Packers clinch playoff berth with dominant win over Saints

GREEN BAY, Wis. — All Matt LaFleur does is make the playoffs. Well, most of the time anyway. Green Bay clinched a playoff berth with Monday’s 34-0 victory over the New Orleans Saints, meaning the Packers will go to the postseason for the fifth time in LaFleur’s six seasons as their head coach.

The only time the Packers missed the playoffs under LaFleur was in Aaron Rodgers’ final season, 2022, when they went into their final game needing a win to qualify and lost at home to the Detroit Lions.

If the Packers (11-4) win their two remaining regular-season games, against the Minnesota Vikings on Sunday and at home against the Chicago Bears in Week 18, it would give LaFleur his fourth 13-win regular season.

The Saints, with backup Spencer Rattler starting at quarterback in place of the injured Derek Carr (hand) and without several of their best players, including running back Alvin Kamara (groin), didn’t put up much of a fight early on.

Green Bay took a 21-0 lead, scoring touchdowns on its first three drives for the first time since Week 17 of the 2020 season at the Bears.

Promising trend: At this point, it’s gone beyond a trend. Josh Jacobs scoring a rushing touchdown is now an expectation. Jacobs’ 2-yard scoring run in the second quarter made it his sixth consecutive game with a rushing touchdown. That ties the second-longest streak in Packers history, behind only Paul Hornung (seven, in 1960). Jacobs finished with 13 carries for 69 yards and a score, along with four receptions for 38 yards..

Promising trend II: When Keisean Nixon came home with his cornerback drive late in the second quarter and sacked Rattler, with defensive end Rashan Gary recovering the fumble, he gave the Packers their 27th win of the season. Safety Zayne Anderson’s third-quarter interception, the first of his career, moved them into a tie for third in the NFL with the Buffalo Bills and Houston Texans with 28 takers. Last season, Green Bay had only 18 takeaways.

Most surprising performance: We know the Packers like to run the ball. They came into the game running by design on 48% of their plays, the second-highest rate in the NFL this season, according to ESPN Research. But this was unusual even by Green Bay standards. Nine different players had at least one rushing attempt, including tight end Tucker Kraft converting a sneak pass on third-and-1 and Chris Brooks with his first career rushing touchdown. The last time the Packers had nine players with at least one rushing attempt in a game was 1953. — Rob Demovsky

Next match: on Vikings (4:25 p.m. ET, Sunday)

The Saints were officially eliminated from playoff contention before Monday’s game, and they played that way.

Darren Rizzi needed the team to have a strong showing in Green Bay to justify removing the interim tag and becoming the head coach. But the Saints were never really in the game, falling into a 21-0 deficit and failing to move the ball into the red zone the entire game.

According to ESPN Research, it was the first time the Saints were eliminated in the first half of consecutive games since 1997. They lost 20-19 to the Washington Commanders last week after going scoreless in the first two quarters.

The Saints have two games left, but they showed they have a lot of work to do in the offseason to become a competitive team. They have now lost double-digit games for the second time in three seasons. Before 2022, they had not lost 10 or more since 2005.

Worrying trend: The Saints, with rookie Spencer Rattler under center, are now 0-5 as starting backup quarterbacks this season and have averaged just 12.8 points per game in those five matchups, compared to 24.5 points per match with Derek Carr as his interlocutor. Carr is under contract for two more seasons, and will count $51.4 million against the salary cap in 2025 if the Saints decide to keep him without restructuring his contract.

Most surprising performance: The offense was always going to have a challenge without its starting quarterback, running back (Alvin Kamara) and big-play wide receiver (Chris Olave). But the defense just didn’t show up. The Packers were able to dismantle the unit at will, and the Saints didn’t help themselves with missed tackles, penalties and explosive plays – the story of their season.

QB Breakdown: The Saints returned to using Rattler as a starter after Jake Haener was benched last week after half the game and 39 net yards of offense. Rattler was able to make some plays with his feet and had some good shots against the Packers, but the offense certainly didn’t pick up where it left off against Washington. He has already been sacked 17 times in his five games this season. — Katherine Terrell

Next match: vs. Raiders (1 p.m. ET, Sunday)