The halftime ceremony was magical. How could you not get emotional as both Brett Favre and Bart Starr returned home? Unfortunately, the game did not match the feeling of the halftime. Another game, and the Packers are licking their wounds for a fourth time in five games, and we’re all wondering if the team has any further to fall. Now that my fingers have thawed out, it’s time to flesh out my thoughts on this stinging loss.
- Aaron Rodgers continues to see ghosts. Hate to say it, but he still seems to be drowning on the field without a lifeline in sight. This isn’t the same Rodgers we saw last year who seemed like he was in a class all of his own. He looks scared and lost at times and shockingly wasn’t the best quarterback on the field with competition with Jay Cutler.
- Maybe it’s the injuries we’ve heard about, but he didn’t even try to run at times when he had a lane open and opted to just chuck the ball away enough times that he didn’t look like Aaron Rodgers. While receivers often failed to get open during a lot of the game, he was throwing the ball into uncatchable corners of the end zone when one was wide open in the other corner. Won’t speculate what’s wrong, but there is something not right with him. Injuries, poor communication, ghosts, personal demons, unless he specifically says what is going on, it’s all just speculation. At the end of the day, he’s a professional and needs to figure out what is wrong and fix it.
- Rodgers hurt his ulnar nerve in his arm last night (that funny bone pins and needles thing in your elbow) and couldn’t feel his ring or pinky finger after the game. That’s just great. Hopefully it is a self-limited minor injury. Bruises are no big deal. Bigger problems here are ugly. That said, everyone needs to tell him to stay off the laptop and typing this week. Trust me on this one. Ergonomics are your friend at this point.
- My kingdom for a quarterback whisperer at this point.
- Which brings me to play calling. Are there too many cooks spoiling the soup. Is this offense answering to too many coaches right now where the messages are getting muddled? Edgar Bennett is the offensive coordinator, Tom Clements is calling plays and McCarthy oversees it all. Is there such a thing as too much middle management diluting the offensive scheme where the message is getting lost in a really overthought game of telephone?
- I’m really fed up with trying to run the ball on third and long or fourth and one when there is no line to run block. And it doesn’t help that the ineffective play is starting seven yards behind the line of scrimmage.
- Davante (insert whatever his middle name is here) Adams, why can’t you catch the ball? All kidding aside, Adams is in the midst of a hideous sophomore slump. His routes are sloppy (Exhibit A: the interception last night) and he’s dropping the passes that Rodgers managed to effectively throw his way. McCarthy talked about ball drills last night. Honestly, I don’t care about how many times he catches them in practice. If you can’t catch the ball consistently in a game, there is a problem.
- Yes, I know Jones dropped the game-winning pass in the end zone.
- James Jones had come on strong in the beginning of the season, but seems to be absolutely invisible these days.
- I guess I’m not all that bent out of shape that Lacy dropped the ball. But I am disgusted that if McCarthy seemed to bench him after that but there was no accountability for the umpteen dropped passes.
- At this point, I’m willing to give Janis a try. He can’t be any worse at this point. He may not be all that great in his own right, but even a broken clock is right twice a day.
- Seriously, what can’t the receivers hang on to passes these days.
- Rodgers needs to throw the ball more to Cobb. He was reliable last night.
- Datone Jones is having a good year. There, I said it out loud. He really is ferocious.
- Nate Palmer, on the other hand is not. I’m getting really sick of watching him watch the game from the field. Ineffectual, uninspired. At this point he’s a placeholder at best and approaching a Brad Jones liability on the field at worst. I honestly don’t know what his purpose is, because he seems to lack one.
- Please, please, please don’t let Damarious Randall be really, really hurt. He’s the future of the secondary, and an ACL blowout would be a right kick in the teeth at this moment.
- Luckily we have a Rollins as well.
- What was with Goodson’s boneheaded one-armed take down for a DPI? Dude, this isn’t backyard football where that is par for the course.
- Someone pay Mike Daniels. Losing him would be bad.
