Inbox: There's so much to like about what he brings

Richard from Greenwich, NY

Good morning, saw a stat that makes the tie in Dallas a bit more palatable: Home teams that score 40 points or more and have no turnovers, have a record of 300-0-1. The Pack is responsible for that sole tie. Enjoy the bye.

As I said to open our latest "Unscripted," just when you think you've seen it all in this league, another game gets played.

John from Stevens Point, WI

You mentioned that the CBA gives players time off during the bye week, with some sticking around to rehab. What does II during the bye week? Do you need to rehab? Do you enjoy some midseason time off, too?

We might stop in the office here and there the rest of the week, but otherwise we're working from home and getting whatever break we can.

George from Edinburg, VA

Good morning. Mike, I know I missed a lot of Packer games while in the Army in Germany, but one crazy stat you mentioned must have been tough to watch. Seeing 32 first downs by Green Bay and only 14 points in an overtime tie at Tampa Bay in Oct. 1980 must have been painful.

I looked up that game to review the details. The Packers had 569 yards of total offense that day – third most in team history – and scored only 14 points. They punted three times from the Tampa 40-yard line, and two other times from midfield or better. Plus they had two turnovers (one a pick-six) and missed three field goals – from 47 yards early in the game, from 24 with a minute left in regulation, and from 36 on the final play of OT. Mercy.

Tucker from Belton, TX

A lot to not like, but I really don't like the "LaFleur didn't try to win" take. The first-down screen was a great look – two defenders over three receivers, just whiffed a block. The second-down play was a shot to the end zone, Love said, but the Cowboys dropped out so he had to check it down. Results weren't there, doesn't mean the intent wasn't.

I agree. It was a highly consequential missed block on the perimeter, no different than a whiff up front that gets the QB sacked, loses yards and keeps the clock running (in this case, forcing the use of the final timeout). Equating outcome with intent is as obtuse as it gets to me.

David from Minneapolis, MN

Mike, I respectfully disagree with you about Jordan Love making the wise choice on the dump off. The correct decision is to turf it so you can regroup, take a breather, and not rush the best play. Best-case scenario on the dump off Emanuel Wilson gets to the 5 and then they still struggle to get a play off. At that point with no timeouts it should have been a ball to within a few yards of the end zone at minimum.

I understand that approach and LaFleur agreed when he went into more detail Tuesday. In the wee hours I needed to be more specific with my words, because saying Love "smartly took the checkdown" was really more about not forcing the ball into unfavorable coverage. I'm always leery of throwing the ball away from the pocket, though there are ways. I still wouldn't call the checkdown a killer because there's usually one guy to beat in open space, and if Wilson is able to make him miss, he could get inside the 10 and, even better, out of bounds. It didn't work out that way, and maybe Love should've seen it wouldn't. Regardless, what absolutely cannot occur is the lack of urgency to get the next snap off and take that shot at the win. That was inexcusable because, checkdown or not, they had plenty of time. It took 16 seconds from when Wilson was tackled to the ball being snapped. Way too long.

Rick from El Cerrito, CA

Mike, after you watch the all-22, can you tell us if Dontayvion Wicks was open on the last pass in the end zone? It seemed like he had inside position on his defender, but I don't know if Love had a clear throwing lane to him. I'm not trying to Monday morning quarterback, just curious if my eyes were right.

There was an underneath defender at the 5-yard line in the throwing lane to Wicks, so it would've required a layered touch pass, not a bullet, which would've given the safety in the back of the end zone, who had eyes on Love the whole way, a chance to break toward Wicks for the INT. That's how I saw it on film.

Vishnu from Santa Clara, CA

I hope I don't jinx it, but Matthew Golden's hands are impressive. He had a couple of really nice catches against Dallas where he used only his hands. Nice to see. Hope it continues.

There's so much to like about what he brings. Talent plus toughness, and nowhere close to a finished product.

Bob from Rome, NY

Mike: Not sure if you can identify the person who gave the classic in-game chat quote of "Mike, do something." It made me laugh right out loud in the middle of the chaos! Then later I had a vision of you lined up in a three-point stance on the D line wearing No. 88 and getting a strip sack of Dak! Thank you and Wes for keeping us grounded and informed.

That was a pretty good one. Someone else, whose comment unfortunately didn't get posted because it vanished on me as they were coming in so fast and furious at the end of the first half, also nearly made me howl. Earlier in the game I had to clarify that Tirico was wrong on the broadcast about the roof being open, and NBC was showing pictures of the roof open, but they were from pregame. It was closed just prior to kickoff. After the Cowboys scored those two TDs in a span of 30-plus seconds, someone wrote in, "Can we go back to talking about the roof, please?" That was gold, Jerry. Gold.

Benjamin from Bear, DE

Like bananas, takeaways come in bunches. I know it's very early and there's a ton of football to play, but is the lack of takeaways concerning to anyone except me?

LaFleur is certainly concerned, as the training camp emphasis is falling flat. I admittedly brushed off the issue last week, but I certainly didn't see 436 yards and 40 points coming. I still don't think this defense "needs" turnovers if it tackles well (which it didn't in Dallas) and the offense doesn't "need" the defense to get them if the self-inflicted wounds are reduced. But I won't argue they help the cause considerably when things aren't going well.

