GREEN BAY, Wis. – Desperate times call for desperate measures.
Well, maybe times haven’t quite reached desperation level for the Green Bay Packers. After all, they’re 7-2 following a 24-20 victory over the Jacksonville Jaguars on Sunday. Nonetheless, on the heels of a loss to the Minnesota Vikings two weeks ago, the Packers turned in another lethargic performance at home against one of the NFL’s bottom-feeders.
In the absence of the typical 78,000 fans that bring Lambeau Field to life, Rodgers wouldn’t mind seeing some of the between-series goofiness.
“I told Matt (LaFleur), I want to see ‘Roll Out the Barrel.’ I want the beer races. I want ‘Sign, Sign, Everywhere a Sign.’ I want ‘YMCA,’” Rodgers said after the game. “I want the favorites. I don’t know why we’re shying away from some of those but, hey, I’m just one man.”
No different than the loss to the Vikings, who were 1-5 at the time, LaFleur lamented the lack of urgency and passion against the Jaguars, who fell to 1-8. Even a question about how his defense rose to the occasion to preserve the victory turned into a dialogue about the lack of emotion.
As always, LaFleur pointed the finger first at himself and his coaching staff.
“I think every player, everybody involved with this team, has got to look deep inside of them and understand and appreciate the opportunity to go out there and compete,” LaFleur said. “It’s special when you get a chance to go play a football game in the National Football League. And we’ve got to do a better job of bringing more juice, just bringing a tougher mind-set to the gameday – especially when we’re at home. I don’t know what it is about the last couple games here at Lambeau, but certainly it hasn’t been our best and we’ve got to be better.”
Green Bay dominated the game statistically. It wound up with overwhelming advantages of 395-260 in total yards and 6.6-4.3 in total yards. Rodgers doubled rookie counterpart Jake Luton in passing yards and crushed him by 45.4 points in passer rating.
Juice had nothing to do with JK Scott’s low, line-drive punt that was returned for a touchdown. Juice had nothing to do with Davante Adams’ fumble early in the third quarter, which the Jags turned into the tying touchdown. Juice had nothing to do with Rodgers’ interception late in the third quarter, which the Jags turned into the go-ahead field goal. That’s 17 of the 20 points allowed. And maybe this juicy conversation would have been tastier had the wind not blown a third-down deep shot to Robert Tonyan out of his reach on the opening possession.
Regardless, Green Bay’s first three possessions ended in punts. Scott didn’t punt that many times in four of the first eight games. Jacksonville running back James Robinson rushed for 61 yards in the first half.
The combination of a slow start and some huge miscues put the Packers on the ropes against one of the worst teams in the NFL.
What’s the problem?
“If I knew, it definitely wouldn’t be a problem, right?” LaFleur said. “I’ve got to do some investigating, obviously. And look at myself first. But that wasn’t good enough, there’s no doubt about it. In terms of just the energy, the passion, we’re playing football. These guys are playing a kids game, and getting paid for it, man. It’s disturbing to me. And it starts with myself and our staff. We’ve got to bring more energy for these guys.”
Nonetheless, the Packers improved to 7-2. With Seattle losing to the Los Angeles Rams, the Packers and Saints are now tied atop the NFC. With Green Bay beating New Orleans in Week 3, LaFleur, Rodgers and the rest of the team went to bed on Sunday as the frontrunner for the No. 1 seed and the conference’s lone playoff bye.
Without fans in Lambeau Field anytime soon to help provide the energy that’s been lacking, do the Packers have a worthy homefield advantage?
“Obviously, having a loud fan base is important and feeling the energy, especially for the defensive players, is very important,” Rodgers said. “But getting warmer weather or dome teams up here in December and January has always been a good advantage for us. We’ve thrown the ball well in bad weather, we’ve won big games in the bad weather. Getting a home game in January, with or without fans – hopefully with – will definitely be an advantage for us.”
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