- Has McCarthy lost the locker room? No, I’m not kidding. I’m not calling for his head or demanding he be fired. But It’s a valid question. I’ll say it again: Has Mike McCarthy lost the locker room? Because if that is the case, things are only going to get uglier. The team is failing in performance, but it is also getting out-coached. This may quietly be a bigger problem than a case of the drops, a QB with a headspace problem or a offensive line that impersonates a sieve. If the coaching staff has lost the team, this tailspin is going to get worse.
- Meanwhile, I think last night was our goodbye to Bart Starr, and it stung as bad as that trip you make to visit a grandfather you know you’ll never see again. He looked frail, but not lost. The dementia is as devastating as the strokes. It was a bittersweet feeling seeing him back at Lambeau. I worry the next time all three quarterbacks are together will be for Starr’s funeral. He is the greatest of all time. Anyone disagreeing with me is itching for a fight.
- Oh and it was pretty awesome to have Favre return. What, you don’t think I can appreciate the moment? It was cool. The Prodigal Son has finally come home.
- I hate being cold. I hate being wet and cold more. And I hate being wet, cold and the Packers losing most of all.
- That said, I still love my Packers. Haters to the left.
Kelly Hodgson is a writer for PackersTalk.com and you can listen to her as a Co-Host of Out of the Pocket. You can also follow Kelly on Twitter at @ceallaigh_k
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4 responses to “Where do the Packers go from here?”
Kelly is so right. This is a problem of too many cooks in the kitchen. The locker room is most likely lost and Davante “fancy pants” Adams can’t catch at the NFL level. So why bench Lacy? The way he was playing was just spectacular. Sure, he fumbled in a very wet afternoon. The truth is McCarthy is just over his head on what to do with fixing the offense, which is unfixable at this point. Lastly, I mention this with a bit of grief, the Packers are likely going to get trounced by Stafford that can connect with his receivers.
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I guess I’m not all that bent out of shape that Lacy dropped the ball. But I am disgusted that if McCarthy seemed to bench him after that but there was no accountability for the umpteen dropped passes.”
There is NO accountability with the receiving corps… absolutely none… The defense played a very good game (17 points given up should ALWAYS bring a win)! The offense is NOT holding up their end of the bargain… To almost win (last quarter heroics) is NOT going to cut it… we won’t even get close to making the playoffs this way… and perhaps we are spoiled, but this team is just not that good…
Adams should be benched, give Janis a shot. Not one of the wide receivers is getting any kind of separation. Lacy should be benched until he loses some weight, Starks was a major part of the Super Bowl run and can be again. I believe there is something wrong with Rodgers be it mental or physical. I was at the Rams game and there was 5 or 6 times a WR was open and Rodgers would not throw the ball. MM keeps saying its execution not play calling and if that’s the case gets some players out there that will execute. This team is being badly out coached in all phases of the offence. GO PACK GO !
IF McCarthy’s gonna bench Lacy for a fumble–Adams shouldn’t play the REST OF SEASON as bad as he’s played since bye week. PUT SPEED ON FIELD AT WR–it’s time to give Jeff Janis some playing time over Adams. I know when Montgomery’s ready to go–he’s far better than Adams and deserves to start. Put Janis and Monty on the field, sit Jones and Adams for a game, get their attention. J.C. Tretter deserves playing time–he performed as well or better than every other lineman despite the bad snap. McCarthy’s offense ain’t working, when he gets a run game going, they abandon it and can’t hit on a passing game to save any wins. I agree on Palmer at LB, neither he or Joe Thomas are getting much production–put the rookie Ryan out there, give him some play experience NOW! Defense looked nothing as it did vs. Vikings and this against a worse Bears tearm, McCarthy’s got problems with coaches not getting their jobs done, that means HE ain’t getting his job done! Time for Thompson/Murphy to put a brogan boot up McCarthy’s arse, get this team’s attention or it’s gonna get worse quick.