Aaron Rodgers said that the Green Bay Packers gave the game away to the Seattle Seahawks in their NFC Championship matchup.
The Green Bay Packers were leading the Seattle Seahawks 16-0 at halftime, but were unable to finish the game. Seattle was able to come all the way back and knock the Packers out of the playoffs with a 28-22 victory in overtime.
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Aaron Rodgers and the Packers’ offense went conservative in the second half, and they tried to sit on their lead. Mike McCarthy has been very well-known for blowing big leads with his play-calling, and that was the case once again against the Seahawks. Rodgers talked about the loss after the game, and made it clear that he felt the Packers gave it away.
“It’s going to be a missed opportunity that we’re probably going to think about the rest of my career,” Rodgers said. “You just go home, think about it, and move on. Start getting ready for the offseason program. This one’s going to hurt for a while because of the close proximity to the feeling when the clock hits zero and you’re ahead. We gave it away.”
There is absolutely no excuse for the Packers after that type of second half. McCarthy stopped allowing Rodgers to make plays through the air, and instead tried to pound the football with Eddie Lacy. What was the problem with that? Quite simply, the Seahawks were stuffing the run and the Packers weren’t picking up yardage.
Obviously there are a lot of question marks surrounding the Packers heading into the offseason. They made quite a few strides this season, but came up short in the most important game. Rodgers didn’t play a very good game either, and ended up throwing two interceptions to go along with a touchdown and 178 yards.
Perhaps the most embarrassing part of the loss is that the Seahawks turned the ball over five teams, and the Packers still couldn’t get the job done.
No matter what happens moving forward, Rodgers can only sit back and wonder what could have been if McCarthy and the coaching staff had decided to continue coaching the way that made them successful in the first half.
[H/T NFL.com]
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