Before the start of the season, when you looked at the game between the Green Bay Packers and the Atlanta Falcons on the schedule, you might have thought since it was in December, it would be a game with major playoff implications.

After all, the two teams just met for the NFC championship in 2016 and each has been a regular participant in the postseason the past few years. However, even with Aaron Rodgers and Matt Ryan at quarterback, the two teams have a combined eight wins at this point. Green Bay is 4-7-1 and just fired its head coach, while the Falcons are 4-8.

At this point, I believe the Packers have about a two-percent chance of making the playoffs, yet a win against Atlanta at Lambeau Field Sunday could at least keep them mathematically alive for another week. Outside of that, Green Bay just needs to a win a game, for itself and for the fans.

The Packers have lost three straight and those losses haven't been pretty. The sad thing is that during the stretch that saw the Packers lose five of six games, Green Bay had a chance to win all five games it lost. 

Green Bay had the Rams on the ropes and was about to take the lead on New England, but huge fumbles by Ty Montgomery and Aaron Jones ended hopes in those two games. Then, Rodgers, McCarthy and the defense managed to give away the game and a fourth-quarter lead to Seattle, only to come out and get a lead against Minnesota only to blow that too.

It's not like Green Bay was getting blown out. It just isn't doing the little things that you need to do to win. Rodgers isn't really making a big impact and the defense just isn't getting stops when it matters most.

That's also why Joe Philbin will be coaching this game as the Packers interim head coach. Something had to change in the eyes of Mark Murphy and now the former Dolphins head coach gets a chance to prove himself over the final month, even though a 4-0 record probably wouldn't even give him a shot at getting the job.

The trusted old assistants generally don't make great head coaches and in his first stint as a head coach, Philbin was very uninspiring. Maybe things will be different this time around. If it's going to be, the Packers need a win today and here is a look at why that will happen and also why it might not.

Why Green Bay will win

Like the Packers, the Falcons have also been on a downward spiral, losing four consecutive games after starting the season 4-4 and while the defense has been a major issue, so has the offense. In six of the first eight games, Atlanta went over 400 yards of total offense. But since then, the Falcons have failed to reach the 400-yard mark, which is significant because Atlanta is 4-2 when it racks up 400 yards or more offensively. 

That kind of stat doesn't seem to bode well for the Packers, however, the Falcons defense ranks 26th in yards allowed and 28th in points allowed. That should give Rodgers and Philbin a lot of confidence going into this week as they try to attack a defense that doesn't have much going for it. 

Of course, the key to getting the offense going will be getting Rodgers back on track. His numbers look spectacular, but really, he is playing as poorly as he has since 2015. At times, it has been downright ugly. He's holding the ball too long, taking unnecessary sacks, missing wide open receivers and sometimes not even throwing to them. It has been startling to watch. His performance in the fourth quarter against Seattle was pitiful. 

Not many quarterbacks can be disappointed about 3.500 yards, 21 touchdowns and one interception, but it sounds much better than it has been. Rodgers has also taken 35 sacks, many of which have been a result of his indecisiveness.

So the first order of business for Philbin is getting Rodgers back on track. I don't exactly know how you do that, although some no-huddle and more up-tempo could work. Rodgers needs to stop thinking so much and play. He needs to stop trying to make the spectacular play and make the easy check down. Take what the defense gives him until an opportunity for a big play strikes. 

While the Falcons pass defense is bad, the run defense is even worse, ranking 27th in rushing yards and touchdowns allowed this season. That could mean a big day for Aaron Jones, who hasn't exactly been lighting the world on fire either. The run game as a whole has averaged a measly 76 yards per game in the losing streak. That needs to change today and it should against the Falcons. Rodgers should also get going.

If not, the rest of this season is going to get ugly.

Why Green Bay could lose

Green Bay could lose this game because Matt Ryan is a damn good quarterback and Julio Jones is still one of the best players in the league, period. Jones does come in with a foot injury, however, he was listed as probable, so he should be a full go. Calvin Ridley was also probable this week and just thinking about how the Packers are going to stop those two guys gives you reason enough why Atlanta could steal a win.

The Packers secondary has been ravaged with injuries and it doesn't seem up to the task of slowing down Jones. The best hope for the Packers is that Kenny Clark and Kyler Fackrell can put some pressure on the quarterback and maybe force Ryan into a mistake or two.

Atlanta is last in the league in rushing yards, so Green Bay should be able to hold up on the ground, although it wasn't able to last week, as it allowed 182 rushing yards to Arizona. 

The bottom line is that this game is all about which team shows up. The Packers didn't show up last week, even though their coaches job was on the line. It was pathetic and to be honest, a little sad. 

The team had the audacity to give Mike McCarthy a standing ovation after he spoke to the team Wednesday. Well, if he meant that much to them, why didn't they play with any sense of urgency against a weak Cardinals team, a team the Packers should have throttled.

We will see if things are different this week, but the Packers showed very little fight a week ago and if they come out like that again, there is a good chance their losing streak will be extended to four games.