Dave from Huntsville, AL

At least we still haven't lost at Jerry World.

Another memorable game there. I'll say that.

Tony from Titusville, FL

That was...whelming?

Long live Red Smith.

Zach from Glen Ellyn, IL

I do recall a tie a few years ago. I can't remember the exact date and who it was against?

Week 2 of 2018 vs. Minnesota, also known as the "RTP emphasis" game.

Dale from Kettering, OH

So, are you a game half won or a game half lost kind of person?

As I finished my game recap on the bus and then got in line to board the plane, it felt like the difference between a win and a tie wasn't much, but the difference between a loss and a tie was huge. Not mathematically of course, but psychologically.

Mark from Big Bear City, CA

Well and we're OFF? It's not a loss. But? It seams like we fell short of what we are trying to accomplish. Here's to a very good early bye week and heal and reset. No excuses! GPG!

How the Packers can look so good and so bad within the same game is the story of the last two weeks.

Tyler from Cornell, WI

Idk how to feel…last week defense balls out and gives an unjustified 13 points and we lose. This week offense balls out score 40 and defense couldn't stop and we don't win. Lots of work needed on this team. Those first five days seems ages ago.

Ancient history now. Truly.

Ben from Oakdale, WI

I'll keep watching because I like football and watch when any game is on, but emotionally I'm out. This team is not consistently good or disciplined enough to advance through the playoffs and win a Super Bowl.

Well, it's a good thing the playoffs don't start for another 3½ months then.

Robert from Charleston, SC

At least we won't have to worry about that pesky common opponent tiebreaker with the Lions...

Oh, I'm not ruling anything out. Not with 13 regular-season games left.

Rick from Trempealeau, WI

Well at least they were resilient. Never-say-die attitude will help the youngsters in the long run.

I admire the way the offense responded to the end of the first half. That means something. It felt like only one side of the ball was resilient, though, until the Cowboys had first-and-goal at the 5 in OT. There's no way anyone thought they were getting stopped there.

Adrian from Oregon City, OR

Maybe neither team deserved to lose? Neither one could be stopped…

I'm sure the NFL loved all the points, but I can't even imagine what was going through Hafley's mind up in the booth. That was his 22nd game as defensive coordinator and the first one that looked anything like that, at least to me.

Dennis from Batavia, IL

38 points allowed. (2 points allowed by ST). So how do you explain what happened on defense?

I can't. The defense started strong, with stops on Dallas' first three possessions. Then the Cowboys went 95 yards in 11 plays for a TD, not even needing a third down on the entire drive, and it felt like Green Bay was on its heels the rest of the game. They took a haymaker and didn't respond.

Michael from Wausau, WI

Morning II, longtime reader, first-time asker. I am a proponent of the adage that actions speak louder than words, and thus find myself bemused by Jordan Love's post-game comments that it was weird to tie the game, when the final drive by the offense showed a distinct lack of urgency to, you know, win the game. It was particularly egregious the play before the FG. Should we be worried about Love's ability to lead an efficient offense? That the team lacked hustle when the victory was there for taking?

For all this, I'll direct you to my Rapid Reaction column. I tried to lay out everything that happened in a couple of key sequences, including the end, based on how LaFleur and Love described it.

Cody from Thunder Bay, Canada

It bothers me how the Packers handled OT once they got the ball. The defense struggled but they held the Cowboys to a FG at the end and the Packers basically played themselves out of a chance to win because they ran out of time. The Cowboys hadn't stopped them either. They played trying to leave no time but if you go score a TD it doesn't matter. I just felt they could've managed the clock better to maximize their chance to win, and after the last play they were lucky to tie.

That's covered in my Rapid Reaction as well, which includes LaFleur absolutely playing for the win. From first down on the 12, a block was missed on the Matthew Golden screen so he lost 3. Trying to catch the Cowboys playing tight to the line again, LaFleur called a shot to the end zone, but Dallas morphed into cover-2, so Love smartly took the checkdown (to Emanuel Wilson). The lack of urgency showed up on third down, and they almost botched it entirely. But I get how LaFleur was playing the clock. Yes, if you score a TD you win, and that's what he wanted. But if you have to kick a field goal and leave any time on the clock, Aubrey might beat you from 70 yards or whatever.

Nathan from Tomah, WI

So, I guess "receiver in the vicinity" now means they happened to be in the stadium somewhere when the ball was thrown. In a close game where both defenses were struggling, I can't help but think that was a crucial botched call in the Cowboys' favor. I think the officials had a rough night all around.

Indeed. That and the no-call on the deep ball to Dontayvion Wicks in OT were head-scratchers. Though on replay, I thought maybe Prescott was trying to stop his throwing motion so the ball came out at a bad angle. There was a receiver he was initially aiming for, if that's the case.

Jake from Greenfield, WI

In the past I know a lot of Packers play-callers got flack for conservative play-calling. These last few weeks it seems the aggressive approach of some questionable passing plays have really hurt the team. What's your opinion on strategy in those situations?

Every situation is different. Most often, LaFleur and Love are going to be aggressive. But you have to be willing to live with the results. I'm sure Dallas getting the ball coming out of halftime after scoring two TDs in the last minute of the first half influenced the mindset that blew up on them there.

Tinger from Red Wing, MN

Everything pivoted on that first down with 21 seconds remaining in the first half. Everything went downhill from there.

The collapse at the end of the first half was reminiscent of last week in Cleveland. A catastrophic mistake at a horrible time. The difference in this case was they still had a half of football to try to overcome it, and they almost did, as well as almost didn't.

