enough to keep the play-action alive. On defense, the rush didn’t freeload; it kept its rush lanes and closed under control, which is how you face a mobile rookie and not give up backbreaking scrambles.
As for the Commanders, they have pieces that translate. Daniels’ calm is real. McLaurin’s route craft wins against any coverage. Ekeler’s feel on option routes is still a cheat code. If they can get more clean first downs—quick outs, RPOs that actually flip leverage, a couple of keeper boots to slow the edge—they’ll extend drives and keep the defense fresh. This was less about talent and more about timing and structure against a defense that disguised well.
One subplot worth circling: the impact of Micah Parsons in green and gold. His presence changes the math every snap. Offenses slide protection his way, backs chip him, and that gives one-on-ones elsewhere. Even on plays where he doesn’t touch the ball, he bends the plan. That’s the definition of value, and you felt it in how Washington called the game.
By the final whistle, the scoreboard matched the eye test. Green Bay was the better team for most of the night—more precise, more physical, more comfortable in the game’s key moments. That’s how you stack wins in this league, one precise rep at a time.
Next week brings new questions—injury reports, matchups, travel, weather. But this one sits in the bank. The Packers showed they can control tempo, create explosive plays without forcing them, and close. The Commanders showed they’ll punch back even when the script tilts against them. If these teams meet again with more on the line, the film from Thursday will be the first thing both staffs pull.
For now, the headline is simple: Packers vs Commanders tilted toward Green Bay because the home team made the middle of the field theirs and the pocket theirs too. Under the lights at Lambeau, that’s usually enough.
- September 12 2025
- Declan Whitmore
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Written by Declan Whitmore
View all posts by: Declan Whitmore