The Game Goat Thread: Week 13 at Packers

[SeoulSoxFan]

The streak is over. Angry ChuckZ could not will the team from not making just enough mistakes on all phases of the game. Hopefully for the last time this season, here are the Goats of the Game:

• Revis & McD: for allowing that critical last minute TD. That was the killer.
• BB& McDaniels: BB inexplicably did not go for 4th & 1 early. McD could not exploit the terrible run defense until late.
• Ryan & Dennard: could not contain Adams, the rookie 3rd WR torched them until he dropped a sure TD. 

No moral victories here. As Brady often says, there were a lot of points left on board. This team has to perform better at San Diego or it's down to #2 seed or below.

 

[Kliq]

BB's multicolored poof ball hat did not get NEARLY enough coverage today.

 

[GeorgeCostanza]

That was a catch by gronk and no one is telling me otherwise. Fuck that game and Nink and Logan Ryan.

 

[IdiotKicker]

The D-line simply could not generate any meaningful pressure on a consistent basis. Coverage can only hold up for so long, and despite the coverage miscues, I think they stem more from this than truly bad coverage in most cases. Need more out of the front four.

 

[Seels]

Though again the officials were somewhere between bad and terrible. Hocchuli and co were embarrassing the first half. I feel like the Patriots have a ton of borderline calls against them and rarely are the recipients of any of these. There were a few very blatant DPI calls that were missed but yet phantom calls placed on the Pats. Whatever. Close game against a great team.

 

[GeorgeCostanza]

The problem with the front 4 is they were paralyzed between getting pressure and keeping contain on Rogers.

 

[Dollar]

I don't think Revis should show up in this thread, because he would have been one of the favorites for Game Ball if the Pats had won.  
 
I'd agree with McDaniels here.  Running Vereen out of shotgun on second and long instead of Gray or Blount killed a few drives.  Ryan and Nink also belong in the Goat thread.  Both had completely shitty games.

 

[cshea]

I thought McDaniels had a poor game. The running game was too sporadic, especially in the first half. Seemed like after every 1st down incompletion they'd run it for minimal gain on 2nd down and then they're backed into 3rd and longs. Blount ended up with 5.8 YPC and Gray's 1 run was a decent 4-yard gain.
 
Edit: I just felt like they could've done more on the ground in the first half. It would've slowed the tempo down and let the D catch their breath. 

 

[( . ) ( . ) and (_!_)]

Tough place to play, didn't win enough one-on-one battles, not the coaches best week.
Still control their own destiny after losing a game that is as close to an acceptable loss as you can get.

 

[axx]

Well, if you only force a punt once, you aren't going to win that often.

 

[Jungleland]

1) Logan - Really bad game. Davante Adams was easily the difference today, and when the game plan here always should've been to make him and Lacy beat you he held up his end of the bargain and then some. 
2) McDaniels - Deep shots in a game that didn't need them, too conservative early, too risky late.
3) D-line - Lacy roasts us in the beginning, Rodgers with way too much time roasted us in the end. Ninkovich with no chance on a scrambling Rodgers is the epitome of the whole thing

 

[jsinger121]

Offense was lousy....too many missed blocking assignments. Brady was not sharp.

 

[Stitch01]

I doubt the Pats showed all their cards. No real single goat, just need to be a little better all around.

Can probably lose once more and be the one seed anyways and certainly can lose and get the two seed

 

[triniSox]

I think overall the biggest mistake was McCourty on the Nelson TD. With Revis playing outside leverage, McCourty is supposed to stay in the middle of the field and make that tackle.

 

[jsinger121]

I doubt the Pats showed all their cards. No real single goat, just need to be a little better all around.

Can probably lose once more and be the one seed anyways and certainly can lose and get the two seed

Have to agree with this. The offense did look a little vanilla.

 

[Three10toLeft]

Nink had a shitty game.
 
But when you're relying on him to provide your pass rush, you're gonna have a bad time.

