What Went Wrong with the Green Bay Packers?

The Green Bay Packers finished well below fan expectations, but why? I will briefly offer up a multi-factored explanation in the following paragraphs.

The first main reason is the coaching, specifically on the defensive side of the ball. While the Packers were able to create some turnovers and score points off those turnovers early in the season, the trend slowed in the mid and late parts of the season. This was primarily due to the Packer's lack of a pass rush, due in large part to Bob Sander's complete lack of innovation on defense. Yes, there were injuries to Al Harris, Nick Barnett, and Cullen Jenkins, but game after game, Sanders persisted with the same strategy of very rarely blitzing and instead playing straight up, which got the Packers burned game after game. Despite the fact that Aaron Kampman was the only man up front who could generate any kind of pass rush, Sanders routinely sat back and let his defense get burned for huge yardage against mediocre offenses.

The next reason the Packers underperformed this season was the early lack of success and commitment to the running game. The Packers have plenty of talent at the running back position in Brandon Jackson, Ryan Grant, and Deshaun Wynn, but Grant was the only back getting any touches, and McCarthy stubbornly insisted on a pass-heavy offense in the beginning of the season. While the running game was not a threat at that point, a commitment to the running game at least keeps the defense honest and forces them to pay attention to the running game, which keeps them slightly off balance. This lack of commitment was a big error on McCarthy's part, and continues to be so, as he has excellent talent, yet only utilizes Ryan Grant.

The final reason the Packers failed to do well this year was because of inexperience and poor player performance in critical situations. Aaron Rodgers had game-ending turnovers in several games where the Packers were down by less than a touchdown. Combine this factor with the fact that Crosby had an off year kicking field goals at about 80% accuracy (not good by NFL standards), and it becomes very clear why the Packers did not win the tight games. Finally, towards the middle and end of the season, injuries and poor coaching took their toll on the defense, which also allowed a few game-winning drives to offenses that were mediocre at best.

To sum it up, if things could go wrong this year, they did. The good news is that the Packers will have a good draft position, and they also are operating well under the salary cap, so they have the ability to make some moves and pick up some promising rookies and wily veterans, which is exactly what they need for next season. Overall grade for the season: C-.