The Packers ended up beating the Cowboys in overtime, but Aaron Rodgers thought they had a chance to get it done in regulation. Instead, with 1:38 remaining in the fourth quarter, coach Matt LaFleur called for two running plays and then, after a third-down incompletion, the Packers punted.
The Packers quarterback was caught on camera giving LaFleur an earful as he left the field.
Rodgers admitted afterward he was frustrated at LaFleur’s decision to play for overtime.
“Just every single play call, probably,” Rodgers said of the source of his frustration, via a postgame transcript from the team. “I felt like we were like 30 yards from ending the game in regulation, and also felt like it was two minutes, so I was going to be calling those, and I was in a pretty good rhythm. Obviously, I didn’t have a ton of attempts, but felt like I was in a pretty good rhythm. I felt like I threw the ball just about exactly where I wanted to, so I wanted a chance to go win the game.”
The Packers punted with 22 seconds remaining in the fourth quarter, lost the overtime coin toss but stopped the Cowboys on downs in overtime and won it with a field goal. The Cowboys, who led 28-14 in the fourth quarter, had been 195-0 in franchise history when leading by 14 points after three quarters.
LaFleur calling the end-of-regulation play calling “indecision” on his part, knowing the Cowboys had three timeouts remaining if the Packers had to punt with too much time remaining.
“It didn’t work out, at least in that moment, but it did work out obviously for us to be able to come out on top,” LaFleur said. “A lot of times when we get in those situations, we give Aaron a ton of freedom to kind of run the show. I’d say typically, he does such a great job with it. So, hindsight is 20/20, but that was on me, totally.”