In the game that kicked off Week 2 of the NFL season, the Green Bay Packers faced the Washington Commanders and secured a solid 27-18 victory at home. With this win, the Packers are on the right path toward building a record that could propel them into postseason contention as the year progresses.
After the game, Packers quarterback Jordan Love revealed that part of his success came from closely studying and replicating the approach of the greatest quarterback in NFL history, Tom Brady.
I think that’s just the cool part of our offense,” Love said. “It’s just some of the stuff that we can keep building on… trick plays.
During the Brady-Belichick era with the New England Patriots, the team became famous for its use of creative, unexpected plays. These plays often caught opposing defenses off guard, generating explosive gains and shifting the momentum of games. It now appears that the Packers are beginning to embrace a similar philosophy, using unpredictability to attack defenses from multiple angles and capitalize on their confusion.
Green Bay’s surprise factor
In today’s NFL, where teams study hours of game film to anticipate opponents’ tendencies, the element of surprise has become an essential weapon. Head coach Matt LaFleur is clearly aware of this reality and has begun incorporating clever trick plays into Green Bay’s offensive playbook.
These plays, while seemingly pulled from a magician’s hat, have proven to be highly effective, leading to big yardage gains and setting up crucial scoring opportunities. Against Washington, the Commanders’ secondary struggled to adjust, often finding themselves out of position and unable to react in time. This left Green Bay with open lanes to exploit, further demonstrating the value of creative play-calling in today’s game.
Tom Brady’s legacy of trick plays
One of the most memorable examples of this type of creativity came in 2015, during a Patriots game against the Philadelphia Eagles. In that matchup, Brady shocked everyone by catching a pass from Danny Amendola, producing one of the longest gains of the day.
Absolutely no one expected Brady, the quarterback, to become the receiver. That element of surprise made the play perfectly effective. Interestingly, now that Brady is a minority owner of the Las Vegas Raiders, fans have seen similar concepts emerge in other teams’ playbooks.
Packers looking like Super Bowl contenders
Through the first two games of the 2025 season, the Packers’ offense has shown impressive rhythm and efficiency. Combined with a defense that is steadily improving, especially with the recent addition of Micah Parsons, Green Bay looks like a team capable of making a deep playoff run. While it is still early in the season, optimism among fans is growing.
Love finished the game with 292 passing yards and two touchdowns. Even after losing receiver Jayden Reed to injury, other members of the passing attack stepped up to fill the void.
Meanwhile, Parsons has quickly emerged as a defensive cornerstone, applying relentless pressure on opposing quarterbacks and disrupting offensive game plans. His arrival has significantly boosted Green Bay’s defense, making the Packers a legitimate contender for a Super Bowl appearance.
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