Welcome to the first true game week of the Packers' season

The Packers' Week 1 matchup with the Vikings takes place in less than seven days.

Good morning!

It's finally, mercifully game week as the Green Bay Packers will face off with the Minnesota Vikings for the regular-season opener this Sunday. The Leap tries to answer the big questions facing the Packers in advance of the matchup, including whether either of their star offensive linemen will suit up, how the offense will divvy up the targets, and more.

Thank you for reading and supporting our coverage. You can also support our work by following us on Twitter:

Jason B. Hirschhorn: @by_JBH

Peter Bukowski: @Peter_Bukowski

The Leap: @TheLeapGB

Thanks for making The Leap a part of your day.

Project which players finish among the top three in targets for Green Bay the season opener.

Jason B. Hirschhorn: Unless the ailment that sent Allen Lazard to the rehab group last week persists, he should play and will likely operate as the team's featured pass catcher. That role will look decidedly different than the one Davante Adams held over the past four years, as Lazard will continue to work at times as a blocker off the wing and won't see the same volume of targets as a more traditional lead receiver. Still, the Packers have treated Lazard as their top option and that should play out until further notice.

Aaron Jones seems like the next strongest candidate for targets. The Packers have openly toyed with using more "Pony" personnel -- a version of 12 personnel with two true tailbacks and a tight end -- in order to put Jones on the field with AJ Dillon. That approach should result in Jones motioning out of the backfield into a receiver position, a tactic that has worked well for the team in previous seasons. With Jones already heavily targeted in the offense (65 in 2021, most among returning Green Bay players), his target rate should only increase.

After Lazard and Jones, the situation becomes more difficult to project. While Rodgers will almost certainly target Robert Tonyan more frequently than in the past, it remains unclear whether the veteran tight end will suit up for the season opener. Even if he does, the team might limit his usage in the early weeks as he works back from last year's torn ACL.

With that in mind, a Rodgers favorite like Randall Cobb could realistically soak up some targets against the Vikings. Cobb's role in the offense will probably shrink as the season unfolds and the rookies gain their footing, but in Week 1 at U.S. Bank Stadium, Rodgers appears more likely to stick with what he knows.

***

Peter Bukowski: Lazard is the easy money here. After that, the target share looks far more cloudy. Aaron Rodgers’ praise for Cobb and Sammy Watkins should catch our attention and I believe they will run a fair amount of plays designed to go to each pass catcher against the Vikings.

I am intrigued by the Jones pick from Jason and believe it to be a reasonable take given the circumstances, but I also don’t know if this group of linebackers and safeties is the crowd to test unless Rodgers is hitting Jones on a bunch of check downs. The same logic holds for Tonyan as well.

With that in mind, call me crazy, but I’m going with Lazard, Watkins, and Romeo Doubs. Give me Doubs because Lazard will play a fair bit in the slot, which means Rodgers will need another outsized receiver on the field in these 11 personnel looks. Though Rodgers tried to walk back his “Doubs will be held to a higher standard” line a bit last week in an interview, Rodgers tends to mean what he says the first time. Doubs will see targets early and often.

Do you expect David Bakhtiari and/or Elgton Jenkins to play Week 1 against the Vikings, and do you think either should?

JBH: At this stage, Elgton Jenkins seems like a good bet to play in the season opener. He returned from the physically unable to perform list over three weeks ago and has now practiced in both individual and team drills. The Packers haven't guaranteed anything with Jenkins, but the ramp-up in his work suggests he will take the field with Rodgers and the offense this Sunday.

David Bakhtiari's status appears less certain. While he too has come off the PUP list, he did so a full week later and has dealt with multiple setbacks in his recovery. The Packers have every reason to take a more conservative approach this time around to best ensure the All-Pro left tackle's latest return attempt lasts longer than the 27 snaps he played in on Jan. 9. Accordingly, while he should return within the first four games barring another setback, Green Bay's notoriously conservative medical staff probably makes him wait another week or two.

And that approach with each player makes sense. At just 26, Jenkins is younger and at lower risk for reinjury despite the shorter recovery timetable (his ACL tear occurred on Nov. 21, 2021). If the Packers' medical staff had enough confidence to let him begin practicing as early as it did and he hasn't hit any snags, the team should have full confidence he can handle a regular-season game.

Conversely, Bakhtiari's path to recovery has already taken so many unexpected turns that waiting until, say, Week 2 when Green Bay plays on the more forgiving terrain of Lambeau Field as opposed to the artificial turf of U.S. Bank Stadium seems reasonable.

***

PB: I expect Jenkins to play unless we hear about new injuries this week in practice and, like Jason, I am cautious about proclaiming Bakhtiari ready to go. That said, he’s been working in pads and even if he’s not quite ready to go Week 1, he looks to be on track to go in the month of September. In that vein, it doesn’t really matter if he plays Week 1— thanks, Yosh Nijman—so long as he’s making progress to play early in the season.

I made the claim Bakhtiari would be ready for Week 1 last year because of how impressive his rehab sessions were in training camp. I won’t make that mistake again, but everything we are seeing and hearing on Bakh leads us to believe he’s going to be out there sooner than later.

Who do you expect the Packers' to use as their tertiary edge rusher in Week 1?

JBH: While many including Peter expected the Packers to add a veteran edge rusher to the mix as a backup to Rashan Gary and Preston Smith, the front office has so far stuck to the group with which it entered training camp. That obviously could change if/when a 2022 version of Whitney Mercilus hits the market, but that doesn't appear likely to occur before this Sunday.

The consensus opinion of the backup edge rushers places Kingsley Enagbare atop the heap, and for good reason. Enagbare showed promise after a slow start to camp and has the most impressive set of tools among the reserves. However, the Packers tend to favor experienced players over rookies early in the season. And while some exceptions exist -- 2022 first-round pick Quay Walker will start next to De'Vondre Campbell at linebacker -- Enagbare doesn't have that sort of role locked down.

That leaves Tipa Galeai and Jonathan Garvin. Galeai made the roster as much for his role on special teams as his ability to rush that passer. And though Garvin didn't generate much pressure during the preseason -- zero combined pressures, according to Pro Football Focus -- he has done so in the past. Given Green Bay's tendencies, Garvin probably sees the most work from scrimmage behind Gary and Smith.

That said, Enagbare, Galeai, or a player not currently on the Packers' roster could realistically overtake Garvin in the near future. Now entering Year 3, Garvin's primary advantage over his competition comes from experience. Enagbare in particular has better physical tools and could bridge that gap to a significant degree with sound play in spot duty over the coming weeks. One shouldn't entirely discount Garvin who at 23 still has some upside, but the separation between him and the others doesn't appear large.

***

PB: The answer right now is Enagbare. The more interesting question, to me, is who that guy is in Week 6 or Week 8. Is it still Enagbare? I believe the rookie from South Carolina possesses the traits to be a quality guy at that spot but it’s asking a great deal from a rookie to man EDGE3 for a Super Bowl-caliber team. There will be players out there worth grabbing; will Brian Gutekunst be able to grab them?

I’ve made my feelings on this clear: they need to find someone, by hook or by crook to add to this room because the names Jason mentioned after Enagbare gave me a migraine. I can’t imagine it goes much better for Joe Barry when he looks at this group.