This probably isn’t going to end well. It’s probably not going to end well for Green Bay Packers coach Mike McCarthy. Quarterback Aaron Rodgers seems to be tired of his shit.
It hasn’t been overtly obvious, but McCarthy and Rodgers now appear to be squabbling through the media.
It started when, after losing to Indianapolis, Rodgers talked about the lack of juice the team had in that game. That’s the same as saying the team wasn’t prepared and whose job is it to have the team prepared? The head coach.
Following that same game, McCarthy said his message to the team was about energy, i.e. you didn’t play with any. McCarthy reversed course the following day and we can assume it had something to do with Rodgers’ comments. That Monday McCarthy said, after watching the file, he thought the energy level was fine.
Obviously, the energy level wasn’t fine, but that’s beside the point.
After Sunday’s loss to Tennessee, Rodgers was again critical.
“There has to be that healthy fear as a player that if you don’t do your job they’ll get rid of you,” Rodgers said. “I think we’ve all got to go back and the urgency’s got to pick up, the focus has got to pick up… we’ve all got to play better, and that starts with me.”
Urgency and focus. Rodgers is clearly saying that it is lacking and whose job is it have the team focused and in the right mindset? The head coach.
Rodgers is also critical of personnel decisions in that statement. Does he think certain players should be benched? It appears so or that at least the threat should be present. That obviously falls on the head coach, as well.
In hindsight then, it was probably predictable that McCarthy followed up with a diatribe of his own on Monday morning. That diatribe began like this.
“Let’s state the facts: I’m a highly successful NFL coach,” McCarthy said. “With that, I’ve never looked at the ride to this point as smooth.”
What, exactly, was the point of saying that? The only thing that comes to mind is when guard Josh Sitton criticized the Packers’ offense last season, calling it predictable. McCarthy fired back through the media that “Josh Sitton needs to play guard.”
This certainly appears to be McCarthy telling Rodgers he needs to play quarterback.
If this rift continues to grow, we can tell you how it’s going to turn out. McCarthy will be gone because Rodgers isn’t going anywhere.
Murphy, Thompson, McCarthy and Capers, etc should be fired. They have literally wasted Championships, Division Titles, opportunity after opportunities.
Yep! This ^^^^^^^^
“Why” are you a highly successful NFL coach, Mikey? You weren’t shit prior to your current stint in Green Bay. I’ll wager after you are gone from the Packers, you won’t be a head coach again let alone highly successful.
No way, there will be plenty of suitors for McCarthy. Any coach that led a team to seven straight playoff appearances and won a super bowl will get attention. Especially when a numbskull like Chip Kelly is employed. How successful he will be is another question.
Kato is right. McCarthy would be one of the 1st head coaches hired, The problem for Mike is, he can’t take Rodgers with him.
One other thought…..When does Peppers come back? We need him.
Mike Sherman didn’t get another head coaching job. He was a successful head coach with a winning record, division championships and playoff appearances. Just saying, if everyone figured Sherman’s success was due to Favre, McCarthy won’t fare any better.
I read an article about him coaching in Maine, and I thing the gist was that he didn’t want another HC job. I could be wrong but I’m too lazy to go look.
They both need to go. It’s the only way to cleanse that locker room. I’d venture to guess 50% of the players in there think Rodgers is a whiny little bitch.
You can’t keep the whiny bitch and replace the coach because of said whiny bitch. Send them both packing and start over.
Joseph to write that Rodgers is not going anywhere is a fairly strong statement. Just consider this. Murphy, TT, and MM believe they are the reason the Packers are successful, and remember they believe making the playoffs is successful. They have said it to the press. The threesome also believe players are just pawns that can also be used as scapegoats for bad games and seasons, because a bad game or season cannot be their fault for they are the consistent feature in the success of the team, even before Rodgers was in a prominent role. To top it off MM is a so called QB guru, just ask him. As I have said after Sitton was released Rodgers and Matthews will have no dead cap hit after the 2017 season if traded or released. That takes off over 30 mil from the salary cap with no dead cap hit. If nothing happens to MM or TT after this year there is a chance it is Rodgers gone and not MM.
I do not believe the team will fire a Super Bowl winning coach or GM for one unsuccessful season (their view not mine). So if MM and/or TT do not retire after this year for health reasons it could be an interesting 2018 spring in Greenbay for Rodgers if a contract extension is not done in 2017.
As former players, one would think Thompson and Murphy would recognize when they have a generational player in Rodgers they simply cannot replace easily, if ever. Maddening they have no sense of urgency to take full advantage of what they have. If making a Superbowl appearance once every 15-20 years is satisfactory, then the Packers are Dallas 2.0 and delusional. Those 2 ought to be checked for CTE, stat.
I agree about Rodgers. But just look at Sitton. just look at all the rookies. Draft and development! The threesome believe you constantly have to stay young on the player side, and there is some truth to that. On the management side they believe years equal experience and wisdom because it fits them and their wallets. If nothing happens with MM or TT after this season I just think there could be scenarios other than MM leaving and Rodgers staying. the other thing is if I was Rodgers agent I would be trying to get a contract extension next year. It could cause some friction.
I think you guys are giving Murphy a lot of credit here. I never see Murphy discussing anything about the performance of this team or it’s personnel.
I have seen Murphy do this…..
