Rodger's?

[krd005]

OK....now that I am off suicide watch I want to ask a question. This is not bait, hate or Favre worship!

Did Rodgers cost us the game? I know the D was bad as well, but his to's were big. Are people more forgiving of him becasue he is only in his secound year at the helm? Two to's and missed a wide open rec. in the ot that would have won the game!

Anyway just curious what other people feel.

[Galileo]

Rodgers had a great game but yeah, mistakes by the QB in the playoffs hurt. Maybe in the regular season it's enough to beat quite a few teams but in the playoffs there is a premium on not making mistakes.

The four games this last weekend, the losers turned it over 12 times and the winners turned it over 4 times.....most of those by the QB because he's got the ball in his hands on every play. It was particularly ironic in Rodgers' case because he's been so good at protecting the ball .

For years, I argued this point right here on this site and various people adamantly defended the QB saying "Hey, he was trying to make a play" or "He had over 300 yards passing and 3 TDs" or something like that and to me that always was kind of like "Other than that, Mrs. Lincoln, how did you like the play?"

Obviously, giving up 45 points in regulation was a bigger factor in our loss so I'm not going to say "He lost the game" but his mistakes certainly contributed significantly to the loss despite his overall very good play.

I think the difference is that nobody is saying that Rodgers is the Greatest Of All Time, or the Ultimate Competitor, or the Ultimate Teammate, or blah blah blah blah like his predecessor and so he's not being judged by the same standards that you'd apply to a consensus first ballot HOFer with 10 years of experience. Maybe someday, but not now.

Hey, this was a hard loss but no harder than some of the other playoff losses we've endured since our last trip to the Super Bowl. Bart Starr lost his first playoff game too so maybe this is just something that Rodgers, and the team, had to do to move forward.

In this league, if you want to win you've got to have a QB, you've got to protect that QB, and you've got to get to the opponent's QB. I think we're only 1 out of 3 at this point.

[kainen]

I agree with the above.

Rodgers did not lose that game all by himself, although he has graciously taken responsibility for it. Considering the shootout it was, most of the blame must land squarely on the defense's collective shoulders - coaching staff and players.

I can forgive the defense a bit because of the necessity to use back-ups and back-ups TO back-ups. But Capers needs to review the tapes of all the games to see where assignments were blown and who exactly blew them. I also think he needs to keep an eye on what HE could have done better. I sure hope the man has an open mind and can learn from his own mistakes.

I expect next year to be much better from this squad. We're about three players short of an excellent squad and this offseason will tell much.

I will also grant leniency in my opinion because implementation of the 3-4, by all conventional wisdom, was supposed to take at least two years to fully implement. In light of that fact alone, we were far better than anyone with any football knowledge thought we would be.

[BadgerDodger]

The PACKERS win games and the PACKERS lose games. There's enough blame to go around.

[acb]

If you are able to read McGinn's analysis in the JS, I recommend it. He said Rodgers made about a half-dozen mistakes that Warner didn't. Did it cost the Packers the game? Not by any stretch in my opinion. While the early turnovers were discouraging, and Driver's fumble was not Rodgers' fault, the defense was also extremely culpable giving up as many points and yards as they did. As BD stated, it was a team effort.

I think Rodgers has established he's the real deal. For all the great games Brett had, he certainly had some stinkers, too. . .

[espnpack]

I think this is a good lesson for everyone.

Teams lose games...one or two plays (or players) do not lose games.

This is a good lesson for those who have wasted keystrokes and bandwidth over the past few years claiming that Lordy "lost" the Philly and NYG playoff games...If those people are going to be consistent (which I disagree with), then they should be on here posting that AR is SOLELY responsible for this loss, much moreso than BF was in those other two examples...AR's turnover DIRECTLY led to the conclusion of the game (kind of like Hasselbeck INT to Harris in 2004 Playoffs).

