In 1993, Reggie White signed with the Green Bay Packers. Three years later, the 1996 Packers had the best defense in the NFL. They won Super Bowl XXXI. That’s the only time since 1967 the Packers led the NFL in yards or points allowed in a season.

Putting Micah Parsons and White in the same tier is premature, no matter how good Parsons has been to start his career. And it’s way too early to say this Packers team is as good as that 1996 team.

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But after two games, the Packers should see the parallels.

The Packers shut down the Detroit Lions in Week 1, and if anyone thought that was a fluke, they did the same to Jayden Daniels and the Washington Commanders on Thursday night. The Packers were impressive yet again in dismantling the Commanders, 27-18.

By the time the Packers took a 14-0 lead in the second quarter, they were outgaining Washington 243-43. The Packers had 12 first downs and the Commanders had one. It’s a Commanders team that won 12 games last season and made the NFC championship game. The Packers made the Commanders look completely inept, just like they did to the Lions last weekend.

It’s only two weeks, but the Packers look like the best team in football.

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Packers have a fantastic first half

The first half for the Packers was beyond impressive, on both sides of the ball.

Despite having a touchdown called back due to a holding penalty — Green Bay also lost top receiver Jayden Reed to an injury on the play — and a fourth-down overthrow by Jordan Love on the first drive, the Packers rolled up the yards in the first half. They had two touchdown drives of 90-plus yards in the first half. Love was efficient and Josh Jacobs scored a touchdown for the 10th straight game. The Thursday night audience tuned in for a competitive game between two of the NFC’s best teams, but the Packers were clearly the superior team from the opening kickoff on.

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The speed of the Packers’ defense made a huge difference in the first half. The Commanders rarely had any room to run. Parsons made an impact, too. On a third down, he lined up across from the left guard, ran a stunt and drew an illegal hands to the face penalty that moved Washington back. On the first drive of the second half, Parsons got held by rookie Josh Conerly Jr. and still ended up getting a half of a sack on Daniels.

If the first two games, against two of the best offenses in the NFL last season, are an indication of what’s to come, the Packers might have their best defense since that 1996 season.

Commanders tighten it up in the 4th quarter

Finally, in the eighth quarter of the season, the Packers gave up their first touchdown of the 2025 season not counting garbage time. For as much as the Packers had dominated the game, the Commanders trailed just 17-10 after Zach Ertz scored early in the fourth quarter.

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The Packers are off to a great start, but for the second straight week their offense stalled for most of the second half. But when the Commanders got back in the game, Green Bay constructed a drive that practically put the game away. The Packers marched downfield and Tucker Kraft, who had the most receiving yards by a Packers tight end in a game since 2015, scored an 8-yard touchdown to push the lead back to 14 points.

Every yard the Commanders gained was difficult. The run game was non-existent, without a play longer than 8 yards deep into the fourth quarter. The Commanders didn’t have a completion longer than 14 yards in the first three quarters. Perhaps that would be a sign to worry about Washington, had the Packers’ defense not treated the Lions the same way in Week 1.

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And the Packers still haven’t seen Parsons fully comfortable yet after he was traded to Green Bay right before the season started. The Packers’ defense might get even better as the season goes on.