Aaron Rodgers is making a habit of keeping it real when discussing things related to Green Bay Packers football, and his latest critiques (after a 22-0 win against the Buffalo Bills) are certainly going to raise some eyebrows. Rodgers wasn’t happy with the offense’s showing in Week 4 and let everyone know about it in his postgame press conference.
Here are some highlights:
At https://t.co/9LEiR5ZOVM, #Packers QB Aaron Rodgers says, "We were terrible on offense."
— Rob Reischel (@robreischel) October 1, 2018
OK, I can understand the disappointment in scoring just 22 points against a Bills team that allowed 78 points in their first two games. But your team put up yards. Sometimes you put up yards and can’t find the end zone. It happens to the best of us. Yards are good right?
#Packers QB Aaron Rodgers: "We were terrible on offense. … It was as bad as we've played on offense with that many yards in a long time."
— Zach Kruse (@zachkruse2) September 30, 2018
Oh, well, OK then. Fair enough. So what do you need to do to fix that?
Rodgers said: "That was not great by any stretch of the imagination. We need to find ways to get our playmakers in position to get some more opportunities. You know, a game like today… Davante’s a tough cover for anybody, but he should have had 20 targets today."
— Tom Silverstein (@TomSilverstein) September 30, 2018
Well, dang! Tell us how you really feel A-A-Ron.
Rodgers’ criticisms regarding offensive shortcomings and misuse of playmakers appear to be directed at Head Coach/Play Caller Mike McCarthy. These comments represent the latest in what has been a year of candid quotes from the Packers’ quarterback. This offseason, Rodgers was irked that his position coach was let go, reportedly frustrated by decisions made by the front office, and not pleased with some of his receivers’ “piss poor performances” back in August. And yet, things are fine now. Really. Wink, wink.
“Mike and I talk all the time; we have a great relationship,” Rodgers told reporters, via NFL.com writer Herbie Teope. “There’s always been great communication between us, even if there is things that we need to talk about that are tough subjects, we’ve never had a problem finding time and talking. That’s the way it’s been for 10-plus years.”
While that’s certainly one way to put out the public fire, Rodgers’ comments after the loss are still pretty damning. When your quarterback is pointing out matchup mismatches that he feels the coaches didn’t take advantage of, that doesn’t feel like a good thing. But maybe these disagreements are a good thing. Good things rarely come when there is a room full of yes-men. Conflict, discord, dissension, friction, and genuine disagreement can be good. But hopefully, not for the Packers.