Mike McCarthy Sucks-And So Does Something Else

Mike McCarthy sucks-or does he?

Mike McCarthy Sucks.

Isn't that a common thought right now?

After a downright embarrassing 38-10 loss to the giants in prime time Sunday, a lot of people are searching for a scapegoat to take their anger out on.

If it was the offense that played poorly, it might be Tom Clements receiving the wrath of Packer fans. If the defense didn't show up, it’s Dom Capers’ fault. If Special Teams were anything less than special, Shawn Slocum might be the recipient of the anger.  Someone has to be responsible, right?

When the team plays as poorly as it did, it has to be the Head Coach’s responsibility to answer the question “What the hell happened?”

Sunday was perhaps the nadir of McCarthy’s tenure in Green Bay. Thoroughly outplayed in all aspects of the game, he failed to adapt to what the Giants were doing, admitting as much with his comments after the game

He didn't dodge any questions, and put the full weight of the teams performance on his shoulders:

"I'll start with just the facts, we were totally beaten this evening. Congratulations to the New York Giants. We were beaten in every facet, really starting with myself.

"I feel when your team performs that way, it starts with the head coach. We had mental errors. The penalties. It was out of character for our football team. Very disappointing loss on 'Sunday Night Football' and a big NFC battle."

"I haven't felt like this probably since the first game I coached…Beaten very thoroughly tonight. It doesn't taste good; it doesn't feel good…”

Like I said, Mike McCarthy sucks.

Now while many of you are nodding your heads in agreement, I encourage you to stop nodding, take a deep breath, and think for a second about what you’re agreeing to. Do you really believe that McCarthy is a bad coach? Or is the emotion of one loss-ONE LOSS- letting you dictate what you believe today?

Keep in mind this is the same coach who led a team nobody expected to do anything to a NFC Championship Game in 2007.

Remember this is the same coach who led the 2010 team to Super Bowl glory.

This is also the same coach who kept his team focused in 2011 after expectations were set sky high and led them to a 15-1 record, before ultimately losing focus in the playoffs.

Even more recently, this is the same coach who just led the Packers to a five game winning streak.

Hate to be the bearer of bad news, but good teams will occasionally play bad games. That is exactly what Sunday was-a very, very bad game.

If you take a look at McCarthy’s tenure in Green Bay, every season has included at least one blowout loss (more than 10 points) except for one-2010.

In so many ways, the 2010 season was the worst thing that could have ever happened to Packer fans. On their way to winning the Super Bowl, the 2010 Packers set the expectation for what every season should now be like. Being able to overcome crippling injuries that season is now expected every season.  By never losing by more than 4 points set a standard for what a loss should be. Winning a Super Bowl is now expected every season. And the worst part is there is little to no margin for error.

As fans, many of us have become spoiled rotten because of 2010. We forget what a struggle a 16 game regular season is. We forget about the ups and downs that most teams experience. One thing that many people do is when things go wrong, we are quick to point fingers at the person responsible for leading the team, and say “Get that guy out of here!”

The same guy who led this team to glory not more than two years ago and set the bar for what is expected, and it’s time for a change after one bad game. Because that makes sense.

I’ll admit, there are times that McCarthy makes decisions that leave me scratching my head, wondering “What are you doing?” Case in point: marching a struggling Mason Crosby out to kick a 28 yard field goal which cut the score to 28-10 in the second quarter. The score doesn't indicate how badly the Packers were being beaten, and I would have gone for the 4th and 1 to try and continue the drive. But I trusted McCarthy’s decision, the same as I trust all of his decisions as being the right one for the team. And I certainly wouldn't say he sucked for making this call, or any of the other SMH moments he's caused.

It could be a lot worse in Green Bay right now than a Mike McCarthy led team. Anyone willing to give Mike Martz a shot?

Mike McCarthy doesn't suck. But there is something that sucks if you honestly think this: your attitude.

0 points
 

Comments (9)

Fan-Friendly This filter will hide comments which have ratio of 5 to 1 down-vote to up-vote.
Jeff Stevens's picture

November 27, 2012 at 08:09 am

Love your comments. I have been around long enough to know what a really miserable season is! Bad games will happen, it isn't important that they happen, it is important how the team reacts to them happening. If this type of game becomes the norm, (it won't), then there is cause for alarm. The sky is not falling, and the sun will rise in the East as usual. Expecting to see a much more focused team Sunday when the Vikes come to town! Thanks for putting it in perspective!

