GREEN BAY – If there’s a responsibility Green Bay Packers coach Mike McCarthy hates more than having to answer questions about his relationship with quarterback Aaron Rodgers, it’s having to pull the strings that landed him in that position in the first place.
In a wide-ranging interview regarding the state of his offense, McCarthy said Rodgers’ left knee sprain, too many penalties and lost-yardage plays and poor ball-handling have kept him from digging deeper into his playbook and running some of the new material that was added during the offseason.
Mostly, he said those circumstances have forced him to put the brakes on a player he has designed the entire offense around.
McCarthy said he understood why Rodgers was so frustrated after the 22-0 victory over the Buffalo Bills that he called the offensive performance “terrible” and suggested the game plan was no good. But he said it’s his job to look at the big picture and that picture needs to feature a healthy Rodgers supported by a healthy run game and a healthy offensive line.
He has not had any of those at the same time the first four weeks of the season. It has led to the offense being average in many categories, even though the 2-1-1 record heading into the Detroit game Sunday at Ford Field has the Packers a half game behind Chicago in the NFC North.
It is not the way Rodgers envisioned his comeback year.
“You have what happened last year (Rodgers’ broken collarbone), you could see right away in OTAs, he came back in great shape,” McCarthy said. “In the new stuff we put in on offense, the guy put in a frickin’ clinic. I have videotape of him in footwork drills and individual drills that I will use for the rest of my life.
“The point I’m making is the guy is dialed in. I mean, he is prepared to have a great year. He gets hurt in the first game. And what he’s playing with (the injury) is not small. It’s significant.
“He’s Secretariat. He’s got the bit in his mouth and his knee hurts a little bit. But he wants to run because he still can. And he’s got the big-head Irishman yanking on the reins a little bit. He doesn’t like it. I get it. But that’s my job. That’s the reality.”
https://www.packersnews.com/story/sports/nfl/packers/2018/10/06/silverstein-mike-mccarthy-talks-packers-offense-aaron-rodgers-relationship/1538586002/