Tom from Eagan, MN

ST should also be criticized for both kickoff coverage and returns. On coverage the Packers allowed a 46-yard return after scoring the go-ahead TD with only about 1:30 left. The Cowboys averaged almost 30 yards per return for the game. On returns Savion Williams let the ball land inside the 5-yard line three times and he took a touchback, resulting in the ball being placed at only the 20-yard line. Why not catch it on the fly and go for the return?

The Packers are losing this field-position battle too regularly, for all sorts of reasons. It has to change to help both sides of the ball. Lots of work to be done there, starting with catching those kickoffs that are going to bounce short of the goal line.

Joe from Eau Claire, WI

How much of our special-teams issues do you suppose can be attributed to shuffling because of injuries? I seem to remember years ago we struggled a lot on special teams because injuries were requiring all sorts of shuffling and the units never seemed cohesive.

I won't deny it's a consideration, same with using rookies. But every single team in the league deals with that.

Kevin from Kirkland, IL

I don't believe the FG/XP fiascos around the league are just protection breakdowns. Something has changed. I noticed the Packers are spotting the ball 8 yards behind the line of scrimmage, not 7 yards like teams did predominantly in the past. More time to have to block the defense up front, easier angles to block the kick from the edge. It just can't be offensive linemen/edge blockers have forgotten how to block on kicks across the league.

Placekicks have been spotted 8 yards behind the line of scrimmage, instead of the old 7, since the early '90s. I'm seeing two things that I think are working hand in hand: rush teams timing snaps better, which kicking teams should be able to mitigate; and blockers not anchoring properly to get a piece of two rushers. The numbers are always in the rush team's favor to put six over four blockers on one side. Nobody in protection there can make his job a one-on-one. When that does happen, problems ensue.

Job from Willmar, MN

On the blocked extra point, did anyone even touch the Cowboy that made the block?

No. The two blockers on the right edge of the protection unit each focused on one guy, giving the Cowboys player in between a free run. Both those blockers were replaced for the rest of the game. One last thing here, I'm not denying the value of the three-point swing on the PAT, but the folks out there believing the game was dramatically altered in that moment are misguided. Right after, the Cowboys went three-and-out, the Packers moved the ball into Dallas territory but stalled, punted and pinned them on the 5. The game changed when the Cowboys went 95 yards for a TD against a defense that hadn't budged, and then got the ball back right away.

Mark from Eureka, IL

In addition to ST weaknesses on tape, Dallas may have given the blueprints in stopping the Packers getting to the quarterback. Packers staff will work on countering all that. That chess match will be interesting in the coming weeks.

If there's any blueprint it's having the QB get the ball out quickly, which Dak did with aplomb and isn't some schematic revelation. I didn't realize until I watched the film how many times Micah Parsons was right on him and Prescott got rid of it. As Wes said, he was always a step ahead. Hafley can adjust to that defensively, and like you I'm curious what shape that takes.

Bill from Las Vegas, NV

I never got a good look at a replay, but did Parsons get Prescott just before he was going in for a TD? Since he got him from behind, I never saw if anyone was in DP's way to the endzone. I think MP was credited with a sack on that play which saved a possible loss.

The press box was right above that end zone and when Prescott took off, I thought he was going to score.

Todd from Sandy, UT

I am confused why nobody was close to Tolbert on the desperate miracle toss by Prescott in OT? No. 25 appears in the background, but appears at least 5 yards behind the WR?

When I looked at it again I got the same impression as when I saw it live. Tolbert took Keisean Nixon into the end zone and got him leaning the wrong way when he broke back hard toward the sideline for the desperation pass, which Nixon didn't see right away. It wasn't a good look for Nixon to just be standing there, but honestly he had no chance to have an impact on whether or not Tolbert caught it.

Gary from Engadine, MI

It may be just a coincidence but the Packer defense's ability to stop the Cowboys was about the time Devonte Wyatt was hurt. He certainly has had an impact when he's been on the field and probably another player that has benefited from the Parsons acquisition. Any update on his injury?

LaFleur said he's week to week, which felt like good news. Parsons gave a nice shout-out to his injured teammate after the game, but I don't like the narrative of the defensive struggles being so strongly tied to Wyatt's absence. This defense has several really good players, including Wyatt, and it can't all fall apart just because one isn't there.

Joel from Show Low, AZ

When the schedule came out there was a lot of moaning about the early bye. It seems to be coming at a good time now. We have players on the IR that should be getting ready to come back soon. This time off could allow proper healing for all. We'll have to deal with the future when it arrives. The week-to-week nature of the NFL has been evident lately.

And how.

Bill from Fort Worth, TX

Before people quit on the season, let's see where we are relative to preseason reason. Without starters playing, September is preseason football. We let a game or two get away, but we're 1-0 in the division, against the team to beat no less. Some young guys got experience, which hopefully pays off when the inevitable injuries happen, and we've got a bye to get healthier. We still have a very strong roster, with some valuable insights into where we need some work. We're going to be just fine.

This is too much calm rationality.

John from Palmdale, CA

Looking back at '23 where we started off fast and then stunk up the field for half the season, then became the best team in the league. Still early in the season. Buckle up you say? I'm wearing a crash helmet and firesuit.

Got any spares? Happy Wednesday.

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