It all came to a crescendo in overtime against the Dallas Cowboys. In one sense, the Green Bay Packers were lucky to escape with a tie. In another sense, if not for the complete fumbling of their clock management, the Packers would’ve had a great chance to win.
Green Bay’s clock management issues aren’t a new phenomenon. They’ve been a thorn in the team’s side for quite some time. Sunday was another display of the bad — and a bit of the good.
The Packers trailed 23-20 with less than six minutes to go when the Arizona Cardinals faced a fourth-and-one near midfield. The Cardinals didn’t try to fool Green Bay. Their offense remained on the field. As they broke the huddle and lined up, the Packers made a hell of a decision. They burned a crucial timeout.
Having spent the timeout, the Cardinals still went for it, and Green Bay clogged any would-be lane for quarterback Jacoby Brissett to try and find on a sneak. The resulting stop was a pivotal moment in the game. Winning can mask a lot.
On the ensuing drive, Green Bay faced a fourth-and-two, still trailing by three. The clock had bled down to below three minutes at this point. The play prior, on a third-and-one, Green Bay ran it with Josh Jacobs for a loss of one.
Going into that third-down call, a coach should know his plan for if the Packers pick up the first down or get stopped. Thinking one play ahead isn’t exactly chess-master stuff.
In this case, the Cardinals stuffed Green Bay, and LaFleur sent out the field-goal unit. Then, with Lucas Havrisik on the field and lined up, LaFleur burned another timeout. Down to one.
After some internal debate, LaFleur sent the offense back out to go for it. Thankfully for everyone involved, the Packers converted, and Jacobs waltzed into the end zone a few plays later, securing what ended up being the dagger in a 27-23 win.
The win is great. In the NFL, you take them however you can get them. Still, it doesn’t excuse the willy-nilly usage of using two timeouts in a one-score game in spots where you just have to know your blueprint.
Had the Cardinals converted that fourth down, or had the Packers burned that second timeout and failed on fourth down, clock management and timeout usage would be topic No. 1 in Wisconsin right now.
Instead, the Packers won and converted both those plays — one on defense and one on offense — so it’s easier to ignore.
LaFleur was asked after the game why he used the timeout and changed his mind to bring the offense back out on that late sequence. His answer had to do with what he saw with Love coming off the field.
Well, when our quarterback’s coming off, and I can see the disdain on his face, you know, and I looked up at the clock, saw how much time was left, I just – it wasn’t by any means a chip shot, although Lucas (Havrisik) has come in and done a hell of a job. So just one of those deals where I was like, no matter what we call, this guy (Love) is going to make it work. And that’s exactly what happened.
And work it did, thankfully.
That doesn’t negate the fact that you should have already decided whether or not you’ll go for it or kick it in that spot. It’s an issue that keeps popping up.
Conversely, LaFleur deserves credit for the clock management at the end of the first half.
The Packers were down 13-3 with seven seconds left and had it at their own 35-yard line after a touchback. With one timeout at their disposal, LaFleur opted not to take a knee. Love rifled a 22-yard completion to Romeo Doubs that would lead to Havrisik’s franchise-record-setting 61-yard field goal.
A few weeks prior, LaFleur was also aggressive against Dallas at the end of the first half, and it backfired in a major way. Dallas scored a touchdown at the end of the second quarter. The coach stuck to his guns in a somewhat similar spot and referenced the Dallas game to the media afterward.
Scared money don’t make money. So like, you got to, sometimes you got to shoot. And when you have confidence in your players – you can’t allow something, I realize, I think that was a much different situation where we were on the field in Dallas, versus where we were here, versus the struggles that we were having moving the football. … But I got a lot of confidence in our quarterback.
Kudos to LaFleur for not shelling up after he got snakebit in a similar situation earlier in the season.
Green Bay’s clock management and use of timeouts have left a lot to be desired in crucial spots again this year. At least against Arizona, there was the bright spot of a perfect execution at one juncture. This is a roller coaster ride that nobody wants to be on, though, and the Packers better smooth it out soon.