Rodgers claims all good with coach McCarthy
After Sunday’s victory over Buffalo, Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers spoke about the offense being “terrible” and placed some of the blame on “the plan” crafted by head coach Mike McCarthy.
On Wednesday, Rodgers spoke as if all was right with the world.
“Communication is the basis for a good relationship, wouldn’t you say? I think it is,” Rodgers said during his weekly chat with reporters at his locker. “For any relationship, it starts with good communication and being able to be honest with each other and then hug it out afterwards.”
Communication, when it happens behind closed doors, is one thing. Communication, when it happens at a press conference filled with reporters, recorders and cameras, is quite another. Rodgers, however, said he and McCarthy have a “great relationship,” and that the two did not need to clear the air.
“Mike and I talk all the time,” Rodgers said. “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.”
McCarthy declined to delve back into the controversy on Wednesday. On Monday, he chalked it up to Rodgers’ competitiveness and the mutual frustration coming out of Sunday.
“I have good relationships, proper relationships, with all of our players. Aaron and I, we have gone through a lot of years together, so I feel good about our relationship,” McCarthy said.
In a 22-0 victory, the Packers gained 423 yards but managed only two touchdowns. Five drops and Rodgers’ two turnovers were reasons for the quarterback’s unhappiness, but so was how “the plan” utilized top receiver Davante Adams. Adams caught eight passes and Rodgers targeted him 14 times; Rodgers said Adams was winning so often that “the plan” should have put Adams in position for 20 targets.
That might be the requirement on Sunday at Detroit. The team’s other starting receivers, Randall Cobb and Geronimo Allison, did not practice on Wednesday. Cobb missed the Buffalo game with a hamstring injury and Allison dropped out of the game with a concussion.
“Maybe I need to a little more,” Rodgers said of looking outside the normal route progression and looking more to Adams. “He just needs more opportunities. I’ll keep that in mind. I’ve said for years, you watch the film and he’s open a lot. Some routes involve a mirrored concept, where you’re picking and hoping that a guy wins based on a certain matchup or something you saw on film. I might have to lean a little bit more toward him at times, just because he’s such a dynamic player.”
SERIES HISTORY: 176th regular-season meeting. Packers lead series, 98-70-7. In addition, the Packers have won both playoff meetings. Detroit, however, won both games last season, though Green Bay quarterback Aaron Rodgers missed both of those games with a broken collarbone.
