#354 Packers Unscripted: Finding a way to finish

Field and West. I don't normally like to start back to back shows with exactly the same topic, but after hearing Mike McCarthy's news conference on Monday, it's very hard not to start this show talking about the fourth quarter, because I think Mike McCarthy said the phrase fourth quarter in that news conference at least a half a dozen somewhere between a half a dozen and a dozen times. Because this team's issue right now is the failure to

finish games. Yeah, you have to. We discussed this and it's been a big topic here, not just this week, but you know, you can look back at the Rams game and some of the you know, where they came up short against Detroit. It's finishing drives, it's finishing defensive possessions, it's getting takeaways and clutch situations, and the Packers have just not been able to to dring that together consistently. The question I have, and I think everybody has, is

what do you have to do to accomplish that. What does it come down to. And you know, in meetings this week and and all the things that they're gonna be sitting down and discussing, it's gonna be trying to figure that out. Because now you're taking out a Miami Dolphins team that's been pretty well conditioned for fourth quarter situations. They've had some pretty close games two here to be five and four this part of the season. Packers have

to respond. Yeah, And I don't want to beat a dead horse here, but I tell you, when you start to think about all of the plays and all of the regrets in the fourth quarter of the last couple of weeks, you know, the sack by Aaron Donald on third down for the Rams, the fumble on the kickoff, the three yard run by Todd Gurley on third and six when you had a chance to to make that actually what could have been a fairly tough field goal for Greg's airline go to New England, fumbled by Aaron Jones,

another sack on a third down that leads to a three and out, the defense gets caught on a trick play, a mistackle on the Josh Gordon play. All of these things happening in the fourth quarter. Now, that's not to say there aren't mistakes in the first three quarters. The Packers certainly have their things to overcome there as well. But when they start to pile up like that in the fourth quarter, man, they make it just it just

makes it so hard to overcome. Well, you have to buckle down because you're going up against the clock at that point in time. Yeah, you can make mistakes earlier in the game, and the Packers made a handful of those against New England, but you had time on your side, you had opportunities to respond. But when you're playing Tom Brady, as we said all week long, Mike, you're just not gonna get a lot of opportunities to be able to

have a lapse or a misq. You have to, you know, be on top of your game throughout that to put yourself in a position to win that football game. And here's the thing. The Packers are going to come up on a stretch here and you got we'll see exactly who's gonna start a quarterback. It sounds I could probably still be brock Osweiler with this capsule injury that you know, Ryan Tannehill's dealing with but you got him coming up, you have Russell Wilson, and you got Kirk Cousins again. Um,

all those guys are very capable. Wilson has played at the highest point of this game. But it is gonna be interesting to see what the Packers can do against them, because, Okay, you're no longer facing Golf and Brady, who are get the ball out, quick type up tempo offenses. Now you're

gonna see a little bit more traditional stuff. So I think they need to take some of the lessons they learned because there were positives to be drawn from these games, But now can you incorporate that to beat some teams that I think the Green Bay Packers at the beginning of two thousand eight team, when they were laying out the schedule, felt that they could be Yeah, I agree with you. I agree with you entirely. The other thing we need to definitely talk about with regards to Mike

McCarthy's news conference is the injury update. Um, it sounds as though right tackle Brian Bulaga has avoided anything so serious with the knee injury, but his evaluation is ongoing. His availability for this week at this point is is certainly in question. Jason Spriggs stepped in for him at right tackle for the remainder of the Patriots game and would presumably be that guy again. Not such good news though.

On Geronimo Allison, it sounds like his groin injury that he sustained in practice last week that kept him out of the New England game, it sounds like it's a pretty big deal, potentially a real core muscle thing that could require a procedure, so he could be out for several weeks. On the defensive side, um Blake Martinez um amazing, quite frankly, that he came back in the game after the ankle injury. He turned his ankle when he was chasing after Tom Brady on that one play. He did

come back in. Now there's a lot of swelling apparently that he's dealing within that ankle, So again he's going to be another another wait and C situation. And then Kevin King with the hand string injury, Mike McCarthy labeled him as being hard pressed to be able to play

this week. And you know, we all know whether you're talking grin injury, hamstring injury, those types of things usually those are not just one week deals, though, nothing's been announced that that that anything with King is as serious as it is with Alison. So what do you make of all of that news? Because the Packers came out of the bye week as healthy as can be, and now here we are talking about a long list of injuries.

