PACKERS-SEAHAWKS
The Packers were up 7-3 early in the second quarter. On second-and-12 from their own 34, Seattle completed a 33-yard pass to the Packer 33, and scored a TD on a 33-yard pass on the next play due to the field position and momentum. On the pass to the Packer 33, Clay Matthews was blatantly held while rushing the passer from the outside in the open field where it was very visible, and he was held for over 5 yards. Had this obvious call been made, Seattle would have had a second and 22 from their 24, instead of a TD that gave them a 10-7 lead and momentum. As it was a 7-point Seattle lead at half and a 12-point lead after 3 quarters, this was a critical non-call. The momentum from the TD carried over to the next possession, and Seattle scored a TD then, too, giving them a 17-10 halftime lead. The non-call was a game-changer.
McCarthy continued to be conservative when facing a very good defense, as he normally is, and as it normally does, it cost the Packers. When the Packers would play the Giants, bears, or any team with a good defense, he would run a lot, which would cause the offense to be out of sync and cost them games. He did the same thing in this game. They were down 3 offensive linemen and a tight end, and McCarthy felt he could run the ball for some reason. He also never once the entire game targeted or tested Richard Sherman, effectively allowing him to take away a third of the field and take a player out of the game. This was the side the Packers had their most success on in the past. One of the announcers on Mike and Mike (ESPN radio) and also Cris Carter said that it was shocking to have this strategy, and called it a “headscratcher.” One of them also said Sherman can be beaten on double moves.
With 8:04 left in the fourth quarter, the Packers, having just scored a TD to pull within 13, stopped Seattle on third-and-six from their own 24, which would have given them the ball back in good field position with momentum. An iffy defensive holding penalty gave Seattle a first down, and they went on to score a TD to end the game. The refs had no problem calling this, but not the blatant hold on Matthews.
PACKERS-JETS
The Packers fumbled the snap on their first play at their 16, resulting in a Jet TD. McCarthy then put them behind 14-0 by playing press coverage with no safety help, resulting in a 29-yard TD pass. When QBs see this coverage, they audible to a long pass to that receiver, since it’s so easy to beat. The Packers did come back to win.
PACKERS-LIONS
The Lions are great against the run, coming in second in the league with a 2.5-yard average against them. Their secondary is a big weakness. What does McCarthy do? He comes out running, using the same ridiculous philosophy of trying to establish the run that has cost them so many times. He ran Lacy on the first two plays of the game, and he fumbled on the second carry, which was returned for a TD and a 7-0 Detroit lead. They then ran the first two plays of the second drive, resulting in a punt instead of trying to get into an offensive rhythm and get momentum. On the third drive, they ran on both first downs and punted.
In a 7-7 game in the second quarter, the Packers intercepted at their 1. They ran Lacy, and he was tackled for a safety and a 9-7 Lion lead. The Lions scored a TD after the kick following the safetly, due to the momentum. So, a 12-7 Detroit halftime lead can be summarized by saying all 12 Lion points were the result of Packer runs, and the Packers only had 7 points due to their emphasis on the run game and failure to try to score. The Packer offense again could not get in rhythm since they emphasized the run. As usual, the Packers were not throwing downfield or attacking the Lion defense.
Down 19-7 with 6:59 left in the 4th quarter, the Packers had 4th-and-5 from the Lion 20. Instead of a high-percentage pass to get the first down and then a TD to cut the lead to 19-14, the Packers threw a pass to the goal-line, which was incomplete and stopped the drive.
McCarthy did admit after the game that he ran too much. I said this after the first play of the game, and he never realized it until after the game.