The Green Bay Packers overcame an injury to Jordan Love and two blown leads in the second half to escape Jacksonville with a walk-off win on a 24-yard field goal from Brandon McManus on Sunday at EverBank Stadium. Backup Malik Willis found Jayden Reed for a 51-yard completion to set up the field goal that sent the Packers to a 30-27 victory.
Matt LaFleur’s team has won four straight games and is now 6-2 overall.
Here is an instant analysis of the Packers’ win over the Jaguars in Week 8:
Final score: Packers 30, Jaguars 27
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | F | |
| GB (6-2) | 0 | 13 | 7 | 10 | 30 |
| JAX (2-6) | 0 | 10 | 7 | 10 | 27 |
Live scoring
Second quarter
GB 7, JAX 0: Josh Jacobs 3-yard run (11:31)
GB 10, JAX 0: Brandon McManus 31-yard field goal (6:03)
GB 10, JAX 7: Trevor Lawrence 6-yard run (2:37)
GB 13, JAX 7: Brandon McManus 36-yard field goal (0:54)
GB 13, JAX 10: Cam Little 39-yard field goal (0:03)
Third quarter
JAX 17, GB 13: Brian Thomas Jr. 14-yard catch (5:10)
GB 20, JAX 17: Josh Jacobs 38-yard run (0:21)
Fourth quarter
GB 27, JAX 17: Tucker Kraft 3-yard catch (14:06)
GB 27, JAX 20: Cam Little 47-yard field goal (5:36)
GB 27, JAX 27: Evan Engram 14-yard catch (1:48)
GB 30, JAX 27: Brandon McManus 24-yard field goal (0:00)
It was over when…
… the Packers dialed up the perfect play, Malik Willis “canned” to the throw and Jayden Reed produced a 51-yard catch on the Packers’ final drive. The explosive play allowed the Packers to kill the rest of the clock and kick the short field goal to win the game with no time left.
Malik Willis to Jayden Reed for 51 yards to set up the game winning FG for the second week in a row by Brandon McManus, who played for the Jaguars last season. pic.twitter.com/6kH0k9TpZX
— Rob Demovsky (@RobDemovsky) October 27, 2024
Game balls
Offense — RB Josh Jacobs: The veteran running back turned 25 carries into 127 yards and two scores, including a go-ahead 38-yard touchdown in the second half.
Defense — LB Edgerrin Cooper: His strip-sack created a turnover and a quick touchdown after Jordan Love went out with an injury. Later, he broke up a pass on third down to force a punt. The rookie led the Packers with nine tackles.
Special teams — K Brandon McManus: In his return to Jacksonville, McManus made all six of his kicks, including all three field goals. His 24-yarder was the walk-off winner.
Key stat
2-for-6: The Packers finished with only two touchdowns on six red zone trips, including a 1-for-4 start in the first half. Jordan Love threw an interception and the Packers settled for three short field goals. The Jaguars were 3-for-3 scoring touchdowns in the red zone. This situational gap kept the Jaguars in the game, especially early.
Deciding factor
Additions: Xavier McKinney’s sixth interception of the season set up a touchdown, Josh Jacobs rushed for two scores, Malik Willis led a game-winning drive and Brandon McManus kicked home the game-winner. All four were added to the roster in the last seven months. Not a bad day for Packers general manager Brian Gutekunst.
Jordan Love watch
Love appeared to suffer a lower-body injury on the Packers’ first possession. After playing through the issue for a half, Love went down on the first possession of the second half, exited the game and didn’t return. He has a groin injury. Before exiting, Love completed 14 of 22 passes for 196 yards and an interception. His mobility was severely limited after the injury. In relief, Malik Willis completed four passes — including the 51-yarder to Jayden Reed and a short touchdown pass to Tucker Kraft — and rushed for 23 yards.
Play of the game
Jordan Love exited the game with an injury and the Packers gave up the lead soon after, but Josh Jacobs helped change the course of the game with a touchdown drive on Malik Willis’ first series. He finished it off with an impressive 38-yard score. He made a tackler miss in the open field and then used a block from Christian Watson to get into the end zone.
Injury updates
Safety Evan Williams injured his hamstring in warmups and was eventually ruled out. Quarterback Jordan Love injured his groin and missed most of the second half. Running back Josh Jacobs and cornerback Jaire Alexander both appeared to suffer injuries late.
What’s next
The biggest game of the season so far. Coming to Green Bay next Sunday will be the Detroit Lions, who are 6-1 and leading the NFC North after cruising past the Tennessee Titans on Sunday at Ford Field. The Packers are going to have a ton of injury question marks entering Week 9.