 

[jsinger121]

I think overall the biggest mistake was McCourty on the Nelson TD. With Revis playing outside leverage, McCourty is supposed to stay in the middle of the field and make that tackle.

McCourty got caught breaking to his left and it killed him.

 

[bankshot1]

I thought they bailed on the running game too early. That's on the OC.

 

[Time to Mo Vaughn]

The streak is over. Angry ChuckZ could not will the team from making just enough mistakes on all phases of the game. Hopefully for the last time this season, here are the Goats of the Game:

• Revis & McD: for allowing that critical last minute TD. That was the killer.
• BB& McDaniels: BB inexplicably did not go for 4th & 1 early. McD could not exploit the terrible run defense until late.
• Ryan & Dennard: could not contain Adams, the rookie 3rd WR torched them until he dropped a sure TD. 

No moral victories here. As Brady often says, there were a lot of points left on board. This team has to perform better at San Diego or it's down to #2 seed or below.

How do you not mention the D line? Rodgers had anywhere from 5 to 12 seconds per passing play.

 

[Mystic Merlin]

The lines, by a country mile.
 
- The run blocking was atrocious, and they allowed more pressures than I was expecting.  The idea that McDaniels should've called MORE runs is, with all due respect, fucking insane to me.  Blount had some amazing individual efforts on busted runs;  I counted a handful of legitimately well-blocked run plays.
 
- The DL did almost nothing against the Packers OL.  I believe 2 of their 3 sacks were on blitzes by Hightower and Collins.  They weren't a tire fire vs. the run, but they put far too much pressure on the back end coverage on a play-to-play basis.  Rodgers is way too good to put up that kind of effort.  They need Chandler Jones back and in form ASAP; wouldn't hurt if Easley exploded, either.
 
The 0-5 RZ performance by GB was an aberration, that's what concerns me.  It's a minor miracle they escaped allowing only 26 points.

 

[eddiew112]

O-line. Brady was hurried all day and they struggled run blocking. Very disappointing effort after working over one of the best defensive fronts in the league.

 

[Devizier]

Logan Ryan; in a game where the Patriots were going to take away the Packers' top two receivers, the third and fourth DBs were going to need to step up. Ryan always seemed a step behind in coverage.
Marcus Cannon; seemed like I always noticed when he was on the field (not in a good way).
Rob Ninkovich; I don't hate him like others here, but he looked SLOW out there. And he lost contain more than once.

 

[jsinger121]

I thought they bailed on the running game too early. That's on the OC.

Agree with this. Had they committed to it they keep rodgers off the field.

 

[TheoShmeo]

I'm as big a Belichick toadie as you'll find but I really hated the decision to use Gray so sparingly.  Yes, Blount was effective when he got the chance, and Bolden ran better than expected.  But against a run defense ranked so poorly, I really would have liked to see what would have happened had they alternated Blount and Gray as a bruising one-two punch, and in general run the ball more.  I get that they were playing from behind and needed to pass, but I think that GB would have been less able to tee off on Tom had the run been shown more.  And again, I don't understand why Gray isn't being used more.

 

[mikeford]

Ryan Allen sucked at punting today for whatever thats worth

 

[Phragle]

It's too bad they don't have a fourth weapon to go with Gronk, Edelman, and Lafell.

 

[Silverdude2167]

The Pats did not play their best game and you can not win against a great team on the road without your best.
 
Hard to be that concerned though. If the refs do not screw up the clock on the Pats last real drive of the first half, most likely the Nelson TD does not happen as they have 30 seconds left when they get the ball back. (Assuming all the plays/results are the same - yes a flawed assumption)

 

[patinorange]

O-line. Brady was hurried all day and they struggled run blocking. Very disappointing effort after working over one of the best defensive fronts in the league.

Yes. They got the shit kicked out of them by an average defense. The play calling was strange I thought.
Some weird timing on the long passes but I doubt it affected the outcome. The defense was on the field too much. Not enough sustained offense. And our punting game was pathetic.

