Well, that didn’t end well. Here are the things that stuck out to me.
McCarthy Had His Team Ready
These guys did not come out and lay down feeling sorry for themselves. They came out pumped and ready to rock. The defense was looking like the big pays were never going to end and the running game came out blazing. Even when it got rough towards the end, they battled all the way down to the goal line. That’s a positive to build on.
Kenny Clark
Just keeps getting better.
D&D
Damarious is not an All-Pro, but he’s getting his confidence, even if those aren’t mouth-dropping plays and we could use that. Davon? That dude came to play. His pick was an All-Pro highlight. He was all over his man, all the way down, and was not going let that play end until he had a pick. Please do that more.
Aaron Jones
It’s not that I didn’t think he was good, it’s just that I didn’t want to get carried away. I have said for weeks that his vision is his strength and it’s fabulous. Now that he’s proven he can do it over a few games, he seems more like the real deal. I’m becoming a believer. His basement is Packers starter, that argument should be done. It would be amazing if he could do that every week and carry the team like 2013 Eddie Lacy while Brett Hundley grows in this offense.
Enough About Playcalling
I don’t want to hear about Mike McCarthy “babying” Hundley or complaints like “what good is grooming him for three years if you won’t turn him loose?” It was his first NFL start ever. It was raining. Every throw he attempted longer than 8 yards was… “less than Rodgersesque.” Could McCarthy call plays differently? Sure, but look at what worked: Aaron Jones runs. Those were basic, basic play calls that were well-executed. The Packers don’t need a bunch of exotic nonsense that you dreamed up on Madden. They need basic plays executed to perfection That’s how McCarthy runs his team – it has nothing to do with babying. Hundley didn’t make plays like a top QB. I’ll give him time, but it’s not like if the play-calling changed, he was gonna be lighting it up. They lost they best player at the most important position and they got beat by a good team. You don’t need to fire everyone.
Playoffs!?
Only three teams in the conference have more wins than the Packers. Rodgers isn’t coming back, but Hundley (despite a poor passing performance in the rain during his first start) can still grow into a decent QB this season (maybe more, but I’m not getting my hopes up). If the defense can play reasonable and the run game can control the tempo, they just might make it in again. From there, anything can happen. Probable? Maybe not, but let’s enjoy the season.
Are you suggesting that after three years of training this guy, THE SAME AMOUNT OF TIME RODGERS SAT ON THE BENCH, McCarthy should not have had a guns blazing gameplan? Are you further suggesting that when Hundley demonstrated a bit of difficulty playing Dilfer ball but the running game was great, the answer WAS NOT to throw more and throw deep? As usual, your post is very confusing to me, because the people around me all say that we lost because McCarthy deliberately kept this fully trained and fully competent soon-to-be-legendary qb (with three years of scout team preparation!) from going out there, putting this team on his shoulders, and winning with an aggressive and complex passing attack.
Starr/Favre/Rodgers/Hundley. I had already ordered my monogrammed kitchen towels and was preparing for the qb controversy next season! Why didn’t McCarthy simply choose to throw it 30 times for 300 yards in his very first start? I’m quite certain all the people talking right now were also suggesting that prior to the game.
After Rodgers sat on the bench for three years, in his first game as the starter in 08 he went 17 for 22, 178 yards passing, 1 passing td and 1 rushing td. We should be able to expect at least a marginally similar result for Hundley, right?
Either Hundley sucks, or McCarthy sucks. Fire everyone just to make sure we get the right guy.
You’ve figured me out, Atticus – I’m just a big fraud. Who knew that Hundley wouldn’t be as good as Rodgers? I never saw that coming. I should have advocated the “fire everybody” approach right off the bat – probably before the season started.
Wait wait wait, I get it now. Hundley was a late round TT gem, and therefore should play like the second/third rounder he was projected to be…..NOPE, everyone hates TT because he sucks so bad, so Ted being good at what he does simply cannot be the source of high expectations for a player he picked.
If I hear the words 3 years of training one more time, I think I might vomit.
This guy IS NOT Aaron Rodgers and might require a slower developmental period now that he’s on the field. McCarthy wasn’t coaching to win a single game, he’s coaching to win many games. And, that might require a on the job training period. You know, that time where because you don’t know everything the day you get hired, that you weren’t responsible for mastery of certain aspects of your job and might even be progressively eased into them for a while?
Guy named Trubisky threw only seven passes the other day. SEVEN.
If Hundley throws 3 more picks in game 2, you’re going to erode his confidence, and face it, he wasn’t exactly money on the short simple throws. What exactly do you think was going to happen when McCarthy opened up the playbook? Good things? Let the kid get his feet wet so that by the end of the season he’s confident, productive, experienced, and ready to do the things you wanted him to do on day 1. If you shatter his confidence on day 1, I’m scared to think of what he’ll look like by week 16.