0 points
0
0
JohnRehor's picture

November 27, 2012 at 08:17 am

You're very welcome. I am one who might occasionally (insert sarcasm font) overreacts to how the Packers play, but to completely lose faith in the coach after one game is foolish.

Thanks for reading!

0 points
0
0
Josh's picture

November 27, 2012 at 08:14 am

In regards to the injuries: I would have to sit down and look but it seems like the guys hurt now are the guys who stepped up in 2010. We don't seem to be as deep this year as we were 2010

0 points
0
0
JohnRehor's picture

November 27, 2012 at 08:20 am

On the o line I'd agree. We are very thin there, and that seems to be the weak spot on the team. QB as well, and I just keep crossing my fingers Rodgers doesn't get hurt. But in terms of everywhere else I'd take the 2012 roster.

0 points
0
0
Jim_in_TX's picture

November 27, 2012 at 08:40 am

I don't think McCarthy sucks but I DO think he's very streaky as a play caller. He'll call a good half or maybe even a game or two.

Then, he'll have a game or two where he struggles and I don't know the reasoning, but he just ABSOLUTELY WON'T make proper adjustments or alter his game plan.

It's also become a joke amongst my friends and family that whenever McCarthy throws that red flag out for a challenge, that we're going to lose it.

Now, that's just my perception. I know there are more things going on in the course of a game than we're all privy to.

0 points
0
0
Will Tippet's picture

November 27, 2012 at 09:05 am

For those of us who over the age of 50 we had many season of 20 + point beatdowns. 5 times alone in the 80 and 86 seasons if I remember. Be thankful these are rare and for those of you who have any thoughts at all of McCarthy as a bad coach remember all the crappy ones in our division alone. Tice, Morningwheg, Marinelli, Infante, Burns. McCarthy can stay as long as he wants in my book

0 points
0
0
Michael's picture

December 04, 2012 at 12:39 am

Great article once again. You hit the nail on the head. I think some Packer fans are overly disappointed how we play each week weather we win or not. I do want us to win every week but I know that wont happen. Did I like the lose against the Giants? No, but we were still 7-4 and still have a lot of football left to be played. As for the Super Bowl, fans were spoiled by the 2010 season. I wasn't. I enjoyed it very much because I waited 14 years to see them play for a ring again. I would however LOVE to see them once in my life time win back to back Super Bowls.

0 points
0
0
Im fubared's picture

December 04, 2012 at 10:54 am

If you were able to watch the Giants/Skins game last night you saw a very tough, very solid Giants team. Yes they lost but they also looked like an odds on favorite to repeat in the SB why? The why is to me the reason the Packers can't stack up against this team and the lose was no fluke.

1. Manning has an O line that provides him the luxury of looking down field on the snap and watching his receivers run to the open lanes. Rogers, after the snap, spends a few seconds trying to see who breaks through the line and which direction to run to.
2. The Giants have big and very fast defensive linemen who push enormous pressure on whatever offense they play. They sacked RGIII often last night and many of those sacks were direct hits planted to the ground. Ditto to Rogers.
3. The Giants like a few teams have more than one back who is an effective runner. They can change backs at will and not lose a thing in the running game.
4. The Giants are a well coached team. They say a team that gets very little penalties is a well coached team, the Giants are the least penalized in football.
The Packers are close to the other end of the spectrum.

If the Giants were in the NFC North they may be undefeated in the division and be the NFC division leaders.

So talk of the Pack not playing well in the Giants game is just folly. It was the superior talent of the Giants that made the game what it was.

I can't blame MM because we don't have the talent. That really falls on TT who controls the purse strings. I bet the Pack has more un-drafted free agents playing on their team than anyone. TT is playing cheap ball and its catching up to him.

0 points
0
0
Mark M's picture

November 26, 2013 at 04:54 pm

So many instances of Mike calling us out of cameos. He is a miserable play caller and the fact that we had NO back-up for Aaron sent us most likely out of a post season. Did he really go for 2 points during the first half of the Vikings game …to lose it later. Yes he did. He definitely is mediocre.

0 points
0
0