Murphy: ‘We’re very excited about it’
(5:13) By packers.com – Posted Oct 24, 2016
Green Bay Packers President/CEO Mark Murphy spoke on the announcement of an exclusive photo featuring Bart Starr, Brett Favre and Aaron Rodgers which is now available through the Packers Pro Shop.
I’ve also seen Murphy say on multiple occasions that he has nothing to do with football operations, as he gives cart blanche to Thompson, nor does he question him.
As far as staying young. As a coach, having very young players isn’t something a coach desires. It’s a lot more work for the coaching staff, and it’s a lot more mistakes made on the field.
Let me pose a question……If Rodgers went to the Executive Committee and told them, find a new GM and coach, and lets start with a new slate, or please trade me. What do you think would happen?
I think most people have the wisdom of knowing that TT and MM wouldn’t have accomplished what they have in Green Bay without Aaron Rodgers. They might be .500 at best, no SB, maybe 1/2 the Division titles.
If this situation stayed the same, stayed stale and non progressive with TT and MM remaining. I wouldn’t blame Rodgers one bit for requesting a trade. Not a fucking bit.
I’m also convinced that Capers is already the chosen fall guy this season. No matter what the record this year. When the GM and coach have a fall guy. They think it takes the spotlight off of them. I think they are going to be dead wrong.
Spot fucking on.
Stop going over the whole “Josh Sitton needs to play guard,” thing like it makes your point. You’ve been taking it blatantly out of context since it happened. Anyone even remotely a fan remembers that it was because they tried him at left tackle when they were desperate and it just didn’t work. Thus, “Josh Sitton needs to play guard [and not left tackle].” This team has enough problems without inventing new ones.
The other dynamic not being mentioned here is the Thompson/McCarthy relationship. Remember those stories that McCarthy was unhappy with what Thompson has given him to work with? It’s like what PF4L said, working with a constant cast of young players makes a coaches job much harder.
I have respect for Dom Capers and what he has done. I feel for the most part, especially with the advent of offenses in the NFL and rule changes favoring them, he has done alright. He hasn’t come up in big moments (2012 divisional game, and 2014 NFC title game come to mind). But let’s not forget that he has almost constantly had to work with young players. And developmental players (Nick Perry, Datone Jones). Think about this: after Woodson left, only Shields and Burnettare the only members of the secondary he has had at any one time with more than 4 years of experience. That is tough. Couple that with hitting on zero defensive linemen other than Daniels and that makes it tough. However, if Thompson is going to keep staying young on defense like this, then they need a defensive coordinator on the sidelines coaching these guys up during games. You can have an assistant in the box.
The ironic thing about the “Josh Sitton needs tom play guard” quote is that it occurred after the loss to the Cardinals and then… a little later McCarthy moved him to LT to fill in for David B. during the Vikings game. That brilliant move — Sitton said he was told just before the game he would play LT — led to a lot of pressure and a couple sacks by the incredible Everson Griffen (a player I believed the Packers woudl take in round 1… then round 2… then round 3… then was overjoyed the Vikings stole him). One of those sacks forced a fumble which was run back for a TD. Yep, that coaching move literally cost the Packers that game.
That is why, as a Vikings fan, I pray 4 times daily that McCarthy will remain the Packers coach for at least another decade.
Kinda like how Adrian Peterson’s illegitimate little boy prays 4 times a day Daddy doesn’t make his yearly visit to beat his ass.
It’s a good thing we didn’t take Everson Griffen. Then we’d have a player who in fact, actually does take PED’S that you would come in and troll us about.
Holy shit. That got real.
McCarthy, The Scapegoater and Rodgers, The Blamer-of-Others can only get along if they choose the same person to blame, scapegoat, and run out of town.
The problem with McCarthy scapegoating is that he put those players on the roster and is responsible for developing them. Same thing basically when he blames a position coach or coordinator.
Rodgers, every game, usually several times a game is shaking his head at a receiver for allegedly running the wrong route. Now, this can and does happen but… how often do you see opposing QBs doing this? I have seen Rodgers do this more times than all other QBs combined — and I don’t watch most Packer games and I’ve been watching football since 1979.
Are the coaches not teaching the receivers the routes?
Is it Rodgers getting the route wrong?
Is it just bad throws and Rodgers does that to make it seem like the incomplete is not his fault?
Even if the receiver runs the wrong route Rodgers could wait and address it in the huddle or on the sideline. Nope. He has to try to embarrass them and shift blame onto them. This is both a being-a-jerk and an ego thing.
McCarthy, Rodgers, TT… these are just bad people.
Vikings Lead NFL In Number Of Player Arrests – WCCO – CBS Local
minnesota.cbslocal.com/2014/09/16/vikings-lead-nfl-in-number-of-arrests/
How come a Vikes’ fan follows the Packers’ locker room issues? Anyway, your comment makes sense about Rodgers’ expression after an incomplete pass. And as someone else said here, receivers don’t show pouty expressions after his badly thrown passes.
I was right behind the packer bench at the queen’s game and saw the dissension between AR and MM. Totally jawing at each other. I knew after that they would lose.
The run is over folks. There’s toxin in this team. Fire them all and trade AR for an entire draft class.
I can feel it in the air. The rumors are rampant now on social media. All they have to do is lay another egg at Washington this Sunday and MM is gone.
This ^^^^^^^^