To me, the last two offensive series in the 49ers’ game felt different. I don’t think it had anything to do with MLF. I believe Aaron Rodgers had already given up on the game at that point and was looking to get out of the cold and Lambeau Field as soon as possible. The “Hail Mary” pass to Adams was Rodgers’ way of going through the motions. If Adams makes a miraculous catch between defenders, great. If not, ‘Get me the hell out of here.’

Aaron Rodgers could see Adams was double-covered. He knew another receiver would be open. Rodgers ignored the right play because he quit. He quit the game. He quit on his teammates. He quit on the fans.

I believed in Aaron Rodgers. Not anymore.

What is especially frustrating about the Packers ST's debacle was that fans everywhere had seen the problem, and were screaming for the team to fix it. But instead, they constantly decided to go with cheaper selections. Same thing at middle linebacker. They at least hired a coach who is good, and have decided to pay for quality. This was the easier decision, as it doesn't impact the salary cap. But will they make a serious move to re-sign Campbell? And as far as Rodgers, people hate to read this, but he has become Favre, minus the interceptions. The fixation on one receiver during "crunch time". The off-season drama. The on-field hunger for "chunk plays" rather than moving the chains and being more patient. Rodgers was doing that at the start of the SF game. But when Lewis fumbled, it was as if a switch tripped in Rodgers, and he changed from patient to resigned. And suddenly, Adams was the lone target on the field. We saw the same thing happen in the TB game last year, so it's not as if this is something new. Instead, it's a pattern, and LaFleur is not going to be able to change him this late in his HOF career. Is Love the answer? Frankly, I'm doubtful. But then again, I had a lot of doubts about Rodger's durability early on. Those were ended when he played in Dallas, and almost rallied the team to a win on an injured foot. Hopefully, I'm wrong again. But if Rodgers does get traded, we'll soon find out whether Love is viable, and how good a coach LaFleur really is.

Packers certainly were reactive about the ST hire after it cost them a chance to advance. It has been an obvious need for a few years now. Was that MLF’s fault or the upper mgmt being cheap? I would say the latter. Regarding, getting the first down vs trying to make the big play on a 3rd down, I’d say that is on Rodgers and that is the big difference between him and Brady. Once again, I don’t put that blame onto MLF.

We are very fortunate to have MLF and he has proven to be a high level coach in the NFL. There are 20+ teams that would hire him in a nanosecond if the Packers were to get rid of him. Is he perfect, nah, nobody is thou!

The one play that sticks into my craw is when Arod threw into double coverage to try and convert with Adams when Lazards was wide open 15 yards downfield running across the middle. Rodgers had to see him because he basically threw right over his head to get to Adams.

Al, what would you have done different on the special team coaching hire front? Bisaccia has a boat load of experience as a special teams coordinator and a good track record. Sure is better than promoting from within,
Also, the tweet said first QB to do so
And the last play call was good, it did exactly what they were hoping for, pulling the safety deep to free up the middle for Lazard. Hero just paid no attention to it

We constantly see the refs change the outcome of the game. So it doesn't surprise me; the flack everyone is giving him for that play. So just say it Rodger haters. HE THREW THE GAME. Launch the investigation right now. Scandals are great. It will get more attention than the Olympics. If Woodson can come out of the wood work. Just think of the money and Law suits behind that. The FO is just to quiet on their intentions. The next pole should be about Adams.

'two other receivers are open, one completely uncovered. But what burns me even more about that play is the call.'

Why are you burned about a play where two players are wide open? Sounds like a great call to me.

Like most of you, I didn't like the body language or energy of Rodgers in the final quarter of that game. It was as if he had no fight. The same old question lingers on whether the coaches are calling these plays or Rodgers is playing rouge. If only we had embraced more of a power game and actually used it to against a power team on our "frozen tundra". Piss me off!

I am getting a feeling that the Packers will try to keep there MVP QB and supporting cast together for another run. Hey, I like to win but I doubt that Rodgers will play with the coaching and I don't think his celebrity distraction will decrease. My gut tells me 'it is time'

I know that I'm unusual in this, but the 2021 playoff choke - just the latest in a loooooong line of January chokes for the Packers - didn't really bother me. I half expected it to happen vs the 49ers, who have owned us since Reggie left in 98. I thought that if it didn't happen vs SF, it would happen the following week. Point blank, the team in 2021 was a year too late. Running it back rarely works. 2020 was our year.

