The Packers had won 13 straight home openers. They were unable to get to 14.
The Falcons dominated at Lambeau Field on Thursday night, beating the Packers 35-14.
After the game, Green Bay coach Matt LaFleur called it what it was.
“It was a butt-whooping,” LaFleur said. “That was at least three-quarter butt-whooping right there.”
His comments came in the context of the potential impact of a roughing the passer call that extended Atlanta’s initial scoring drive on the flow of the game. Asked about that specific call, LaFleur said, “I’m not gonna answer that. I’m not gonna get fined.”
For now, no one is getting fired. Asked if the play of the offensive line will prompt changes to the coaching staff, LaFleur said, “I’m not even going to respond to that question.”
He also declined to hang the sluggish performance of the offense on the blockers. “I don’t want to put all the blame on the offensive line,” LaFleur said. “There’s enough blame to go around to everybody.”
Still, the numbers say it all. The Packers couldn’t run. They had nine rushing attempts for 17 yards, against 53 passes. And they clearly miss starting tailback Josh Jacobs.
“I mean, I think we all saw a dynamic running back on the other side, and I think Josh is a dynamic running back,” LaFleur said. “But it is the situation, it’s the circumstance. And it is what it is right now. And we’ve got to find a way just to either — well, one, we’ve got to put them in a better position, and then those guys gotta go do it.”
They have extra time to figure out how to do it before a Week 4 game at Tampa Bay, for a renewal of the old NFC Central “Bay of Pigs” rivalry. With Green Bay at 1-2 and the Buccaneers at 0-2, it could be time for Chris Berman to dust off that name, for the first time in a long time.
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