Cobb: Packers need Lacy to 'run angry'
Gannett Wisconsin Media’s Brett Christopherson caught up with Green Bay Packers wide receiver Randall Cobb, who looked ahead to Sunday’s Week 14 matchup against the Dallas Cowboys at Lambeau Field. Kickoff is scheduled for 3:25 p.m.:
What’s the vibe like in the locker room as you get ready to face Dallas? You experienced a lot of frustration and adversity over the past six games, not to mention a grueling schedule. Do you sense a more energized and refreshed team?
RC: Offensively and in our position meetings, everybody’s diving into preparation right now. We handle things daily, and we try to look at everything daily. Preparation is a big key right now. We got an extra day with the practice (Tuesday), being able to get things rolling a little bit and get dialed in a little earlier. So I think that’s going to be the biggest key — making sure we prepare and we’re ready for everything that may be coming our way.
Speaking of energy, what does running back John Crockett bring to the team? He gave you a nice lift against Detroit. What do you think his role will be with the offense moving forward?
RC: I don’t know. That’s not for me to decide. Obviously, I believe that he provided us with a spark with his energy. And I told him when I had heard that he was going to be dressing (for the Lions game), I told him I need his energy, I feed off of his energy. And I think he brought it on the sidelines and brought it in the game. Moving forward, we’ll see what happens. … We’ve got some depth back there in the backfield, so we’ll see where that goes. But I’m excited to see what he can do moving forward.
Three Guys: Looking to the Cowboys
Eddie Lacy was limited to just five carries and six touches overall against Detroit after reportedly missing a team curfew. Mike McCarthy said earlier this week he thought Lacy “has been rejuvenated.” How does Lacy look to you as he attempts to bounce back against Dallas? Is his confidence still high?
RC: I believe so. Eddie is Eddie. Whenever you take something away from somebody that they love, I think they respond in different ways. I think these past couple of weeks when Eddie has played, he has played a different style of football. He has run angry, and that’s the kind of Eddie that we need. And I think with him not being able to be out there as much as normal this past week, I think (Lacy running angry) will continue. I hope that it continues. I’ll just try to be the best teammate I can be to him.
The Cowboys are 4-8 but feature the league’s fifth-rated defense. What challenges does that unit present for your offense? They blitzed quite a bit during Monday’s win over Washington.
RC: They are a very good defense … they’re very active. They’re all over the field. Their linebacker, Sean Lee, I think he’s the biggest one that’s shown out to me. He plays sideline to sideline and makes plays throughout the game. (Barry) Church in the back end, he’s a great safety. He does some real good things. He’s like a 'backer and can come down and make the big hit on a running back. He covers really well in the back end. It’s definitely a challenge for us. They’ve got a veteran corner in (Brandon) Carr. … They have a great defense. And obviously, their statistics speak for themselves. It’ll definitely be a challenge for us, but we look forward to it.
You’re looking to snap a string of two straight losses at Lambeau Field. Has the importance of reclaiming that homefield edge been a talking point among players and coaches?
RC: We know who we are, and us giving away home games is not who we are. Unfortunately, that has happened. But we know how important home games are, so I think we’ll be prepared for that and ready for that. We look forward to having the energy from the crowd being back in our home, getting our homefield advantage back and going out and handling business in Lambeau.
Brett Christopherson: 920-993-7117, or brett.christopherson@gannettwisconsin.com; on Twitter @PCBrettC