I guess everything has a bright side and in the Packers and their fans case it is now at least we know who this year’s Packers team is. We don’t have to worry about any highly stressful games as the holidays approach. There won’t be any playoffs this year, just like last year, and only a marginally better record if at all. I’m confident they can stumble to two more wins but eight might be a stretch now.
In what I think was the worst play calling game of his career head coach Mike McCarthy has put his head clearly on the chopping block. His inability to adjust his offense to overcome his weaknesses is ridiculous. He used to do it. Remember when he kept Bubba Franks in backfield 90% of the time to help protect Brett Favre? Where is that kind of stuff for Aaron Rodgers? It was clear yesterday that the new vertical offense was not going to work, even though the Packers scored on a long TD pass on their second offensive play. This on a day when they could have rushed for 250 yards easily. Had they stuck with the run they would have they would have won the game.
Instead we now know the Packers are simply an average football team. They might win against a better team one week but will lose to a lessor team the following week. Losing to the Bucs makes games against Detroit and Seattle a lot tougher to call. And to make matters worse is the Packers almost for sure are going to drop a game under 500 next week against the 6-2 Cowboys. Demarcus Ware may set records that may never be broken against the Packers pitiful offensive line. I highly doubt Rodgers finishes this contest.
McCarthy said today he has no idea who will be starting on the offensive line next week. What a confidence builder that is. The bottom line is if McCarthy can’t get better play from the offensive line then he is going to get Rodgers killed. What a nice way to treat your franchise quarterback. Yeah part of it is Rodgers fault but all these deep patterns McCarthy calls need time to develop so Rodgers has to old the ball. But when one strategy doesn’t work, you try another. As my former boss would say “it’s not rocket scientist.”
Oh well, as our previous coach would say, it is what it is. We’ll sort this mess out in the offseason. I just hope we can get to eight wins, it just looks better in the standings all offseason. After yesterday, though, it is hard to find four wins in the second half. But I’ll be at all the games cheering them on none the less.
In trying to stay positive Aaron Rodgers was on The Larry McCarren Show tonight and he put on a brave face. He remains confident they can turn it around. At the very end of the show Rodgers said “We had a very interesting meeting today” but before he could finish his sentence the network went to commercial, so I’m dying to know what that is all about.
I’m going to try to focus on the play on the field and let the bloodletting take place after its all said and done. My guess though, is Thompson stays, McCarthy goes. No Capers, Cowher or Holmgren. Maybe Chucky, Shanahan or Shottenheimer.