What’s the Score of Packers-Saints? Live Updates on ‘Monday Night Football’

GREEN BAY, Wis. – If the Green Bay Packers beat the New Orleans Saints on Monday night, they’ll lock up a playoff berth.

Follow along all night for updates from Lambeau Field.

Red-Hot Offense

The Packers’ offense, even with its penchant for going into lulls, has scored 30-plus points in four consecutive games. That’s tied for the second-longest streak in franchise history; the 1963 team did it in seven consecutive games.

Talk about peaking at the right time.

“I think you look at how we played last year toward the end and now, I think it’s pretty similar,” quarterback Jordan Love said. “The main thing for me is just taking care of the ball, being smart with it, going out there and finding completions and keep continuing to stack those positive plays.

“I think that’s where we’re at our best, when we don’t put ourselves in bad positions on offense with those third-and-longs and some of those difficult situations to convert on. I think when we’re doing that, we’re running the ball well and when guys are just making plays for me on the outside, it makes life easy. But I think the biggest thing is just stacking those positive plays, being efficient and being able to drive down the field, put up points and staying out of those tough situations.”

They will be tested by a Saints defense that is No. 1 in points allowed in the five games since Darren Rizzi took over as interim coach.

“Normally, you would think, ‘Oh, he’s gotten hot in December.’ It’s funny that it’s caught on with Toyotathon.”https://t.co/q3myictgTA

— Bill Huber (@BillHuberNFL) December 23, 2024

Packers-Saints Inactives

Four starters are out on defense for the Packers. Four starters are out on offense for the Saints.

Of the Saints’ top four in receiving yards, running back Alvin Kamara and receivers Chris Olave and Marquez Valdes-Scantling are out.

Four starters are out on defense for the #Packers. Four starters are out on offense for the Saints.https://t.co/MlTEJyJnWm

— Bill Huber (@BillHuberNFL) December 23, 2024

Big Moment for Carrington Valentine

With injuries in the secondary, cornerback Carrington Valentine figures to be pressed into a key role.

Last week against the Seahawks, he had one interception and was named the “G of the Week” by coach Matt LaFleur.

“The way he practiced last week, I knew he was going to play well,” defensive coordinator Jeff Hafley said. “That’s not just me blowing smoke. If you watched him practice last week, the way he pressed, the way he covered, he had multiple interceptions, he had multiple PBUs. Right after the game, I congratulated him, but that’s how he practiced. And when you do that, that’s usually what happens on gameday. Right?

“The resiliency and how he’s played all year. He’s another guy that he’s been in and out of practice, he’s had injuries, he wasn’t here for a lot of the training camp, and now he’s kind of getting in the groove and he’s playing really well, and I would expect that from him moving forward.”

Packers Are Huge Favorites

The 14.5-point spread held all week. The Packers haven’t been this large of a favorite in more than a decade.

According to The Action Network’s Evan Engram:

– The largest primetime upset in the last 20 years was the Bengals beating the Steelers as 14.5-point underdogs on a Monday night in 2020. The largest Monday night upset of all-time had the Colts beat the Patriots as 17.5-point underdogs in 1978.

– Since 2012, favorites this big on MNF are 1-7-1 against the spread, failing to cover the spread by an average of 7.4 points.

– The Packers are a league-best 7-0 against teams with a losing record this season.

According to Pro Football Network, Tuesday marked 365 days since Green Bay’s last regular-season loss in the United States against a non-NFC North team.

It’s a Different Jordan Love

In Week 3 of last season, the Packers heard boo-birds as they trailed the Saints 17-0 entering the fourth quarter.

You know the rest of the story.

Jordan Love led the team to 18 unanswered points and the Packers survived on a missed field goal in the final moments.

Love wasn’t quite on his way at that point – the rest of the first half was a struggle – but it showed what was possible.

“That game definitely meant a lot to everybody in the locker room, and I think it just showed our ability to stay together,” Love said. “Obviously, it was not a great start for us, and I think everybody staying together and nobody flinching being down 17 and to be able to come back and just chip away at that lead and take it one play at a time, I think it helped us going forward.

“(It) gave everybody that mindset that no matter what the situation is, what the score might be, that we can come back from anything, so I think that definitely helped us a lot.”

Love during the second half of the last season emerged as one of the NFL’s top young-gun quarterbacks. By passer rating, he’s even better this year. In the five games since the bye, he is third in the league with 119.9 passer rating.

In the last four games, he is No. 1 with a 119.1 passer rating. His seven touchdowns vs. zero interceptions ranks third and his 8.9 yards per attempt is first.

“I feel like I’m playing at a decent level,” he said. “I think there’s definitely some stuff I can clean up and play even better, so I think there’s still a lot more out there, but it’s not bad right now.”