The Green Bay Packers came into this season feeling like they were legitimate Super Bowl contenders. They were returning a young but talented team and then general manager Brian Gutekunst infused a superstar into the mix by trading for Micah Parsons.

The first two games of the season were proof of that Super Bowl contender concept. The Packers hosted the back-to-back division champion Detroit Lions in Week 1 and looked dominant. They won 27-13 and made a statement.

The very next week, the Packers beat the Washington Commanders, 27-18. That doesn't seem impressive now since Washington enters Week 18 4-12, but at the time, it was a big deal. The Commanders had just made the NFC Championship game, led by star quarterback Jayden Daniels, so the Packers had seemingly vanquished two big-time NFC opponents in rapid succession.

If you've stuck around since then, you know the up-and-down season that has taken place since. The Packers lost in disappointing fashion to the Cleveland Browns in Week 3, they tied with the Dallas Cowboys in Week  4 and on and on the ride went.

Beating Aaron Rodgers and the Pittsburgh Steelers on Sunday Night Football sure seemed like a high point. Losing to the Carolina Panthers and Philadelphia Eagles in back-to-back games after that sure felt very low.

And yet, here we are in Week 18 and the Packers are 9-6-1 and no matter what happens against the Minnesota Vikings in the season finale, they're guaranteed the seventh seed in the NFC playoffs.

So, they've at least got a chance. The Packers don't have two of the major factors needed to win the Super Bowl, though, so don't hold your breath for this team to make a run.

This is the biggest factor.

It's not always the best team that wins the Super Bowl. Usually, it's the team that was able to stay the healthiest. 

Unfortunately for the Packers, the 2025 season has been terrible in that regard. From losing rising-superstar tight end Tucker Kraft against the Panthers in early November to watching Parsons go down with a torn ACL of his own just about a month later -- this season has felt a bit cursed.

Those were the two big ones, but you can't discount how much it hurt to lose former All-Pro offensive lineman Elgton Jenkins earlier in the season and losing Devonte Wyatt a week before losing Parsons was a huge blow for the defensive line.

Starting right tackle Zach Tom has been in and out with injuries, and star running back Josh Jacobs has been hobbled with a knee injury for the last quarter of the season. Jordan Love missed last weekend's game against the Baltimore Ravens with a concussion, and even backup quarterback Malik Willis has been dealing with a shoulder.

When fully healthy, this team has the players to win a Super Bowl. Unfortunately, they're far from fully healthy.

The other key to making a Super Bowl is momentum. Sometimes it's not the best team that wins but it's the team that's the hottest. The Packers found that out in 2010 when Aaron Rodgers caught fire and officially started his ascension to the very top of the NFL's quarterback rankings.

Again, momentum is something this current team just doesn't have, though.

They looked to have grabbed a hold of it by beating New York Giants, Vikings, Lions and Chicago Bears while looking like one of the hottest teams in the NFL, but the loss of Wyatt in that win over the Lions was compounded by the loss of Parsons the very next week against the Denver Broncos.

The Packers lost that Broncos game despite arguably playing better for at least one half; they melted down in the final minutes against the Bears in Chicago, and then they got their brakes beaten off by Derrick Henry and the Ravens.

There's a real possibility that the Packers lose in Week 18 to the Vikings on the road, which would mean they'd enter these playoffs on a four-game losing skid.

That's the opposite of playing hot, and the Packers are very likely to get bounced in the wild card if they can't figure out a way to start turning their fortunes around.

On paper, it's a game in which the Packers have nothing to play for, though. When you factor in momentum, though, it's vital that the Packers beat the Vikings to end their 2025 regular season.