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Green Bay Packers: What's next for struggling offense?

Published Jun. 30, 2017 6:28 p.m. ET

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After hitting rock bottom in a humiliating home defeat to the Dallas Cowboys, what’s next for the Green Bay Packers’ anaemic offense?

A year ago, it was easy to point to Jordy Nelson‘s injury and an apparent lack of playmakers as a reason for the Packers’ offensive woes. Yet with Nelson back on the field, the unit has regressed even further.

Aaron Rodgers couldn’t be further from his MVP-best, registering just one 100+ passer rating in his past 17 games. That’s the equivalent of an entire regular season of poor football from the Packers’ star quarterback.

Rodgers’ mechanics are all over the place. He’s missing wide open receivers, misreading defenses and not seeing what would once come as second nature.

While his supporting cast may not be what it once was—Jordy Nelson is yet to return to his 2014-best—he’s got more than enough talent surrounding him to lift this offense from the league’s floor.

Other quarterbacks could only dream of sitting comfortably in the pocket for five or more seconds. Rodgers is afforded this time and again by one of the league’s most underrated lines, yet he’s still not finding open receivers.

And open they are. This narrative that receivers aren’t getting open isn’t completely true. There have been many occasions where Rodgers is simply missing wide open targets. You only have to watch him airmail Randall Cobb, crying for the football all alone in the end zone, to sum up his struggles.

More could be done from a schematic point of view, of course. The Packers’ insistence on running isolation routes means the receivers need to consistently win their one-on-ones. But the offensive woes can’t simply be pinned on receivers not gaining separation. At the root of the problem is the quarterback.

“The West Coast offense, as I learned it 20-some-odd years ago, revolves around making the quarterback successful,” Mike McCarthy said postgame.

Until Rodgers fixes his errors, the Packers offense will continue to fall way short of expectations.

Mike McCarthy must find answers

One of McCarthy’s quotes last week was particularly irritating.

“I don’t know why the hell I have to come in here and answer questions about what you think went wrong on offense.”

Turn on the tape from any of the Packers’ past 17 games and you’ll realize why you’re being questioned about the offense, Mike.

His response to the question was not only snappy, but almost arrogant. According to Bob McGinn of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Rodgers’ completion percentage during the 16 games before Sunday’s was a puzzling 56.8.

His passer rating over that span? A disappointing 83.6, far below any other 16-game stretch in Rodgers’ career.

But McCarthy still doesn’t know why he was receiving questions about his offense.

Mike might not like it, but he best get used to it.

Help coming at RB, CB?

Eddie Lacy‘s ankle injury limited his production against Dallas, the Packers desperately thin at running back. James Starks is out of Thursday’s game against Chicago, while Lacy will likely continue to be limited.

Will the Packers add more depth to the position in the coming days, or roll with Ty Montgomery in the backfield?

Cornerback raises a similar concern. The Packers were without their top three corners for much of Sunday’s loss. Sam Shields remains out with a concussion, and it seems unlikely he’ll be back Thursday night. Damarious Randall exited the game with a groin injury, while Quinten Rollins has already been ruled out.

The status of the Packers’ corners will be worth monitoring all week, and it remains to be seen whether they will look to add new faces ahead of the game.

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