Cobb: Packers 'just need to play ball'
Gannett Wisconsin Media’s Brett Christopherson caught up with Green Bay Packers wide receiver Randall Cobb, who shared his thoughts on Sunday’s 18-16 loss to the Detroit Lions:
Mike McCarthy said in his Monday news conference that those on the offensive side are “chasing the game.” He said it’s important to “let the game come to you.” Do you sense that’s the case? Are guys trying to do too much to get the offense jump-started?
RC: Yeah. We’ve all looked ourselves in the mirror and asked what we needed to do more. I think we’re kind of putting more pressure on ourselves than we need to instead of just going out there and playing ball. The game hasn’t changed. We just need to settle in and play ball.
As the offense continues to scuffle, how much of this can be attributed to everyone simply thinking too much? Do guys just need to take that deep breath and — as McCarthy says — trust in the plan?
RC: I believe so. We’re 6-3. We’re exactly in the same position as we were last year. We were (5-3) last year coming off a (44-23) loss to New Orleans. So, we’re all right. We just need to play ball. We’re a few plays away, and we’ve just got to make those plays. And until we make those plays, the story’s not going to change until we change it.
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Do you feel the wide receivers need to regain or rebuild trust with Aaron Rodgers? Is that wavering right now?
RC: No, we’ve just got to make the plays for him. When we’re put in those positions, we’ve got to come down with the ball. We had a multitude of opportunities that we missed out on. We have to do better in those situations.
McCarthy also said coaches need to get the players playing at a higher level when it comes to fundamentals. What do you think he means by that? Fundamentals can mean a lot of different things.
RC: It’s just not trying to do too much. Route running, or not trying to run before you catch the ball. Just the basic fundamentals of catching the ball before you run. Looking the ball all the way in. I can’t speak for any other position because I don’t know exactly what those fundamentals are. They may be hand placement. … A quarterback going through his reads. It’s just those basic principles that when you get to such an advanced level, sometimes you tend to look past them.
The officials allowed the Lions defensive backs to play physical, and there were a number of situations in which it seemed holding could have been called against them. Is it difficult to adjust to that style of play within the course of a game? Do you have a feel for how specific officiating crews call games through your preparation?
RC: You get a feel for it early in the game, and you know that’s how the game is going to go. You try to do what you can to. Whenever it’s a physical game like that and they’re not calling some of the obvious calls that you would normally get, you just have to adapt to that. If they’re not going to call it one way, most likely they’re not going to call it the other. So you have to push off a little bit more, and you have to be a little bit more physical to get open.
Brett Christopherson: 920-993-7117, or brett.christopherson@gannettwisconsin.com; on Twitter @PCBrettC
