Dope Sheet: Packers host Lions in home opener on Monday Night Football

The Green Bay Packers return to Lambeau Field to take on the Detroit Lions on Monday Night Football.

• This is the second MNF game vs. Detroit at Lambeau in the last three seasons and the third in the last five seasons (2017, 2019). Prior to the 2017 contest, the last MNF meeting was in 1972.
• Green Bay is opening its home schedule vs. Detroit for the second straight year (also Week 2 in 2020).
• Green Bay has won eight straight home openers (2013-20). Since 2007, the Packers are 13-1 in their first game of the season at Lambeau Field.
• This is the first time the Packers' home opener has been on MNF since 2008 (Week 1 vs. Minnesota).
• Green Bay scored 42 points in the meeting at Lambeau last season, the most it had scored at home against the Lions since posting 45 in 2011. 
• This will be the 19th time the Packers have hosted the Lions in the month of September, and Green Bay has won each of the last five games as the home team in a September matchup.
• Including a 1994 playoff victory, the Packers are 27-3 against the Lions in the state of Wisconsin since 1992.
• The Packers have swept the season series with the Lions each of the past two years. Green Bay has won the season series 12 times in the last 21 seasons (since 2000).
• Green Bay has a 31-11 overall mark against Detroit since 2000, a .738 winning percentage that is tied for No. 1 among NFL teams (Minnesota Vikings) that have played the Lions more than 10 times over that span, according to Stathead.com.
• The Packers have a 18-3 home record (.857) against Detroit since 2000, the best in the NFL over that span among teams that have hosted the Lions at least 10 times.
• QB Aaron Rodgers has led Green Bay to nine wins in 11 starts at home against Detroit, throwing 21 touchdowns with just four interceptions and a passer rating of 106.9 in those games.
• Rodgers has registered a passer rating of 100-plus in seven of 11 home games versus the Lions.
• WR Davante Adams has seven receiving TDs in 10 games played against the Lions, including one in three of the last four games he played against Detroit. 
• K Mason Crosby enters Week 2 with a streak of 19 consecutive FGs made, tied for the second-longest streak in team history (Crosby, 23, 2010-11 / Crosby, 19, 2013-14).
• According to the Elias Sports Bureau, this is the first time that the Packers have had had three players appear in a game in the same season after entering the season having played at least one game in 14-plus seasons (QB Aaron Rodgers-17th year, TE Marcedes Lewis-16th year and Crosby-15th year).

WITH THE CALL

ESPN will broadcast the game to a national audience. Play-by-play man Steve Levy joins analysts Louis Riddick and Brian Griese in the booth with Lisa Salters reporting from the sidelines. 

Westwood One Sports will air the game on radio across the country. Kevin Harlan (play-by-play) and Tony Boselli (analyst) will call the action with Rich Eisen hosting the pregame and halftime shows.

Milwaukee's WTMJ (620 AM), airing Green Bay games since November 1929, heads up the Packers Radio Network that is made up of 49 stations in four states. For a full listing of radio affiliates, go to www.packers.com. Wayne Larrivee (play-by-play) and two-time Packers Pro Bowler Larry McCarren (analyst) call the action. McCarren first joined the team's broadcasts in 1995 and enters his 26th season calling Packers games. After originally being paired together in 1999, McCarren and Larrivee enter their 23rd season of broadcasts together. They surpassed Jim Irwin and Max McGee for the most regular-season and postseason games broadcast for the Packers with 313 at the 2018 season opener against Chicago. Both McCarren and Larrivee are members of the Wisconsin Broadcasters Hall of Fame.

The broadcast is also available on Sirius Satellite Radio (WTMJ feed).

This is an abbreviated version of the Dope Sheet. Read the full version here (PDF).

THE DOPE ON THIS WEEK'S OPPONENT

Packers vs. Lions:

• Regular season, all-time: 102-72-7
• All-time, Postseason: 2-0
• All-time, at Home: 34-13-3 
• Streaks: The Packers have won the last four meetings, all under Matt LaFleur. Additionally, Green Bay is 7-2 in September matchups agianst Detroit since 2000. 
• Last meeting, regular season: Dec. 13, 2020, Ford Field, Packers won, 31-24

COACHES CAPSULES

• Matt LaFleur: 26-7-0, .788; (2-2 postseason); 3rd NFL season
• Dan Campbell: 0-1, 000; 1st NFL Season 
• Head to Head: LaFleur 0-0 vs. Campbell
• vs. Opponent: LaFleur 4-0 vs. Lions; Campbell 0-0 vs. Packers

MATT LaFLEUR…In his third season as the Packers' 15th head coach.