With the exception of Blaga, We're gonna put him as an outlier right now because it sounds like whatever the situation, maybe for Sunday, it's not going to be long term. But let's look at the other three individuals. When you have Allison, when you have King, and you have Martinez, who are the next men up at those positions for the most part their rookies, It's your Orn berks Is, it's your Marquise Valdo's Scantlings, and is your Josh Jacksons. Josh Jackson was the one that subbed in for King

last week. I think going into this game and again, we're gonna have to see how this injury report plays out. There's three practices between now and Sunday, but this could pretend actually be the most important game I believe in the season for that rookie class and what could potentially be asked of them. I do tip my cap to Antonio Morrison. I thought Morrison played a pretty good ball game, considering he wasn't even in the game at the beginning.

It was Orn Burke's who started. Then Jermaine Whitehead goes in, and then Morrison ends up being the signal caller, you know, the communicator in the second half during the stretch that like Martinez was gone and he and he may hold that job this week. Not to cut you off, but with the Dolphins and how they like to feed Frank Gore and what you're trying to do with their running game, maybe Antonio Morrison does play a much bigger role this week.

But I said an inbox too much. I think that this could potentially with the understanding that sounds like King won't go, this could be a huge game for Josh Jackson. I think we've been talking about this young man and getting opportunities and being able to get out there. The Packers have used him six different ways from Sunday right now. He was even playing that hybrid linebacker spot a little bit after Jermaine white had left in that dime pseudo package.

So I'm very interested to see him. I think he's done some really good things at this point in the season and it's just been mostly about trying to find an opportunity for him to get on the field. But Shad Bryland started the other's opposite corner last week. He's back in the fold. He said, he feels like he'll benefit from being able to kind of get his feet

underneath him in that game against New England. The Packers have felt good about their depth at with the secondary for a while, and it's not just one or two players deep. They feel like they can go deep in multiple spots. They very well may have to test that going into Sunday against the Dolphins. Yeah. Well, we've certainly seen over the course of the last several weeks what Marquez Veldes Scantling can do when his number is called. We talked about it on the show yesterday. Three catches

for a hunter in one yards. They happen to all come in the third quarter of that game. But with Alison's injury sounding like it could be multiple weeks, Valdes Scantling is going to get a lot of snaps and based based on how he's performed, Aaron Rodgers certainly has shown confidence in him. I think he's as much as Rogers has talked about wanting to get the ball more to Adams and not forgetting about Adams, even when maybe the defenses are are trying to do some things to

take him away. If Valda Scantling is getting open, he's he's becoming a tough cover because if you want to devote extra attention to Davante Adams or Jimmy Graham, Valde Scantling is tough to cover one on one because he's got the combination of size and speed. Yeah he does. And that's actually what stands out to me the most right now is that you knew what you're getting four point three seven speed or whatever it was him coming out of the combine. You knew what his size and

his measurables and his length look like. But it really until you take that individual and put them on the field with Aaron Rodgers, there's just so many unknowns. I think over these last five games, what we've learned about Marquis Valda Scantling is the scene the lights are not too bright for him. He's going to be able to go in there and operate within the offense and make the necessary adjustments, and yeah, is he gonna be able to run the rout tree like Davante Adams right now.

Absolutely not, But I think the Packers have done a really good job of scheming stuff that works for him. And actually, I think he's demonstrated really good footwork off the line of scrimmage that he doesn't always have to rely on his speeds. He gained separation downfield. He's a legit playmaker. The fact that I tweeted this yesterday twenty two point one or twenty one point two, I forget what it is. His average yards per catch right now second in the league to DeShawn Jackson, among you know,

qualifying receivers with enough snaps and in playing time. So I've been really impressed with them, and if they have to proceed here for a number of weeks with Marcus Valdes scantling, is that pseudo three or whatever you wanna call it. I think he's shown in these past few games that you know, he's up for that task. Yeah. My favorite catch of his maybe so far this season,

was the one he made. It was two plays before the end of the third quarter in New England, and hey, I take nothing away from the great move off the line of scrimmage for the forty yard touchdown against the Rams, and that ball on the crossing route against the Patriots just a pinpoint throw by Rogers right on the fingertips,

really really solid catch. But the third down play right before that one kind of a broken play a little bit and Valdes scantling is down the sideline and Rodgers puts it up there and gives him a chance to could play, you know, contested ball down the sideline. He's got to he's got to fight the cornerback for it and keep his feet in bounds and make the play. And those are the types of plays that that can

flip things. That's the play that got the Packers going on that drive, even though that was the one the drive that ended with with the Aaron Jones fumble. But man, you make contested catches like that, there is no better way to earn confidence from your quarter. I mean, that's what Geronimo Alison did. I mean, that's what Randall Cobb did. It's certainly what Davante Adams did to get to this

point in his career. And Dude, this thing that happened in this game against the Patriots, the amount of attention they put on Adams with having Gilmour trail him and covers the entire time and shadow him. Uh, that's going to continue happening. Defenses are going to continue to put a premium on being able to limit his opportunities. I

get what Aaron Rodgers was saying. You still want to get him the football, but it's going to be incumbent on the Marcus Valdes Scantlings and even the Jimmy Graham's too, if they get opportunities, if they get single man defense against them, you gotta catch the ball and you gotta produce. And to fail that Scantlings credit, he's done that. Yeah, you gotta make the play, no doubt about it, very quickly. West.

