Bears
Bears HC Ben Johnson spoke about several Packers defenders who have flourished under DC Jeff Hafley, including Micah Parsons, Rashan Gary, Quay Walker, and Edgerrin Cooper.
“They are matchup issues for your backs and pass pro, you can tell they bring it,” Johnson said. “Fast players sideline to sideline. I think the safeties are probably the two best safeties that we’ve seen all year long. They’re extremely active in the run game. They’re all over the field and, so, we’ve got a tall task here at hand. When you combine it with the scheme, I think Hafley does a great job of making it simple for them. And, yet, to the offense, it can seem fairly complex, and those guys just go out and they play really fast and that’s what shows up all over the tape.”
Lions
The Lions are now 7-5 following their recent loss to the Packers, putting them 1.5 games back of the 49ers for the NFC’s final Wildcard spot. Detroit HC Dan Campbell said their aspirations of reaching the playoffs are still within reach, but the “margin for error is small.”
“It takes every guy that we have doing their job,” Campbell said, via PFT. “The margin for error is small, but it’s doable. We can do it. We’ve got to eliminate the things that keep us from winning before we can win the game. Before you start battling against the opponent you’ve got to stop battling against yourself.”
Campbell called Week 14 against the Cowboys a must-win game.
“I know this: We’ve got to win this one,” Campbell said. “We’ve got to win this one.”
Packers
Packers S Evan Williams has proven to be a useful contributor in run defense, helping hold Lions RB Jahmyr Gibbs to 68 yards on 20 carries in Week 13. Williams takes pride in his development as a run defender and wants to be a “complete player.”
“I take a lot of pride in that,” said Williams, via Wes Hodkiewicz of the team’s site. “I feel like the casual fan kind of looks over those type of plays, but when you look back at it, that’s a good 60-70% of the game are those run plays that a lot of people look over. I want to be the complete player that I think I can be, it definitely starts with being stout in the run game.”
Packers HC Matt LaFleur thinks Williams has always shown great awareness on the field.
“He’s always been a pretty aware player,” LaFleur said. “He’s got great instincts but now just his knowledge of what we’re trying to get accomplished and then his ability to disguise and hold things and then on the snap, trigger. … The physicality that he’s brought to our defense has been pretty impressive.”
Green Bay S Xavier McKinney highly praised Williams, saying that the second-year safety is continuously improving.
“He’s a special player, man,” McKinney said. “He’s done a hell of a job for this defense, for this team, and you just continue to see his growth, within every game, within every practice, and you know that’s good for all of us.”
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