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http://www.jsonline.com/story/index.aspx?id=693314
Reliving failure
Packers dissect mistakes made in Dallas
By TOM SILVERSTEIN
tsilverstein@journalsentinel.com
Posted: Dec. 4, 2007
Green Bay - It was time to pay for the offenses the Green Bay Packers committed against themselves last week in Dallas, and the punishment was reliving every one of them Tuesday afternoon on the practice field.
After giving the players four days off, coach Mike McCarthy had planned on using Tuesday to begin preparation for the Oakland Raiders. But he was so bothered by the number of boneheaded errors the team committed against the Cowboys that he used the 75-minute workout to run through the plays that the Packers blew in a 37-27 loss at Texas Stadium.
He probably could have had them on the field for a month.
"We had 21 mental errors in the football game," McCarthy said afterward. "We hadn't had over nine mental errors in quite some time as a football team, so that's something that needed to be identified, as a group and individually. So we did that.
"I just felt it was necessary to clean our house."
In addition to running the team through what he termed a "self scout" practice, he addressed the players on the subject of accountability. Without specifically telling them they were too tight or too loose for the game, he raised the point that each player needs to identify how prepared he had been for the Cowboys.
"I just addressed what I felt was the pulse of the football team," McCarthy said. "We talk about loose. Well, identify what is loose. What does loose mean? Is that loud music in the locker room? Does that affect the way you play on the field?
"So I just thought it was time for everybody to check their punch card, and to make sure that we're doing the things that we need to do. Because when you have that many mental errors, you need to check your preparation."
McCarthy said he probably wouldn't have had the self-scout practice were there not a possibility that the Packers (10-2) could face the Cowboys (11-1) again in the playoffs. But he said it was important, also, as the players prepare for their next game, to understand where things went wrong.
So he and his assistant coaches went to work reviewing the blown coverages, improper technique and unnecessary penalties that dominated the Packers' performance. There were mental errors everywhere, but most of the worst mistakes were on defense.
Of Dallas quarterback Tony Romo's 309 passing yards, 201 came on six completions, all of which totaled 20 yards or more in length and at least half of which were the result of inexcusable coverage mistakes. Of the Packers' nine penalties, six occurred on defense, including four that accounted for 112 yards.
There was a lot to choose from for McCarthy and his staff and the players were made aware of it immediately upon reporting for work Tuesday.
"The plays we gave them, it was like we could have had this game easily," nose tackle Ryan Pickett said. "We just had too many big mistakes and that's how they beat us. We made some big-time mistakes. It's uncharacteristic of us, guys being in the wrong place, not doing what they were supposed to do."
During the jog-through portion of practice, offensive coordinator Joe Philbin and defensive coordinator Bob Sanders had the scout team line up and run many of the same plays the Cowboys ran during the game. It wasn't exactly an ideal back-to-work day for the players, but it was something that needed to be done.
"Basically, you're kicking yourself," said cornerback Jarrett Bush, who gave up two touchdowns and was benched in the first half. "You know better. You should have done what you're supposed to do. It's one of those things you can't allow to happen again."
On defense, there were no changes in the starting lineup during the workout. Bush was still playing in injured Charles Woodson's cornerback spot and at safety, Atari Bigby and Nick Collins were playing ahead of rookie Aaron Rouse, who has been cleared to play this week after missing the Dallas game with a knee injury.
On offense, guard Daryn Colledge, who was benched in the first half for poor play, wasn't in the starting lineup. McCarthy had Jason Spitz at left guard and Junius Coston at right guard, which is how the Packers finished the game Thursday.
McCarthy said safety, backup cornerback and guard were all positions that have weekly competition going on, but he also said that continuity was important, and he wasn't necessarily planning big changes in the lineup.
"I think it's a very healthy situation to have a competitive situation at every position," McCarthy said. "Now, we want the continuity, there's no doubt about that. But until we get the performance at the level that we want, then we'll keep it competitive."
Starting today, the focus will be on the Raiders, and the Cowboys game will be in the rearview mirror. But several players said they would use the game to try to learn from their mistakes and be ready if a rematch occurs.
"They're a good team but everything they got we gave to them," cornerback Tramon Williams said.
"It was a whole different environment, a playoff environment, the crowd was loud and we have to do better at that."
