3 takeaways from Packers’ collapse vs. Colts in Week 11

1. More serious questions asked of Mike Pettine

The Packers should’ve had about two minutes to work with in the fourth quarter to either score a game-winner or tie the game and send it to overtime. They did eventually get the ball back but that’s thanks to the Colts’ poor play and nothing to do with the defense.

We saw some moments of brilliance from the defense including Raven Greene’s forced fumble, Christian Kirksey’s interception, Kenny Clark’s sack, and Za’Darius Smith’s hit on Philip Rivers late on. But we also saw the Packers almost give the game away despite having the Colts approximately one million yards away from a first down.

With just over two minutes remaining and timeouts in the bag, the Packers had the Colts facing a second-and-20 and then a third-and-19 with the ball around midfield. Get a quick stop and force a punt with the two-minute warning to stop the clock.

On third-and-19, Mike Pettine opted to play soft coverage which gift-wrapped 13 yards to Nyheim Hines, setting up a fourth-and-4 following the two-minute warning. Instead of punting, the Colts went for it and converted. Thankfully, the Colts were called twice for offensive holding and ended up punting away.

Had the Packers actually done their job earlier and forced a stop, Rodgers would’ve had more time to score a TD and not have to settle for a field goal.

In the end, Green Bay gave up 34 points, four touchdowns, and 140 yards rushing. Defensively, there are still some serious questions to be asked and it comes back to Pettine.