WHAT THEY'RE SAYING

Notes, Quotes

The Sports Xchange

September 20, 2018 at 12:52 am.

–After an overtime tie against Minnesota that lasted 22 plays, Packers head coach Mike McCarthy scrapped the Wednesday practice in favor of a walk-through. The team usually works in pads on Thursday, so the heavy workday will go on as usual. “Just trust the numbers based on what we dealt with the last two weeks,” he said. “I think it’s obvious we came off of a Sunday night game, played an overtime game in unusual heat for this part of the country.”

— Head coach Mike McCarthy continued to disagree with the roughing-the-passer penalty on outside linebacker Clay Matthews against Minnesota on Sunday. On Monday, not only did the league not say referee Tony Corrente had made a mistake but that it intended to use Matthews’ hit as part of the officiating teaching tape sent to teams. “What are you going to do,” McCarthy said, “call the league up and say a bunch of bad words and make yourself feel good? That doesn’t work. Trust me, that’s been tried by a lot of people over the years. The reality is it’s about education, getting it right. But I’m just going to tell you this: We haven’t changed anything with the way we’re coaching our players.”

–Cornerback Jaire Alexander made what appeared to be the game-clinching play against Minnesota, only for it to be nullified by Clay Matthews’ roughing penalty. “It was hard and it was easy at the same time,” Alexander, the team’s first-round pick, said. “It was easy because I feel like I can catch pretty good. It was kind of hard because you’re in the moment and it’s just you and the ball and it’s like, ‘Oh, don’t drop it, don’t drop it.’ That’s probably the hardest part. It’s pretty easy though. I played receiver before, so it was easy to find that thing.”

BY THE NUMBERS: 103.9 – Packers QB Aaron Rodgers’ career passer rating, which ranks No. 1 in NFL history.

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