Thoughts From the Green Bay Packers at the Dallas Cowboys (01/14/2024)

My thoughts from the Green Bay Packers' 48-32 playoff win over the Dallas Cowboys this evening.

I think the Packers' offense might be almost unstoppable. I say that with some apprehension since the San Franciso 49ers have proven to be their kryptonite, but that side of the ball seems to have just too many emerging weapons to defend against. Honestly, the only thing that may be able to slow it down is the Packers' making youthful errors.

I just wish I could say the same about the defense. I want to be able to defend defensive coordinator Joe Barry and there were moments in this game where that would have been easy. Then everything seemed to fall apart for that unit toward the end. Yes, the game was out of reach, at least on paper, and the Packers were starting to play some of their backups, but they certainly turned a sure win into something that might not be. If Dallas would have won this game in the final minutes, I would expect to see Barry fired before they were even on the plane back to Green Bay.

That said, I hope Head Coach Matt LaFleur learned a little something from that. I can understand trying to protect against injuries, but he clearly took his foot off the gas a little too quickly. Had he kept Jordan Love and company in for one more series, this game likely would have been over a lot quicker.

I think Jayden Reed had an off game. The rookie receiver has been impressive this year but had zero catches on offense and his muff on the on-side kick could have been a disaster. It's a good thing the Packers have so many other weapons now. 

I don't usually buy into click-bait rumors but if there's some truth to the ones about Dallas Head Coach Mike McCarthy's job being on the line, the win does prove to be bittersweet for me since I still have quite a bit of respect for the Packers' former coach. I hope owner Jerry Jones would be smarter than that, but I also wouldn't put it past him. And to be fair, the Cowboys' Super Bowl window is going to be closing soon and McCarthy isn't showing he can lead them there. At minimum, if he does get fired over this, I would suspect another team would snatch him right up.