From a quarterback who has taken a beating the first two weeks of the season, it might come as a surprise to hear what Aaron Rodgers sees as the solution to the Green Bay Packers woes in the passing game.
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With a couple of days to think about what went wrong in Sundays 31-24 loss to the Cincinnati Bengals -- a game in which Rodgers was sacked six times and hit 10 times despite a game plan that relied heavily on six- and seven-man protections -- Rodgers on Wednesday said the best thing might be for coach Mike McCarthy and offensive coordinator Joe Philbin to let the front five on the offensive line fend for themselves.
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I think one of the things that happened last week was because of struggles (in protection) in Week 1, weve kept more guys in (to block), Rodgers said. Our backs were staying in a little bit longer, and so our stuff was all down the field because we didnt have any of our check downs out.
"The push, hopefully, this is week is, Hey you guys got to hold up up front. We need more options underneath the coverage. When theyre dropping off so far, you need some check downs.
It might seem counterintuitive that the guy whos been getting killed 10 sacks and 19 hits in two games wants less protection, but the logic is that by keeping in running backs and tight ends less often, Rodgers will have more options to get the ball out quicker if hes facing pressure. Against the Bengals, many of his throws were deep because there were so few short options.
Rodgers theory might not be so far-fetched. McCarthy and Philbin have admitted in the days following the Bengals game that they may have given the line too much help.
Rodgers expressed confidence in a line that will be without its most experienced player. Left tackle Chad Clifton will miss at least the next two games because of an ankle injury he sustained against Cincinnati. The next two games, at St. Louis and at Minnesota, are in domes, where noise makes it tough on offensive linemen.
I think were going to figure it out this week and move forward and be a better protection unit as a whole, Rodgers said.
Through two games, Rodgers has completed just 56.7 percent of his passes. In his first season as a starter last year, he completed 63.6 percent, which was fourth best in the NFC and helped the Packers rank eighth in passing yards per game and 10th in passing average. Through two games this season, the Packers stand 25th in both passing categories.
Nine drops in two games havent helped. Neither has that Rodgers admittedly missed a couple of throws that might have been big plays. There are two that stand out in his mind. The first was a deep post to Donald Driver against the Bears.
Its a throw I feel I make nine times out of 10, Rodgers said.
The other was a deep route by Greg Jennings in the fourth quarter against the Bengals, a pass Rodgers badly underthrew.
That was pretty embarrassing; it slipped out of my hands and fluttered, Rodgers said.
I need to throw at a higher percentage, Rodgers added. That will get us in some better situations and move the chains.