Game recap: 5 takeaways from Packers' loss to Lions in Week 18

The Packers lost their regular-season finale to the Lions at Ford Field on Sunday, 37-30.

Here are five takeaways from defeat.

1. David Bakhtiari's long road on the field ended with a start, and a solid outing from a left tackle.

Prior to Sunday, Bakhtiari had not played a game since Week 16 of the previous season, but on New Year's Eve a long, difficult rehab from his torn ACL began at Ford Field and played most of the first half. .

"Long, long journey," Bakhtiyari said after the game. "I was looking forward to coming back earlier. It was tough. It definitely wore on me (more) mentally than anything."

"Great to see the other side. I was really excited to be out there today. Just meant a lot."

It also meant a lot to quarterback Aaron Rodgers, who wanted to get some game action with Bakhtiari before the playoffs and persuaded him to prepare to play this week, even though that wasn't his original plan.

"I'm very proud of him. It looked like he was brilliant," said Rodgers, who played the first half and threw two TD passes to Alan Lazard before giving way to Jordan Love.

"He's a great guy and he makes our team better. Of course he's an incredible player. So special today to celebrate him and his happiness. Something like running out there and watching 'The Big Giraffe' Not there."

2. Center Josh Myers, too, was back for the first time since Week 6.

The second-round draft pick from Ohio State had been rehabilitating his knee injury for nearly three months and debuted as a potential playoff tune-up.

In Myers' center, Lucas Patrick moved to the right guard in place of rookie Royce Newman. In the second half, Patrick went back to the center and Newman played right guard.

Head coach Matt LaFleur said everything regarding starting the offensive line for the playoffs would be evaluated. He said the biggest issue for both Bakhtiari and Myers was their conditioning in live game action, as it cannot be emulated.

The team is expected to practice three times during playoff week, Wednesday through Friday, and those workouts will provide a good test of what comes out of the game.

"I think whoever is coming back, you have to see how you react to it," LaFleur said. "What does tomorrow look like? How does it feel? We will continue to work and monitor."