Will from McLean, VA

After the dust has settled from that crazy game I was really impressed with Jordan Love's performance. Playing with a makeshift offensive line he made clutch throws, showed poise and was so calm in the huddle before third and fourth downs. Too bad our defense didn't show up. Offense didn't show up last week against Browns, defense didn't show up for Cowboys. Let's get healthy during the bye week!

The Packers were 10-of-14 on third downs. That's incredible. Love might've missed a throw or two but not many. For the duress he was under from the Dallas pass rush, he really balled out.

Brian from Oregon, WI

Three cheers for a scorigami?

Wow, had no idea. That couldn't have been further from my mind in all the chaos, honestly.

Brandon from Oshkosh, WI

I'm confused about the Turpin touch back after the Packers third TD. It looked like he caught it in the landing zone and retreated to the end zone. If that is what happened, why isn't that a safety?

I could be wrong here, but I believe if a player's natural momentum carries him into the end zone as he makes the catch, he's allowed to down it. That's all I can figure they ruled.

Preston from Tallahassee, FL

Well, Mike, my bye week evaluation says our O-line must get healthy. We need another CB to go opposite Keisean Nixon, leave Nate Hobbs in the slot. Special teams need to be much more special. It can be argued it has cost us two games. Our end of half/game management must improve. And the D-line got neutralized, need to figure out why. Penalties are at an unacceptable level. What do you think?

The D-line's lack of pressure for a good portion of the game was certainly disappointing. Once Prescott got into a rhythm they couldn't knock him out of it. I'm going to reserve judgment on Hobbs for the moment, because he wasn't playing well and then all of a sudden we heard he was being evaluated for a concussion. The Cowboys' penalties were actually worse than the Packers' in this case, for once. The special teams have now put two blocked kicks on tape, so every single opponent is going to attack that vulnerability until they prove they've shored it up. They're getting no gimmes in the kicking game probably the rest of the year with what's out there.

Eric from Green Bay, WI

I get football is a complicated game and often can't be boiled down to one play or even one side of the ball. However, once again, ST costs us points. A three-point swing in a game that ended up tied. So sick and tired of bad ST play costing us games.

You're not alone there. When you see Brandon McManus totally stripe that 53-yarder right down the middle with plenty to spare to get to OT, it's hard not to wonder why it can't look like that more often.

Pete from Caledonia, MI

I know keeping an eye on Cleveland v NFC North was talked about. Just an observation. Detroit only had 300 yards offense, and got field position inside the Cleveland 25, 3x, due to turnovers. They also ran a punt back for a TD. The difference between GB and Detroit was the Lions got meaningful turnovers, great special teams play, and didn't have a big TO of their own. All the opposite of the GB/Cleveland game. That loss could loom larger in time.

Detroit blew out Cleveland the same way Baltimore did, with short field after short field.

Will from Rochester, MN

With all these blocked field goal attempts, do you think it has anything to do with a kicker's change in the kickoff? They no longer can just rip it on the kickoff and have to change their traditional approach. I wonder if that change in mindset carries over to field goal attempts … idk. It's such a weird phenomenon this season.

It's protection breakdowns. Everywhere. All across the league.

Yotam from Israel

One of the changes to the rules this year was booth review of safety calls. Have there been any instances yet of a review changing an on-field call?

Not in a Packers game that I can recall, and I can't speak to elsewhere in the league because I rarely watch other games start to finish. A big call (or no-call) is inevitable, though. It's coming.

Brian from Charlottesville, VA

I had a feeling the Eagles would run a fake tush push at some point...

I don't think that's the first time.

John from Green Bay, WI

With such an early by week how do the players prepare for such a long stretch of games?

Do everything they can to get their bodies right during the time off and then just go at it one week at a time. Once the Packers resume playing, every opportunity to rest and recover should be taken seriously.

Bryan from Gladstone, MI

I have a non-football question. Do you think the USA and Bethpage Black should be embarrassed for the way the fans and even the MC treated Rory McIlroy over the weekend?

It didn't showcase the best of America but it felt like that train left the station a while ago.

Aaron from Tucson, AZ

Mike, switching gears, at what feels like an appropriate time, what are your thoughts on how the Brewers are currently playing? The record and team stats seem to indicate they're one of the top three teams in baseball, but since their remarkable 14-game winning streak, they're 18-20. Injuries to the pitching staff have been tough, but they don't seem to have much momentum right now, and (were) precariously close to allowing the Phillies to steal the top seed. I'm feeling a little uneasy, but hopeful!

I'm always optimistic. No need to enter anything with dread or uneasiness. I look at it this way: After how the last two Octobers transpired, I'm excited for the Brewers' new path. Maybe getting a week off and a chance to reset before the postseason will do them some good.

Jessi from Sterling, KS

At least when any of us play armchair quarterback (or coach) it means we care and are watching the REAL game lol. It's better than thinking Madden or fantasy football makes you equipped in my mind :) At least collectively this column gives laughs, heartache (especially to two writers), perspective, joy, entertainment, educates and brings community. Thanks everybody! II makes us richer as Packer fans.

I just try to hold up my end.

Dave from North Potomac, MD

Good morning Insiders, I'm gonna go out on a limb and guess that the Inbox is not evenly split about that outcome. A half game could sure be interesting at the end of the year. But for now there is time to rest, recuperate, and contemplate.

I got no brain cells left to contemplate anything. I need some sleep. Happy Monday.

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