Mike McCarthy is getting tired of the relentless questions about his Green Bay Packers offense.
“You know, we had 400 yards of offense (against the New York Giants), so I don’t know why the hell I’ve got to come in here and answer questions about the things you think that went wrong,” McCarthy said Wednesday, according to Tom Silverstein of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.
The Packers gained 406 total yards during last Sunday’s 23-16 win over the Giants, but the performance was stained by two Aaron Rodgers interceptions and a passing game that is still working out the kinks.
Despite a dominant performance from his offensive line, Rodgers struggled to find open receivers against an injured Giants secondary. He completed only 23-of-45 attempts and finished the game with a 65.0 passer rating. It was uncharacterisitc to see Rodgers given time to throw and still not find receivers down the field on a consistent basis.
The Packers see the game a different way.
A few plays here, and a few plays there, and the stats on offense would have looked a lot better—especially for Rodgers.
In the first half, Rodgers had a touchdown pass to Randall Cobb wiped out by penalty. On the very next play, his throw over the middle bounced off the hands of Jordy Nelson for an interception. Later, Rodgers threw a perfect pass to Richard Rodgers in the end zone, but the Packers tight end dropped the touchdown.
Take away the touchdown-negating penalty and have Rodgers complete the touchdown reception in the fourth quarter, and the Packers score well over 30 points in a blowout win. Most importantly, the narrative surrounding his offense changes.
Hypotheticals can be a tough argument to make, especially for a unit that has struggled for the better part of a year. But it’s easy to see why McCarthy could be frustrated about the continued line of questions, as obvious progress is being cancelled out by simple execution errors.
The Packers are 3-1, and Rodgers has nine touchdown passes in four games—putting him on pace for 36 in 2016. There are still issues for Green Bay’s offense, especially in the passing game. But it’s clear McCarthy and the Packers aren’t as worried as the outside world.
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