Blame the referees. Blame the kicker. Blame the drops.
The Green Bay Packers can find a way to put blame on every single person who went out between the lines at Ford Field for their 20-17 loss to the Detroit Lions on Sunday. That includes both teams and the cohort of referees, all of whom contributed to yet another excruciating, frustrating loss.
The refs put the Packers in terrible positions time and time again with bad, inconsistent officiating, and yet the team still had plenty of opportunities
to win the game. They let those chances slip through their fingers — literally, in many cases — and now they sit at 4-3, in fourth place in the NFC North division, and on the cusp of undoing all of the good that had come from their recent three-game winning streak.
Going 5-for-15 on third downs isn’t good enough. Jordan Love can’t will this team to a 50 percent conversion rate every game, particularly not when the team can’t get out of its own way on first and second down and when his receivers can’t hold on to the football. Going 1-for-4 in the red zone, thanks in large part to a pair of missed chip shot field goals (one of which was blocked), isn’t good enough.
And so, here we are, seven weeks into the season and still holding more questions than answers about this team.
Rapid reaction: Red zone, not yellow flags, lost game for Packers | Packers.com
It’s always interesting to see which facets of the game certain reporters focus on. This is not intended as criticism, but it’s notable that Mike Spofford takes the team to task rather than the officials.
Packers rip officiating after roughing penalties prove costly in loss | ESPN
The players, meanwhile — especially on defense — weren’t pulling any punches in the locker room, however. Xavier McKinney was the most outspoken, and he’ll surely get fined for his comments, but at this point someone has to call out the league’s embarrassing officating.
Matt LaFleur Nailed It, But Will Anything Change for Packers After Loss to Lions? | SI.com
The comment referred to in the headline here is LaFleur saying “We’ve got to grow up fast.” It’s tough to argue that the Packers were truly that immature in this game, though, when you have two roughing the passer calls that are questionable at best and another personal foul for tackling a player despite the whistle never blowing.
Josh Jacobs apologizes to team after crucial drop in loss to Lions | Packers Wire
Jacobs’ drop led directly to a field goal attempt that got blocked (but might have been missed anyway).
Green Bay Packers rookie kicker Trey Smack takes blame for missed field goals | Packersnews.com ($)Somehow, Smack doesn’t have the most EPA lost on field goal attempts this year, probably because he has hit some really long ones. That not-so-honorable lead goes to Harrison Butker, who is no stranger to going wide right.
LISTEN: The Repack – The NFL doesn’t care about its officiating problem | Frozen Tundra FrequenciesWhen will the NFL actually do something about their refs? Probably never, as long as fans keep watching and the money keeps coming in.
This is a thing that can happen? Where’s the replay assist on some of the calls against the Packers?
Brewers erase four-run deficit, take 2-0 World Series lead | Brew Crew Ball
In much better news, Milwaukee won the first two games of the World Series at home, and both came in thrilling fashion. Game 3 is tonight, starting at 8 PM ET at Tropicana Field.
Go Pack Go—wherever you go!
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