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Aaron Rodgers was right.
When the Packers quarterback said after Sunday’s loss to the Buccaneers in the NFC championship that “[a] a lot of guys who are, you know, uncertain, including me, ”Rodgers may or may not be referring to two of the team’s three coordinators. Five days later, two of the team’s three coordinators disappeared.
The Packers announced on Friday night that defensive coordinator Mike Pettine will not return and that special team coordinator Shawn Mennenga has been fired.
Coach Matt LaFleur originally retained Pettine, who had been hired by former coach Mike McCarthy in 2018. Pettine’s three-year contract has expired and Pettine will not return.
“We want to thank Mike for his commitment to the Packers for the past three seasons,” said LaFleur in a statement. “He was an important part of our success. As a head coach for the first time, he was also an invaluable resource for us during our time together. “
Pettine’s goose was cooked by that fateful defensive call at the end of the first half of Sunday’s game, which resulted in the Buccaneers scoring an unlikely touchdown. Pettine had only one safety deep, and the cornerbacks were playing what coaches call “internal leverage”, allowing receivers to reach the sideline for an enhanced field position or, in the case of Bucs receiver Scotty Miller, to run. straight through the Packers cornerback Kevin King.
“It was the man’s coverage,” said LaFleur after the game. “It is definitely not the right decision for the situation, and you cannot do things like that against a good football team and hope to win.”
LaFleur is right, but LaFleur could also have rejected the call; he is the head coach. And even though he is an offensive specialist, no coach should abdicate responsibility for the side of the ball on which he did not make his name.