Rodgers struggles as Packers fall
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(EDITORSL CORRECTS SLUG. EMBARGOED FOR WEB USE UNTIL 1 A.M. EST)
By Michael Hunt
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
(MCT)
TAMPA, Fla._Basically, there were two good things about Aaron Rodgers' day.
He hit James Jones on a 74-yard touchdown pass on the Green Bay Packers' second play.
And he was able to walk on his own power to the post game rostrum.
Otherwise, the 38-28 loss Sunday to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Raymond James Stadium had to stand as the worst experience in Rodgers' 24 starts at quarterback with the Packers.
"It was a very frustrating game," said Rodgers.
Had he elected to be more candid, surely he would've allowed more.
On top of the indignity of allowing the Bucs to break an 11-game losing streak, there was this for Rodgers:
Entering the game, he had two interceptions in 225 attempts.
Tampa Bay picked him off three times in 35 throws, including Tanard Jackson's 35-yard touchdown return with 35 seconds left that made a final statement on the Packers' awful performance.
Rodgers, who had the NFL's highest quarterback rating coming in, left with more than his stats bruised.
The Bucs were the latest team to ransack the Packers' offensive line. Rodgers went down six more times, including five in the second half, when the Packers blew an 11-point lead.
For the season, Rodgers has been sacked a staggering 37 times, which is tops in the league.
"I'll have to look at the film," was Rodgers' terse response to the question of why the onslaught is never stemmed.
Feel free to interpret his response any way you want.
"It has to stop," Packers coach Mike McCarthy said about the sacks. "I'm sure you're tired of asking the questions, and I know I'm tired about talking about it.
"It's a reflection of coaching and playing, but it keeps showing up on Sunday. It has to end."
Rodgers' first interception came with 9:32 left in the first quarter on the first play of the Packers' second drive.
McCarthy said Rodgers simply did not see approaching cornerback Elbert Mack. Rodgers agreed. The 33-yard return set up an extremely short field, and the Bucs capitalized and tied the game.
Rodgers said he "felt good" about the throw that resulted in his second interception. The ball was tipped and rebounded to cornerback Aqib Talib with 8:03 left in the third quarter, ending good field position for the Packers.
And when the game was all but out of reach, Jackson put an exclamation point on the stunning final score as the Packers were down to fourth and 12 from their own 11-yard line.
Rodgers also misfired on one of the game's biggest plays, a third-and-5 pass to Spencer Havner from midfield inside the final 8 minutes.
Forced to punt, the Packers ceded the game with a 72-yard scoring drive engineered by rookie quarterback Josh Freeman, who was making his first NFL start.
"It's very frustrating," Rodgers said. "We should be able to move the ball on anybody. Give them credit. They made plays. We didn't make enough plays.
"You expect to win a game like this. We didn't. We've got to get very critical of ourselves."
Can the Packers possibly rebound from such a setback at the halfway point?
"I hope we have the resolve and the leadership," Rodgers said. "We still have eight games left and a lot can happen. "
___
(c) 2009, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.
Visit JSOnline, the Journal Sentinel's World Wide Web site, at http://www.jsonline.com/
Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Information Services.
