5 standouts from Packers' Week 8 win over the Panthers - Packers Wire

After a nightmare start, the Green Bay Packers turned it around to defeat the Carolina Panthers 27-19 Thursday night.

Green Bay had to overcome two first-half fumbles, including one on the opening kickoff. They trailed twice in the first half but took a 20-10 lead into halftime. At one point in the second half, they led by as much as 17.  

The offense couldn’t get the run game going against Carolina’s last-ranked run defense, but it didn’t matter. The Packers generated big plays through the air and outgained the Panthers 354 to 258 yards in total offense.

The defense sacked Bryce Young a season-high six times and also forced two takeaways. Here are the standouts from a much-needed win after losing to the Detroit Lions on a walk-off field goal on Sunday:

It was a productive but scary night for Watson. After catching a 53-yard deep ball during the second quarter, he was taken to the hospital by ambulance after coughing up blood. The explosive play sparked a touchdown drive to put the Packers up 13-10. Watson returned to the game in the third quarter after precautionary tests confirmed a broken rib but no internal bleeding. He then went on to catch a crucial 7-yard pass on third-and-2 with 2:33 remaining to help run most of the clock out. Watson finished with a game-high 113 receiving yards on eight receptions.

He’d like to have his second-half interception back, but Love had a good game. He completed 30 out of 41 passes for 288 yards and tossed three touchdowns to Tucker Kraft, Matthew Golden, and Josh Jacobs. Time and time again this season, Love has had to carry the offense behind a shaky offensive line, no run game to lean on, and a group of pass catchers that leads the league in drops. He did it again against the Panthers, finishing with a 106.6 passer rating.

What a night for the third-year linebacker. Hopper finished with a career-high eight tackles, three pass breakups, two quarterback hits, and recorded his first career sack and interception. On the interception, Hopper tipped a pass to himself after being sent on a blitz. The takeaway set up a 43-yard touchdown drive by the offense to take a 20-10 lead in the second quarter. With Edgerrin Cooper out for the season and Zaire Franklin missing his second straight game with a hairline fracture in his leg, Hopper has stepped up in a big way in their absence.

We didn’t hear much from Van Ness against Detroit, but he made his presence felt against the Panthers. Van Ness had six combined tackles, with each stop resulting in a gain of four yards or less. During the third quarter, he won his pass rush rep from the interior to sack Young for an 8-yard loss on third down, forcing Carolina to settle for a 50-yard field goal to cut their deficit to 27-13. Van Ness is now up to 4.5 sacks on the year, which is already a new career-high for the 2023 first-round pick, and we’re only eight games in.

Green Bay’s pass rush dominated in this matchup, and the former undrafted free agent was a key contributor. Cox generated multiple pressures, drew an offensive holding penalty, stopped a Chuba Hubbard rushing attempt for a 1-yard gain, and recorded his first sack of the season for a 10-yard loss. Cox also recovered the fumble after a failed lateral attempt by the Panthers on their final desperation play to end it.

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