Packers fans, you probably have noticed these Quick Trip Cruba Coffee cups we've had on the set here for the last few shows. But to be sure to stop in at your local Quick Trip pick up your Packers cup today eight nine cent refills on your Cafe Cruba coffee all season long. You and I had some free Cafe Cruba coffee last week's right, we did pretty tasty. He said, that was that was all right? That was all right, Hey, West, I'm gonna throw a loaded question at you. Oh yes,

let's do it. Um. We heard from Aaron Rodgers after Sunday night's game, very critical of himself, certainly taking his share of the responsibility in terms of not playing up to his own standards and as such, the offense not clicking in the way that he would like it too, in the way it's been expected to. So I want to throw this question out at you. How much of what's going on here with the Packers can get fixed if Aaron Rodgers simply starts playing better. I think quite

a bit. I mean, he's your leader, he's your you know, your colonel. I mean, he is the guy that the rest of the team is gonna beat to his drum. I mean, he just is the player that I think when you look at an MVY two time m v P that's won a Super Bowl, that's done the things that Rogers has done throughout his career. The defense, the offense, they really do, you know, kind of radiate to him

in terms of where they draw their energy from. And I went back and I mentioned this in inbox and Tuesday's inbox because somebody had asked about you know, there's no relax or run the table phrases yet and it wasn't really a phrase. In two thousand and sixteen, I you and I left FedEx Field, we had this conversation. Something felt different. Even though it was a loss. It

felt like they found something in that game. Whether it was Jared Cook or whatever it was, they found something that they were going to be able to grab onto and build momentum from. The Packers need that now. Davante Adams said that after the game too. They need a game and they need a winning streak, Mike, is what they really need. You need to be able to put together two straight victories and know what that feels like. Again, I know it was kind of a punch line in

Bowl Durham, but it's true. I should say it was actually a major league It's true. You get you get on a winning streak. Every the water taste better, the air is cleaner, you just feel good about yourself. That's where they're at right now, and getting back to the Rogers point sixty nine whatever is completion percentage is right now. The thing I look for is that when those completion percentages higher, not just Aaron Rodgers NFL quarterbacks, it signals

efficiency in the offense. I don't think it's it's a red herring or anything like that. I think it's just a representation that the efficiency hasn't been where it's need to be. There haven't been a completed catch after completed catch, and that's what the Packers are looking for now going into Miami. Yeah, I'll say this about Aaron Rodgers because he does. He does need to play better, and he's admitted it. He's not playing up to his own standards.

What Aaron Rodgers does for this team is he gives the entire team a bigger margin for error. I rattled off earlier in the show all of the fourth quarter mistakes that have happened over the last two weeks that have cost the Packers a couple of games that they

very well could have won. The only one really that is on Rogers was the one we actually talked about in yesterday's show, where he admitted on the failed pass to e Q should have held the ball and taken the deep shot to Davante Adams and maybe that's the play that flips the game in the fourth quarter, and it didn't happen. He took responsibility for that. The other mistakes that we've seen from Aaron Rodgers the other regrets, most of those have really been in the earlier parts

of the game. And that's where I say it's Rogers that if he's playing better, he'll give this team a greater margin for error, because nobody's going to play a perfect fourth quarter, and the Packers have had too many mistakes in the fourth quarter. But he's the guy who will give them a chance to overcome a fourth quarter mistake because of maybe some fewer errors earlier on that that he's taken responsibility for. I I hope I've made some sense. No, I know what you're saying, because here's

the thing. Everybody wants to know why the offense hasn't been clicking the way they wanted to click and doing the things that they felt they were capable of doing. And it's not one player. I think Rogers, if if he plays well, everybody plays up to that that level. I think that's the point we're trying to make, and there just hasn't been enough of that. There hasn't been enough playmaking. There hasn't been enough you know, guys coming up clutch in a key situation to turn a football game.