 

[ShaneTrot]

Marcus Cannon seems to be in on a lot of plays when something goes wrong this year. I like Fleming replacing him next year. There is a reason they use Fleming as an extra TE over him.
 
Ryan was roasted a few times, he had a much better year in 2013. Dennard wasn't great either.
 
NE usually gets good yardage after the catch, GB tackled well.

 

[Toe Nash]

You have to go for it on the 4th and 1. Just have to. after they punted Rodgers got them to the NE 32 in literally 3 plays. They score on the next play and it's 13-0 and you're chasing the game the rest of the way.

 

[Fishercat]

The special teams as a whole had a really bad day. I notice Green Bays kicker/punter had a bad one too, but between the lack of blocking on the punt returns, the complete shank on a tough kick, and Allen's generally poor punts, the usual advantage NE had on STs was completely gone today.
 
The pass rush, or lack there of, is a real problem. Outside of a busted play or to, it seems their goal was to prevent big plays, make sure Nelson/Cobb didn't beat them, and prevent Lacy from running wild. This resulted in there simply not being enough on the line to really pressure Rodgers. Ryan getting repeatedly roasted by Adams is a problem but that seemed like a byproduct of the lack of pressure allowing for those throws to be there.
 
I really don't know enough about O-Line play to give a truly qualified statement, but it really seems like Solder is one of the biggest sources of problems on key plays. The outside rushers get around him a lot on Brady's blindside.

 

[DennyDoyle'sBoil]

O-line, I guess. The whole offense just seemed not ready for prime time at the start of each half.

Packers look terrific. I hope we play again, because it would obviously be in Arizona, but I see no reason to expect a different result. Anything can happen and maybe Jones would change the synergies, but I'm not hugely hopeful. They held Jordy to two catches (obviously one big one) and turned Cobb into a possession receiver, but Rogers still picked them apart. Davante Adams would be a 1 on most teams, and there's nothing to think that he wouldn't go off again against not Revis/Browner. Lacy didn't look it all the time but he had an effective game with 98 yards on 21 carries, and put them in third and manageable in a few critical series. Rogers always looked a threat if he needed a scramble, which I think helps to explain some of the pash rush problems.. We can't count on 0-4 in the red zone and a missed FG. We were lucky that was close. They simply have a ton of weapons. Have to score a ton to beat those guys.

 

[lexrageorge]

Huge mistake by McDaniels to go for the end zone on the 2nd-and-9 from the 15 late in the 4th quarter.  A run would have been OK, as they likely would have had 3rd-and-short.  Instead, the result is a sack on the subsequent 3rd-and-9. 
 
Pass protection was bad, and the Pats receiving corps seemed to have trouble getting separation.  I thought run blocking was so-so.  D-Line was exposed badly.  Hopefully Hightower is not seriously hurt (couldn't tell).  
 
Game goat to the refs for missing their fare share of contact penalties, and to Phil Simms for being annoying. 
 
This one was probably the toughest one in this killer stretch, and also the one they could most afford to lose.  But San Diego is a must win next week.  

 

[Smiling Joe Hesketh]

How do you not mention the D line? Rodgers had anywhere from 5 to 12 seconds per passing play.

 
IMO that was by design. They wanted to keep containment and relied on coverage to keep Rodgers in check. And given that GB had been ringing up 50+ on every opponent at Lambeau this year and had 26 today, I'd say the plan was fairly effective.
 
Tough to give goats today given that the teams were pretty evenly matched and the Pats were on the road at a place where the Packers usually blow teams out. As always when in doubt I'll bitch about McDaniels, who called only 17 rushes today. When games get tight he seems to revert to his old bad habits of relying on Brady for everything.
 
But tonight I have no real bitches. Tough game against a good team, came up a play or two short. On to SD.