If the brain trust at 1265 is stupid enough not to maximize 12s value now, even though he absolutely is a playoff choker, then GB will deserve the 10 years of sucking ass that will come post 2022 or 2023, whenever 12 does retire.

I will still watch the games, because I'm a Packers fan. But I will hate every second of it.

Another thing about that 3rd and 11 play is that, quite often, I've seen plays where the WR goes 5 yards down the field, needing 11 yards to move the chains, and the QB passes to that WR and he has to fight for the extra 6 yards, after the catch, and usually comes up short. We need to develop plays, where the WRs know the yard to gain, and the play is designed to move the chains on a completion. Love should be made to see, and know, which WRs are, most likely open, on all plays. A quick release negates a sack/ pass rush and moves the chains for us. Rodgers did look like he did not want to be there, in the SF game, especially late in the game. Give Love the QB duties and the coaching he needs to succeed. Thanks to Rodgers for a brilliant, exciting career in GB. It's time to move on.

i would have to agree with charles as far as trading rodgers. i am a rodgers fan but believe it is now best for the packers to trade him...possibly to denver along with devantae adams if at all possible. hopefully in return we can get fant, one of their talented receivers, hopefully one of their defensive studs and draft capital.

we can then be able to sign campbell and douglas and extend the players we need to as well as have good draft capital to surround love with more good players and build our defense accordingly.

i know this is a wish and hopfully it will come true.

I feel polluted of mind generally, but I will say that it’s better that the Packers have seemingly accepted that they needed an infusion of ideas and experience to STs than continuing denial. Happy? No. The horse has long bolted but less unhappy. That said, the lack of transparency Murphy has created means we can’t tell how this belated self-awareness came about and from whom. That’s not a good thing at all.

On rewatching that game I am of the opinion that Rodgers plus Adams is an unhealthy Union. I love watching Adams, but paying him without Rodgers is just not justifiable given where we are. Paying him with Rodgers is, however, not wise either. For many fans, myself included, I see that as a similar blind spot to the one the team has had with respect to STs.

For a while now the presence of Adams has tended to actually make Rodgers worse despite all the stats. It’s not Adams’ fault, but in terms of the team and Rodgers winning against good Ds in critical games it’s not healthy.

There is something wrong when we all agree that the plays are often inapposite but can’t tell if that’s primarily due to the caller or what the QB does but can agree that the outcome in key games is eerily similar failings. Who is in charge and who needs to change, because something does?

On Woodson: He’s one of the smartest HoF former players out there. I think he’s able to look at the big picture and willing to say what he thinks. I think he’s confident enough in his place in the world to believe that he can. Personally, that’s why I give his thoughts some attention, unlike those of many ex players.

The last play of the season for Aaron Rodgers in missing a wide-open Allen Lazard is one of the most awful blunders in playoff history for the Packers and the entire NFL.
I'm shocked that it has apparently received so little attention.
Why would the Packers, or any other team, want to have Rodgers as a leader until they found out why he didn't throw the ball to Lazard as he ran all alone across the field right in front of our quarterback?
Whether Rodgers didn't see Lazard, or just ignored him, it was horrible.
More so, is this part of a pattern for Rodgers? Does he not read the field all that well, and so routinely misses secondary receivers that are open? Or is he just so stubborn that he regularly forces the ball into double coverage when he has someone else running free with no coverage?
Either way, why would any team want this guy as their quarterback?

For me the 3rd and 11 to Adams was anti-climatic. In the previous drive Gary made the play of the game when he stopped the 49ers on their 4th and 1 try in Packers territory.
That play should have been the game winner.

That was Rodger’s Ice Bowl/Bart Starr moment. With about 6 minutes remaining a solid drive at that point ends the game especially if the drive results in a score. A TD makes it 17-3 and a FG makes it 13-3. More importantly a decent drive even with a few first downs and no score probably gets down to the 2 minute warning with the 49ers taking over deep in their own territory following a punt.

