GREEN BAY, Delete. – Matt LaFleur said that although he ultimately regretted his decision to get the ball out of Aaron Rodgers ‘hands and kick a field goal with 2:09 left in the Green Bay Packers’ 31-26 loss to The Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the NFC Championship Game on Sunday, he relied on the rationale behind the move.
Eight points lower (31-23) at the time and facing fourth and goal on the 8-yard line, LaFleur sent Mason Crosby in for a 26-yard field goal instead of giving Rodgers one more shot into the end zone (and then a 2-point conversation) to level the score.
Crosby converted, but Rodgers never got the ball back thanks to Tom Brady and a pass interference on Packers’ corner-back Kevin King, which allowed the Bucs to run out of the clock.
“Yeah, if it doesn’t work, you always regret it, right?” LaFleur said after the game. “It was just the conditions of three shots and getting away with no yards and knowing you need not only the touchdown, but the 2-point. [conversion]. The way I looked at it was that we essentially had four timeouts with the two minute warning.
“We knew we had to stop, and I thought we would stop there at the end, but we became [defensive pass interference] and it didn’t work out. I think if something doesn’t work, you regret it? Sure, but we’ll always be process-driven here, and the way our defense fought, the way our defense played, felt like it was the right decision to do. It just didn’t work out. “
Rodgers understood the thought, but said after the game, “It was not my decision.” He said that LaFleur gave him the option to call the previous game in third place – an action that resulted in a scramble and a discard when Rodgers might have been able to perform it.
Rodgers said he might have mentioned a different game if he knew LaFleur would opt for a field goal.
“I thought we might get four more chances,” Rodgers said.
According to ESPN’s Win Probability model, the Packers had a 10% chance of winning by going for fourth place and a 9.5% chance of winning by kicking a field goal.
The model also suggested that the Packers needed a 21% chance of converting to justify landing there, with an average conversion rate of 23% in that spot. The Packers were the No. 1 scoring offense this season.
Earlier, LaFleur opted for a 2-point call after Rodgers’ 2-yard touchdown pass to Davante Adams with 24 seconds to go in the fourth quarter made it 28-23. Packers receiver Equanimeous St. Brown dropped Rodgers’ pass into the end zone. According to ESPN’s model, the failed 2-point attempt was the right decision from an analytical standpoint.
However, by losing the one point they would have gotten for an extra point made, the Packers later got into the eighth position and thus needed a touchdown and a two-point call in the final minutes before their final field. target.
Tampa Bay coach Bruce Arians said he thought the decision was the right one – “I thought they were very confident in their defense at the time,” he said – but linebacker Shaq Barrett said he was surprised by what unfolded.
“I honestly couldn’t believe it because there was no guarantee they would make it there again, even if they were in fourth place – they might as well try,” said Barrett. “I know our offense – they were great in the four-minute bout this year, they didn’t give the team the ball – so I had the utmost confidence in them. But I know if he could take it back, he would. probably not next time. “
While LaFleur wasn’t necessarily talking about the field goal decision, he said towards the end of his press conference that he was unaware of his game.
“I felt we had plenty of opportunities tonight to take advantage and get the job done,” said LaFleur. “We didn’t do it, and that falls on me, and that’s a tough pill to swallow when you’re responsible for everyone in this organization to make sure you’re on your A game, and I don’t feel like I was tonight, I’m just pretty disappointed with that [I] let many people down. “
ESPN’s Jenna Laine contributed to this story.