Packers have won some football games. They want a game very convincingly. But it's been the games when you look at the difference. You go to Washington, Mike, you go to Detroit, and you look at those last two victories, those last two defeats. I guess in that case with the Rams and the Patriots, all those teams, when they needed to put the foot on your throat, so to speak, they did it. They did. That's where the Packers are trying to get right now. That's where you get away

from the heart attack games. That's where you get away from, you know, having to to go down to the sixty minute wire. You want to play sixty minutes, but you also want to be able to put this thing away too. And the Packers are trying to find that happy media. All right, quickly, West, It's time to enter the Cousins Subs Best Seats in the House promotion. You and a guest could win a chance to kick back on the

fifty yard line in Aisle. Two pairs of lucky Packers fans will be chosen prior to each home game for this v I P experience. Enter daily now through December sixteen by completing the entry form and submitting For complete rules and eligibility, go to Packers dot com slash best Seats cousin subs we believe in better. Okay, we will talk about the Dolphins and where things are with that

team in tomorrow show. Our Wednesday show usually is the is the focus on the opponent with where this Packers team is right now, And we started the show talking about the fourth quarter. Very frustrating to see, I think, especially on the defensive side, after a really pretty respectable effort against Tom Brady through three quarters, the way things

kind of fell apart in that fourth quarter. I really thought that that goal line stand in the third quarter in New England was going to be the thing that just that that really lifted up this defense and and potentially was was going to be the you know, the signature moment. It didn't happen that way, but that goal line stand, I think is still something for this defense to build on because they're going to be in that

situation again. And yeah, they're not always going to go for it on fourth down, but man, you get gold to go inside the five yard line, you know, one or two times here down the stretch West. If the Packers defense can hold a team to a field goal in that situation, it could change a game. Yeah, And the nice thing about that play too is that they held and then J. K. Scott had one of his best points of the season out of his own end zone for forty eight yards and then you got a

holding penalty. Completely flipped the field position battle. I think during this this little whatever you wanna call it, dull drums, losing streak, whatever, one of the things that Packers have really been struggling with is the controlling the field position battle. It's ultimately what played into them sort of probably, you know,

coming up short against Los Angeles. So yeah, that that was a huge moment because not only did the defense feel good about itself being able to hold its ground, you know, the half yard line, but it also flipped the field position in addition to keeping points off the board. The biggest thing for the defense I think right now is the fact that exactly what you predicted, you had a guy like Mike Daniel step up make some plays when a little bit more attention was going to Kenny Clark.

You still are working on the pass rush. We knew that was going to be an outlier against the Patriots because of just how quickly Brady gets the ball out. In the times in which he does hold onto the football, he finds a receiver in the vicinity of a ball and is able to throw it away from the pocket. So that being said, these last two weeks have been tough. They've been hard, but you've also played two of the

top offenses in the league. You've played a Hall of Fame quarterback, you played some guy that might end up being the m v P this season depending on how things work out for Patrick Mahomes, and I'm speaking about Todd Gurley. So that being said, now you get the Dolphins. Now you get a more grindy, gritty type football team. They're just trying to move the chains right now with what they're doing with Frank Gore. Yeah, you gotta keep in mind Kenny Stills, but I think this is the defense.

Whatever has happened in the back of your mind right now, you have to keep your focus on the Dolphins with the understanding that you've been tested the last two weeks, and not to say that this is gonna be a let up, but you're also not going to be seeing Jared Goffer Tom Brady either. Yeah, and what I really liked about that goal line stand too, because I took a look at it really closely, and it's my what you might have missed feature on the website for this week.

So if you want to check out the plays all four of the place from the one yard line, please do so. But there were it was a good six or seven different Packers defenders in the course of those four plays that really stepped up into I mean, Mike Daniels and Blake Martinez against those two running plays on first and second down just made outstanding place. Josh Jones made a great play on on the second down. There. What I really liked from the past covered standpoint was

on third down. It was a classic pick play. Adelman and Chris Hogan over on the right side where Brady is rolling out. They run the pick play and Jaire Alexander and Tremont Williams defended that perfectly. There was no there, there was no stumble, there was no collision, there was no wasted steps. Both of those guys were covered. And then Josh Jackson getting bats the ball down um to force to force the fourth down. That kind of defense, that's that's what you have to build on. And I

think this path kers defense is starting to do that. Um. Now, if things can start clicking, as Aaron Rodgers likes to say on offense, I really think this team can get something going. And if you start getting some takeaways more consistently on defense, then the wind is really in the back of your sales. So that's what I'm gonna be looking for in this game against Miami when we preview that show in in that game in tomorrow's episode. All Right, with that, we will sign off on this edition of

Packers on Scripted. Be sure to follow all of our coverage of the team on Packers dot com on Twitter. He's at west Hot I'm at Mike Spofford at Packers for the team account. Thanks for tuning in, everybody, See you next time.