Instead Jones runs for 2 yards on 1st down. At this point I'm expecting a pass to Jones in space or a quick throw to a TE or Lazard to at least get to 3rd and short. Instead we get an incompletion to Adams on the boundary. 3rd down is a sack for minus 11. I'm not even looking directly at my TV screen when I hear the thump of a kick being blocked, I look up and say to myself "this will not end well."

Rodgers had another chance but the 3rd and 11 play did not surprise me. I don't who is calling the play but it doesn't matter, the execution was terrible on both of our last possessions especially by Rodgers in terms of his decision making. Any progress on the drive prior to the blocked punt and the game is over. The 49ers offense was not scoring a TD that day without a miracle which the Packers handed them because of their poor execution on offense.

The offense was fine until the Mercedes Lewis fumble. After that they never showed anything. There was unimaginative play calling and poor execution. No excuses, they wasted the best Packers defensive performance in a playoff game since the Lombardi era. Thanks, Since '61

Al, I have to repeat myself. You are again on spot.

Only one observation - it seems that Charles Woodson is more Packers that still Packers Diva. He is thinking about the future of the franchise, not how to please the media or Diva. I can only say "kudos Charles" and that is why people like him. Honest, open and knowledgeable...

If the FO and MLF spent money on a quality ST coach last year, Al would be writing about Packer Super Bowl matchups verses the Bengals.

I actually liked the call on the last play. Send Adams deep to pull the safety out and run a deep crossing. It worked as designed, but Mr. Rodgers again wanted to paint outside the lines to show everyone just how awesome he is.

Agree with with Mr. Woodson. Unless Rodgers is ready to tear up his contract and sign a team friendly deal that gives them the ability to keep the key FA's, then hard pass on keeping him.

To Huh, or Not to Huh - that is the question!

The million dollar question that's been on my mind for 2 disappointing post-seasons now is exactly as you asked Al "who the heck was responsible for the offensive play-calling in the 4th" - and by that I mean the play that was actually executed?

Both times - the games were there to be won. Both times, abject 3-and-out capitulation.

I posted in the aftermath of the game that even my non-football loving wife asked "why the long ball to the covered man - when its sleeting, no less"........ she's the brains of the family!!

Someone has egregious judgement between MLF\Hackett\Rodgers.

If for some reason Rodgers stays, then that pretty much assures that Adams is gone. In that situation, I'm actually starting to think that that isn't a bad thing.

In reality, and as many more wizened here have laid out, Rodgers has to go. The combo officially has the 'yips' in post-season crunch time situations.

Maybe with the running game we have it is time to defensive minded a bit and keep the 'D" quarterback over the "O" quarterback. I agree with poster above Rodgers has become a quitter to a large extend and needs to be gone and start over at that position!

If we keep the blame game aside. I think our FO should learn something from the Ram's organization on what going all in meant. They signed their star players for some big contracts and did a blockbuster trade for stafford and then acquired mid season trades like von miller and OBJ even if they did'nt needed a WR at that time.
It all paid off for them they made sure there are no leaks left in any phase of their game i.e, offense defense and the special teams.

In the past few years, I think teams that can get pressure without blitzing cause Rodgers a lot of trouble. Rightly, so because there are more defenders in coverage. When he was younger, AR had a lot of success due to mobility, but his mobility is greatly reduced at this point. A lot of shoestring tackles on him when he tries to run.

I don't think AR gave up during the game. I think he has less confidence to escape the pocket and run. Then due to the pressure, he feels like he has less time. Mentally, he feels rushed, and he doesn't want to take a sack, so he focuses on his highest percentage target before the play starts. To me, he just looks confused like he cannot solve the defense and be awesome. Then he forgets WR target progression or whatever. The TB game was the same thing in second half, just looked confused.

Jimmy G, Matt Ryan and Jared Goff have made the Super Bowl with this system of offense. Why...because they had good teams around them and they did not get locked in on one receiver. If starting, by the end of next year Love has a good chance to be good enough in this system to make the playoffs...if he is surrounded with a good team. The running game is there, the o-line is there, hopefully the defense continues its upward swing...special teams can't get worse. It is time to transition.