By the way, I understand what he was trying to do, but AR may have really screwed the pooch by intentionally kicking the ball up in the air - by doing so, it took away any doubt as to how the play was ruled on the field. It is possible that replay could have determined the "tuck rule" if that ball had hit the ground, which would have possibly enabled the game to continue to 4th down...Who knows how it would have turned out, but at least there would have been a chance...

[espnpack]

Originally Posted by Galileo

...I think the difference is that nobody is saying that Rodgers is the Greatest Of All Time, or the Ultimate Competitor, or the Ultimate Teammate, or blah blah blah blah like his predecessor and so he's not being judged by the same standards that you'd apply to a consensus first ballot HOFer with 10 years of experience...

You mean like Tom Brady?

[reck]

Originally Posted by espnpack

...The first play from scrimmage by the Pack, in many respects, was just as important as the last play of the game....

Three rhetorical questions:

∙ Is it easier to overcome a mistake on the first play/series of the game or on the last play/series of the game?

∙ Do NFL teams "feel each other out" early in a game to get an idea of which D formation and/or blitz package will be employed against a particular O formation and pre-snap movement?

∙ When is "crunch time" during a game?

They're rhetorical so no need to answer. But c'mon, It's really not that hard, is it?

[Fish]

Quote:
Originally Posted by espnpack
...The first play from scrimmage by the Pack, in many respects, was just as important as the last play of the game....

Originally Posted by reck

Three rhetorical questions:

∙ Is it easier to overcome a mistake on the first play/series of the game or on the last play/series of the game?

∙ Do NFL teams "feel each other out" early in a game to get an idea of which D formation and/or blitz package will be employed against a particular O formation and pre-snap movement?

∙ When is "crunch time" during a game?

They're rhetorical so no need to answer. But c'mon, It's really not that hard, is it?

Reck- I have to answer this one. For ESPN, YES. IT REALLY IS THAT HARD. He's 'unique'. lol How many people would actually continue to fight this point and advance the very silly idea that the first play of a game has the same importance as one late in the game or on the final game winning/losing drive?

[retiredgrampa]

It's very difficult for Packer fans the world over to accept defeat at this point in the season. We all yearned and hoped for better(as did 31 others team's fans.) But, we who have lived through and survived worse times, can honestly look forward to ascendency with a few well chosen additions. Most other teams hope for a miracle. If TT can match his success of last years draft this year, or if he can get a couple or three via other means, we COULD be SB bound. Not many other can reasonably expect that. If they weren't our implacable enemies, I'd feel sorry for daBears. They have no hope in the near future. I DO feel sorry for their fans. I feel deep appreciation to Aaron Rodgers....he survived 40 early sacks that might have totally unnerved a QB of less charactor. Not only survived, but elevated his play to where a very good DB like Antel Rolle could truthfully state that he'd never want to face him again. Talk about unbiased accolades! But, still some of us question him. Not me! We should be counting our many blessings and planning for our futures, as if TT & MM were truly listening. That's what a real fan does.

[espnpack]

I'm guessing the Cowboys, Ravens, and Cardinals spent the first half of their games this weekend "feeling out" the opposition...Good thing they saved their "most important plays" for late in the game...you know "crunch time!"

Come on folks, the triumverate does not surprise me, but I expected better! If people that watch this much football can't figure out that you better come to play in the NFL, particularly in the playoffs, you very well might get smoked right out of the gate!

[EnglishPatient]

People who have a problem distinguishing between fact and opinion are probably going to experience similar difficulty distinguishing between action perspectives and hindsight. When a game is over, seven points conceded on the first play count exactly the same as seven points conceded on the last play. While the game is still being played however, conceding a touchdown early represents a setback that can be overcome, while conceding a go-ahead score in the last second (or in ovetime) is decisive. "Decisive" events are established by timing in combination with value. Wasn't it Lombardi who once claimed that he never lost a game, only ran out of time?

Anyway, if Colledge doesn't commit that awful hold, the Packers get a first down two plays before the fumble and the Cardinals blitzing opportunities decrease. If Favre hadn't gained a reputation for conceding decisive TOs in important games, we wouldn't be having this debate. But hey, what are internet fan forums for?