Reliving failure
Packers dissect mistakes made in Dallas
By TOM SILVERSTEIN
tsilverstein@journalsentinel.com
Posted: Dec. 4, 2007
Green Bay - It was time to pay for the offenses the Green Bay Packers committed against themselves last week in Dallas, and the punishment was reliving every one of them Tuesday afternoon on the practice field.
After giving the players four days off, coach Mike McCarthy had planned on using Tuesday to begin preparation for the Oakland Raiders. But he was so bothered by the number of boneheaded errors the team committed against the Cowboys that he used the 75-minute workout to run through the plays that the Packers blew in a 37-27 loss at Texas Stadium.
He probably could have had them on the field for a month.
"We had 21 mental errors in the football game," McCarthy said afterward. "We hadn't had over nine mental errors in quite some time as a football team, so that's something that needed to be identified, as a group and individually. So we did that.
"I just felt it was necessary to clean our house."
In addition to running the team through what he termed a "self scout" practice, he addressed the players on the subject of accountability. Without specifically telling them they were too tight or too loose for the game, he raised the point that each player needs to identify how prepared he had been for the Cowboys.
"I just addressed what I felt was the pulse of the football team," McCarthy said. "We talk about loose. Well, identify what is loose. What does loose mean? Is that loud music in the locker room? Does that affect the way you play on the field?
"So I just thought it was time for everybody to check their punch card, and to make sure that we're doing the things that we need to do. Because when you have that many mental errors, you need to check your preparation."
McCarthy said he probably wouldn't have had the self-scout practice were there not a possibility that the Packers (10-2) could face the Cowboys (11-1) again in the playoffs. But he said it was important, also, as the players prepare for their next game, to understand where things went wrong.
So he and his assistant coaches went to work reviewing the blown coverages, improper technique and unnecessary penalties that dominated the Packers' performance. There were mental errors everywhere, but most of the worst mistakes were on defense.
Of Dallas quarterback Tony Romo's 309 passing yards, 201 came on six completions, all of which totaled 20 yards or more in length and at least half of which were the result of inexcusable coverage mistakes. Of the Packers' nine penalties, six occurred on defense, including four that accounted for 112 yards.
There was a lot to choose from for McCarthy and his staff and the players were made aware of it immediately upon reporting for work Tuesday.
"The plays we gave them, it was like we could have had this game easily," nose tackle Ryan Pickett said. "We just had too many big mistakes and that's how they beat us. We made some big-time mistakes. It's uncharacteristic of us, guys being in the wrong place, not doing what they were supposed to do."
During the jog-through portion of practice, offensive coordinator Joe Philbin and defensive coordinator Bob Sanders had the scout team line up and run many of the same plays the Cowboys ran during the game. It wasn't exactly an ideal back-to-work day for the players, but it was something that needed to be done.
"Basically, you're kicking yourself," said cornerback Jarrett Bush, who gave up two touchdowns and was benched in the first half. "You know better. You should have done what you're supposed to do. It's one of those things you can't allow to happen again."
On defense, there were no changes in the starting lineup during the workout. Bush was still playing in injured Charles Woodson's cornerback spot and at safety, Atari Bigby and Nick Collins were playing ahead of rookie Aaron Rouse, who has been cleared to play this week after missing the Dallas game with a knee injury.
On offense, guard Daryn Colledge, who was benched in the first half for poor play, wasn't in the starting lineup. McCarthy had Jason Spitz at left guard and Junius Coston at right guard, which is how the Packers finished the game Thursday.
McCarthy said safety, backup cornerback and guard were all positions that have weekly competition going on, but he also said that continuity was important, and he wasn't necessarily planning big changes in the lineup.
"I think it's a very healthy situation to have a competitive situation at every position," McCarthy said. "Now, we want the continuity, there's no doubt about that. But until we get the performance at the level that we want, then we'll keep it competitive."
Starting today, the focus will be on the Raiders, and the Cowboys game will be in the rearview mirror. But several players said they would use the game to try to learn from their mistakes and be ready if a rematch occurs.
"They're a good team but everything they got we gave to them," cornerback Tramon Williams said.
"It was a whole different environment, a playoff environment, the crowd was loud and we have to do better at that."