Jimmy G, Matt Ryan and Jared Goff have made the Super Bowl with this system of offense. Why...because they had good teams around them and they did not get locked in on one receiver. If starting, by the end of next year Love has a good chance to be good enough in this system to make the playoffs...if he is surrounded with a good team. The running game is there, the o-line is there, hopefully the defense continues its upward swing...special teams can't get worse. It is time to transition.

So Packers finally decide to pay top dollar for a ST coach. Too bad MM wasn't willing to do so at start MLF era - we'd probably be in SB now.

What does this signing tell me? It tells me that GBP intend to go all in one more time w Rodgers. Otherwise why bother with a ST coach that will be here one year only???

Also, why didn't we up the ante for OBJ? We had a few more million we could have thrown at him but we lowballed him too. Was that Russ "low-Ball" or MM again? We will never know but it makes no sense in retrospect. A quality ST coach or OBJ or both could have made all the difference. Too bad, it wasted a great year by Gutey.

Al you are so spot on!
The last proactive era we had was the Mike Holmgren era (which ended way too soon).

Ever since Packers coaches have either hung on to bad assistant coaches way too long.

Or have been so focused on hiring from within that they have sabotaged themselves!

The Packers have had the players to make it to multiple Super Bowls but poor coaching choices have doomed them.

Hire qualified coaches regardless of race, favoritism, hiring from within cultures or price.

Sometimes head coaches fall in love with their own coaches just like GM’s fall in love with players, so they’re deficiencies are masked over.

Jersey Al brings up, correctly, Rodgers and the deep ball near the end of the game to Adams.

I think this has something to do with what has appeared to be a season long capitulation to the desires of Aaron Rodgers. Rodgers zeroed in on Adams almost the entire game. Yes, there were reserves playing in some receiver positions and Rodgers is big on 'trust'. Lazard was wide open for what could have been a touchdown. But Rodgers has not been criticized much for a deep pass to Adams that all but ended the season. The 49'ers defense surely saw the same trend. Any other coach in the NFL would have torn Rodgers a new one when he came to the sidelines. I just get the feeling that the Packers are so gun shy of losing Rodgers they've largely given him the keys to the car to do whatever he wants without ramifications.

All us old timers remember the down years in Green Bay. But within that pod of time there were a couple of good QB's, Lynn Dickey and Don Majkowski come to mind. But those players stayed within the game plan and didn't say, "it's my way or tough" to the team.

As much as Rodgers has been the focal point of the Packers success has he become the talented but really troublesome employee who thinks he runs the show? As much as it will hurt short term, it is time to part ways with AR for a number of reasons.

Charles Woodson always struck me as a very intelligent man. Even when he was young. If he's smart enough to see we should trade Rodgers, that makes me hope beyond reason that Mark Murphy, Gutey, and Ball can see it too.

If we don't trade AR, I suspect those who are saying MM, Gutey, & Ball are just trying to keep their jobs are right, and if we as a franchise don't take advantage ARs trade value being higher than it will ever be, not only will we lose out possible compensation, but we'll be in an even deeper hole as a franchise.

Too bad we don't have a checks and balance system on MM, Gutey, and Ball...

Re: Woodson publicly stating if he's the GM, he's thinking trade::

1) Woodson is a smart man, and he's able to separate his feelings and put himself in another's position with clarity and thoughtfulness.

2) Woodson always respected Rodgers' talent, but if you paid attention over the years, he was another of a long line of Packers players who have always danced around questions about Rodgers' leadership and character. I believe he was a fan of Rodgers' talent, but not at all a fan of how Rodgers handles his business around 1225.

Always impressed with the football knowledge of posters here at CCTV. Having the foresight to be able to see past Rodgers and what is best for the Packers I know isn't easy to do objectively after 17 years of greatness. It's time and has to be done...NOW!

The O did not play well. Neither did SF's. Both D's played well. On the scoreboard our O and D outplayed theirs. That leaves ST responsible for the final score. Missing some passes is understandable. Blocked kicks are not.