 

[bankshot1]

Huge mistake by McDaniels to go for the end zone on the 2nd-and-9 from the 15 late in the 4th quarter.  A run would have been OK, as they likely would have had 3rd-and-short.  Instead, the result is a sack on the subsequent 3rd-and-9. 
 
Pass protection was bad, and the Pats receiving corps seemed to have trouble getting separation.  I thought run blocking was so-so.  D-Line was exposed badly.  Hopefully Hightower is not seriously hurt (couldn't tell).  
 
Game goat to the refs for missing their fare share of contact penalties, and to Phil Simms for being annoying. 
 
This one was probably the toughest one in this killer stretch, and also the one they could most afford to lose.  But San Diego is a must win next week.  

About to post the same thing.

 

[Mystic Merlin]

Huge mistake by McDaniels to go for the end zone on the 2nd-and-9 from the 15 late in the 4th quarter.  A run would have been OK, as they likely would have had 3rd-and-short.  Instead, the result is a sack on the subsequent 3rd-and-9. 
 
Pass protection was bad, and the Pats receiving corps seemed to have trouble getting separation.  I thought run blocking was so-so.  
 
This one was probably the toughest one in this killer stretch, and also the one they could most afford to lose.  But San Diego is a must win next week.  

 
I'm baffled by the criticism of McDaniels at the end.  Brady hit Gronk right in the end zone, and Gronk didn't hang onto a ball he usually sticks.  That was 7 right there.
 
How was the 'result' of that the third down sack?  It happened right after it, but I don't see the connection.  Don't go for the advantageous matchup in the end zone and hit the receiver because you may leave yourself in a third and long?  You're trying to score points here.

 

[richgedman'sghost]

It seems like after every loss Josh McDaniels is listed as one of the goats. It is real easy to scrapegoat him but in the first half, it was hard for the Pats to establish tempo or a rhythm on offense if you don't have the ball. I'm not as down on the Pats as other posters (SSF in particular) seem to be. I do not want to blame the officials for the loss but I did feel that Gronk caught that pass in the endzone. On the other hand, Gronk did not rise up to challenge the call so maybe he knew he did not catch it. In any event, I thought BB should have thrown the challenge flag. At that point in the game, what does he have to lose?
In terms of actual goats I would put Ryan and Dennerd in that category. Part of the Pats defense strategy was to cover  Nelson and Cobb tightly and let the other Green Bay receivers beat them. Well Green Bay took what the Pats gave them and won the game.
 On an unrelated point, on the crucial 3rd down play when Brady got sacked, it looked as if Brady heard a whistle and thought the play was dead. He just seemed to stand there and let the Green Bay defender sack him. Very strange. On to San Diego.  

 

[DeJesus Built My Hotrod]

No goats.  They lost a close football game against a very good team and the best QB in the NFL on their home field.  I would like to see what the Pats could do against Rodgers with a healthy Chandler Jones - especially on a neutral field.

 

[Smiling Joe Hesketh]

No goats.  They lost a close football game against a very good team and the best QB in the NFL on their home field.  I would like to see what the Pats could do against Rodgers with a healthy Chandler Jones - especially on a neutral field.

 
I was thinking the same thing. Jones active would have been a huge boost.

 

[Ed Hillel]

McCourty had a poor game. Inside OL could have been better for sure. No goats, no shame in that loss. Nink sucks, though.

 

[pdaj]

As another noted, the pass to Gronk in the end zone should have been a TD. And the times Vereen got the handoff from shotgun was probably a result of the Packers giving NE a different look with him on the field; I'll watch again later on Re-wind. 
 
But you can't let the Pack grab 7 before the half. I said it then, and it ended up being, the play of the game. Did they get the ball with under a minute in the half?

 

[H78]

Whoever made the decision to go to the endzone on 2nd down on that last Pats drive of the game is your goat. McDaniels, Brady, whoever it was. That lost them the game. If not for the sheer stupidity in chucking it there with about 3 minutes left after a 1st down run.

