If you want to chalk up the Green Bay Packers’ loss to the Detroit Lions to a brutal day from normally reliable kicker Mason Crosby, that’s fine. The math adds up.

That ignores a few concerning things, most notably that the Packers haven’t looked great yet this season.

The Packers rallied Sunday to make a game of it, but we can’t ignore that a mediocre Lions team was up 24-0 on them at halftime. Their only “good” performance this season was a 22-0 victory against the Buffalo Bills, and afterward Aaron Rodgers was upset over how sluggish the offense was.

Other than one special half against the Chicago Bears, when Rodgers on one leg had a performance that will be a major part of his legacy, the Packers have looked average. The problem is nobody expected them to be just average.

Green Bay is still a brand-name team. We’ll ignore its many flaws because of Rodgers. That’s why the Packers are automatically a preseason Super Bowl pick by many every year — this year was no exception. But if the Bears made one play down the stretch in Week 1, the Packers are 1-3-1. And if the Vikings had a better kicker in Week 2, mark that down to 1-4 (and yes, we can point out that if Clay Matthews wasn’t given a controversial roughing-the-passer flag against the Vikings and Crosby was his usual self Sunday, the Packers could be 4-1).

Maybe Rodgers and the Packers are lulling us to sleep, as they have done in the past.

A 2-2-1 record isn’t cause for a “R-E-L-A-X” speech or a “run the table” proclamation. But there are a few things that need to improve. The good news is they seem fixable.

Packers fans complained for years about defensive coordinator Dom Capers, and Capers was finally fired and replaced by Mike Pettine. The defense still isn’t great. If we ignore the Bills game (which might be unfair; ask the Vikings if the Bills are capable), the Packers have allowed 23, 29, 31 and 31 points in their other four games. It’s not a terrible defense, but that group needs to be better for the Packers to win the NFC North. The Packers rank in the top five in yards and passing yards allowed, so there’s hope that they can suppress points soon.

Defense has never been the Packers’ calling card. That’s the offense. And that has been good, but not great, to this point. Rodgers rallied the team in the second half on Sunday, but was also shut out by the Lions in the first half. Part of that was injuries to receivers Geronimo Allison and Randall Cobb. But the Packers weren’t lighting it up before those two receivers missed Sunday’s game. Maybe Rodgers’ knee, which might have been a multi-week injury that he’s playing through, will get better and the Packers’ offense will look normal again soon. But like everything else with the Packers so far, the offense has been underwhelming.

Nothing has been easy for the Packers. Comments Rodgers made about the offense after the Bills game were dissected and Rodgers’ relationship with head coach Mike McCarthy was analyzed all over again. So was the notion that McCarthy’s offense is holding Rodgers back. Green Bay hasn’t looked like a Super Bowl contender yet, and it’s almost a third of the way into the season.

All of that could turn around. Rodgers’ return to full health, assuming that happens this season, could turn Green Bay into a different team. But with the Rams excelling, the Saints looking like the powerful team we expected and the Bears probably not going anywhere, the Packers can’t afford to give away more games. If the switch is going to flip, Green Bay might want to make sure it doesn’t happen too late.

Quarterback Aaron Rodgers and the Packers haven’t gotten off to a fast start. (AP) More

Here are the power rankings after Week 5 of the NFL season:

32. San Francisco 49ers (1-4, Last Week: 31)

When you’re No. 31 and you lose to the No. 32 team at home, no matter how much you outplay them, there’s only one place to go. I don’t anticipate the 49ers will be here the rest of the season; they played hard and decently well in their two games since the Jimmy Garoppolo injury. The question is how long they’ll keep up that effort level.