• In his 13th season in the NFL, having previously served as an offensive coordinator for two seasons (Los Angeles Rams, 2017; Tennessee Titans, 2018), a quarterbacks coach for six seasons (Washington Football Team, 2010-13; Atlanta Falcons, 2015-16), and an offensive assistant for two seasons (Houston Texans, 2008-09).
• In his first two seasons leading the Packers, has authored one of the greatest starts to a head-coaching career in NFL history. For the second consecutive season in 2020, led Green Bay to a 13-3 record and captured the NFC North crown while also earning the No. 1 seed in the NFC for the first time since 2011. It was just the second time in team history that the Packers had won 13-plus games in back-to- back seasons (13-3 in 1996 and 1997). 
• According to the Elias Sports Bureau, was the sixth head coach since 1970 to lead his team to the conference championship game in both of his first two seasons as a head coach, joining Jim Harbaugh (2011-12), Rex Ryan (2009-10), Barry Switzer (1994-95), George Seifert (1989-90) and Don McCafferty (1970-71). 
• Became just the second NFL head coach since the league went to a divisional format in 1967 to win 13-plus games and a division title in both of his first two seasons, joining Seifert (1989-90).
• In his first season leading the Packers in 2019, became the first coach in club history to lead the team to the playoffs in his debut season. Also led the largest one-year win improvement in team history (plus-seven wins).

DAN CAMPBELL…Is in his first year as the Lions' 28th head coach. 

• Is the fifth former Lions player to be named full-time head coach for the team and the first since Joe Schmidt, who played for Detroit from 1953-65 and served as head coach from 1967-72. 
• Brings 22 years of NFL experience to the Lions, including 11 years as a coach and 11 as a player. Most recently served as the assistant head coach/tight ends coach for the New Orleans Saints from 2016–2020.
• In 2015, became the Miami Dolphins' interim head coach following organizational changes, where he took over a 1-3 team that had lost three consecutive contests and immediately helped the team win its first two games under his leadership. The Dolphins finished 5-7 under Campbell that season. 
• A third-round selection by the Giants in the 1999 NFL Draft, the former tight end appeared in 114 total career games (76 starts) and caught 91 passes for 934 yards and 11 touchdowns.

This is an abbreviated version of the Dope Sheet. Read the full version here (PDF).

NOTABLE CONNECTIONS

Packers head coach Matt LaFleur is from Mount Pleasant, Mich., and played quarterback at Saginaw Valley State (2000-02). LaFleur later became an offensive assistant at his alma mater (2003), and then a graduate assistant at Central Michigan (2004-05) and quarterbacks/wide receivers coach at Northern Michigan (2006)...Packers defense coordinator Joe Barry held the same role with the Lions for two seasons (2007-08)…Barry also played for the University of Michigan from 1989-90…Packers offensive line coach Adam Stenavich played collegiately at Michigan (2002-05) and later was a strength and conditioning intern (2011) and a graduate assistant (2012-13) for the Wolverines...Packers quarterbacks coach Luke Getsy was the wide receivers coach at Western Michigan in 2013...Green Bay TE Robert Tonyan signed with Detroit as an undrafted free agent in 2017 and spent his first offseason with the Lions...Lions senior defensive assistant Dom Capers served as the Packers' defensive coordinator from 2009-17…Lions senior personnel executive John Dorsey spent 21 years as an executive with the Green Bay Packers, entering the NFL ranks as a college scout from 1991-96. He then served as the director of college scouting (1997-98, 2000-11) and director of football operations (2012) for the Packers. Dorsey also played for the Packers, from 1984-88, he appeared in 76 games and set the Packers' single-season club record with 35 special teams tackles in 1984…Lions quarterbacks coach Mark Burnell was selected by the Packers in the fifth round of the 1993 NFL Draft and spent the first two seasons of his career (1993-94) in Green Bay…Lions RB Jamaal Williams spent the first four seasons of his career with Green Bay (2017-20)…Lions QB Tim Boyle spent three years as a backup with Green Bay (2018-20)…Packers practice squad WR Equanimeous St. Brown and Lions WR Amon-ra St. Brown are brothers…Barry served as the Los Angeles Rams assistant head coach/linebackers coach (2017-20), where he coached Lions QB Jared Goff and DE Michael Brockers…Packers S Adrian Amos played for the Chicago Bears (2015-18), where he played alongside Lions DL Nick Williams (2018)…Packers T Dennis Kelly (2016-20) played for the Tennessee Titans ,where he overlapped with Lions WR Kalif Raymond (2018-20)...Packers P Corey Bojorquez played for the Buffalo Bills (2018-20), where he played with Lions S Dean Marlowe (2017-20)…Packers LB Rashan Gary (2016-18) and G Jon Runyan (2016-19) both played at the University of Michigan...Packers chief of staff Darryl Franklin spent three years as a graduate assistant at Central Michigan University. Additionally, Franklin was a player personnel intern with the Lions in 2008...Packers WR Malik Taylor played collegiately at Ferris State and attended Hill-McCloy High School in Montrose, Mich. …Lions WR Quintez Cephus played for Wisconsin from 2016-19...Packers defensive line coach Jerry Montgomery served in the same role at Michigan from 2011-12...Green Bay running backs coach Ben Sirmans coached at Michigan State for two seasons (2005-06)...Packers assistant defensive backs coach Ryan Downard played safety at Eastern Michigan from 2007-10...Packers defensive backs coach Jerry Gray coached on the same staff as Lions offensive line coach Hank Fraley for the Minnesota Vikings from 2014-16…Packers coaching assistant Ruvell Martin played collegiately with LaFleur at Saginaw Valley State (2000-03) and attended high school in Muskegon, Mich. …Lions head equipment manager Tim O'Neil spent six seasons as an equipment assistant in Green Bay (1995-2000).