 

[Silverdude2167]

O-line, I guess. The whole offense just seemed not ready for prime time at the start of each half.

Packers look terrific. I hope we play again, because it would obviously be in Arizona, but I see no reason to expect a different result. Anything can happen and maybe Jones would change the synergies, but I'm not hugely hopeful. They held Jordy to two catches (obviously one big one) and turned Cobb into a possession receiver, but Rogers still picked them apart. Davante Adams would be a 1 on most teams, and there's nothing to think that he wouldn't go off again against not Revis/Browner. Lacy didn't look it all the time but he had an effective game with 98 yards on 21 carries, and put them in third and manageable in a few critical series. Rogers always looked a threat if he needed a scramble, which I think helps to explain some of the pash rush problems.. We can't count on 0-4 in the red zone and a missed FG. We were lucky that was close. They simply have a ton of weapons. Have to score a ton to beat those guys.

 
They lose by five on the road and had the ball with a chance to take the lead in the 4th quarter and you think there is no reason to expect a different result?
 
Come on, why so negative? Why can we not count of holding them to fgs in the redzone, really? It is the type of defense that BB has built a dyansty on, but now it is lucky?
 
I don't think they are the reason the Pats lost, but if that game is reffed fairly there is a strong chance the Pats win, but again you see no reason to expect a different result.

 

[ShaneTrot]

 
I was thinking the same thing. Jones active would have been a huge boost.

Love to see what Ayers, Nink and Jones could do on the field at the same time. Getting Silva and Jones back should be a boost for the front seven.

 

[Mystic Merlin]

As another noted, the pass to Gronk in the end zone should have been a TD. And the times Vereen got the handoff from shotgun was probably a result of the Packers giving NE a different look with him on the field; I'll watch again later on Re-wind. 
 
But you can't let the Pack grab 7 before the half. I said it then, and it ended up being, the play of the game. Did they get the ball with under a minute in the half?

 
I believe the Pats kicked off with 1:09 left.
 
There were 23 seconds left right before the scoring play, that's the key point.  Allowing 45 yards - and inside the 50 no less - with under 30 seconds left is pretty terrible.

 

[pdaj]

 
I believe the Pats kicked off with 1:09 left.
 
There were 23 seconds left right before the scoring play, that's the key point.  Allowing 45 yards - and inside the 50 no less - with under 30 seconds left is pretty terrible.

 
Yup, no question. If there's a goat, it's the defensive play-calling/execution on that drive. Aside from that, one of the most well-played, entertaining games of the year.

 

[Smiling Joe Hesketh]

 
Yup, no question. If there's a goat, it's the defensive play-calling/execution on that drive. Aside from that, one of the most well-played, entertaining games of the year.

 
I feel the same way after this one as I did after that SF game a couple of years ago. Even though the Pats lost both, I couldn't really complain. Great games against great teams.

 

[Tony C]

No goats.  They lost a close football game against a very good team and the best QB in the NFL on their home field.  I would like to see what the Pats could do against Rodgers with a healthy Chandler Jones - especially on a neutral field.

 
Pretty much agree. My only goat is Logan Ryan, who has been really disappointing this year. For the rest, a tough opponent on the road...a few breaks and they win. I'll still take the Pats in a Super Bowl against the Packers on a neutral field.

 

[Smiling Joe Hesketh]

 
Pretty much agree. My only goat is Logan Ryan, who has been really disappointing this year. For the rest, a tough opponent on the road...a few breaks and they win. I'll still take the Pats in a Super Bowl against the Packers on a neutral field.

 
I mean, no one's surprised that Rodgers is fucking awesome, right? I got my hopes up on that 3rd and 4 on the last possession of the game, but he delivered the ball right where it needed to be into double coverage because he's Aaron Fucking Rodgers and he's pretty fucking good. These things will happen against great players.

 

[E5 Yaz]

I'm with the no goat crowd, although I'd love to know whether Revis was supposed to get inside help on the Nelson TD