The Packers had a mere 65 yards of offense in the first half, the second-fewest they’ve had in a half with Rodgers starting at quarterback.
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“I don’t think this is anything to get super insane about”, Rodgers said. Two weeks in, Green Bay looks like a middle-of-the-pack team, and the power rankings reflect it. Aaron Rodgers completed 20 of 36 passes for 213 yards and a touchdown against one interception.
“Our perimeter players, we need to get them more opportunities too”, McCarthy added. The game had enough injuries and unsportsmanlike conduct penalties to keep the rivalry heated, but the loss was troubling for the Packers on two very important fronts.
On a night the defense held running back Adrian Peterson to just 19 yards on 12 carries, the Packers normally would like their odds. “We were moving the ball and we have to convert there”. Per Pro Football Focus, Rodgers was under pressure on 11 dropbacks, ran once, was sacked five times and threw five incompletions. Not setting his feet can lead to some brilliant plays, but even for an All-Pro like Rodgers, it leads to inconsistency over time. “I think if we’re consistent and if we’re explosive, then we’re going to put the ball in the end zone a bunch of times”. We trust the process and believe we can get this thing turned around. Eddie Lacy averaged 4.3 yards per carry Sunday but had just 12 rushing attempts against the Vikings.
Rodgers threw deep again on second down, and on third down tight end Jared Cook made the egregious error of losing yardage after already having crossed the first-down marker after a catch. “It’s easy to say, but game flow, every game is different”. “I definitely felt that we were playing the way we needed to play, the way we’re capable of playing”. “We just weren’t quite as clean as we’d like to be”.
As for the next game, the home opener against Detroit, McCarthy and Bennett said they’re not going to forget Lacy and Starks.
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As for the Packers, they suffered a somewhat shocking defeat in Week 2 as well.
