Following their 20-17 loss to the Arizona Cardinals, the Green Bay Packers informed Mike McCarthy that he was fired. The only surprise here is that this happened before the season was over. The Packers are not known for turnover in their organization but a home loss to the 2-win Cardinals was finally enough to part ways with McCarthy.
The knock on McCarthy was that he was too stubborn to deter from his old school west coast schematics. Teams are now going to college coaches for creative spread concepts that make life easier for quarterbacks. And while he owned a good winning percentage (.618) in his 13 years with the Packers, he was criticized for not doing more with arguably the best quarterback of this generation in Aaron Rodgers.
As sub-par as McCarthy was this season, Rodgers is not absolved from blame. He did injure his left knee in Week 1 but he has not played like the Aaron Rodgers we’re used to seeing. He has looked significantly more disinterested and frustrated this year and there have been rumors for years that he and McCarthy did not get along. There was no way the organization was going to part with Rodgers over McCarthy so here we are.
The Packers front office can also be blamed for the Packers woes. Their unaggressive approach to free agency and neglect they have shown certain position groups like the offensive line should not go unnoticed.
Some have argued that McCarthy deserved better than being fired mid-season because of all he has done for the organization. The Packers could’ve handled it like the Giants handled Tom Coughlin’s departure. But now the Packers will get a head start on the coaching search which can be a huge advantage. The Packer’s will definitely be a highly sought position mainly because of Aaron Rodgers and the organization’s desire for consistency.
Joe Philbin will be the interim head coach for the time being. He served as the offensive coordinator this season and was the Dolphins head coach from 2012 to 2015 posting a 24-28 record in Miami. Some possible replacements for next year would be John Harbaugh, Eric Bieniemy, John DeFilippo, Josh McDaniels, or Bruce Arians. Whoever is chosen, you have to think that Rodgers will have a voice in the selection process.
