The Green Bay Packers don't care about special teams. It's about time that changed.
General manager Brian Gutekunst stood at the podium last week and defended the special teams performances. He expressed confidence in Rich Bisaccia, while claiming the Packers have invested more into their special teams in recent years.
That's accurate, but let's be honest, it was a low bar to clear. As former Packers fullback John Kuhn pointed out last month, Gutekunst failed to give Bisaccia a recognized return specialist. He hasn't found a kicker who shows up in the biggest moments. It all counts, and the Seattle Seahawks just proved it.
Seahawks show the Packers why special teams matter in dominant Super Bowl win
Defense wins championships. That's the cliche. Seattle proved that a million times over with its nightmarish pass rush. Having an elite quarterback helps, too. That's where the Packers have, smartly, focused their attention over the past three decades.
But the Seahawks just proved that, on top of that, special teams is also pretty important.
According to Front Office Sports, Seattle spent $9.33 million on its special teams, more than any other team. And it showed. As they point out, Jason Myers made all seven of his kicks in Super Bowl 60, adding 17 points to the Seahawks' tally.
They also dominated in the punting game, with Michael Dickson pinning New England inside the 7-yard line three times.
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The Seahawks traded for Rashid Shaheed before the deadline — he repaid them with two return touchdowns in the regular season and another in the playoffs.
The Packers know how badly special teams can burn them in the postseason. We all remember the botched onside kick versus the Seahawks a decade ago. The blocked field goal and blocked-punt touchdown in a three-point loss to the San Francisco 49ers. And, just this year, Brandon McManus' missed field goals helped seal the Packers' fate.
Sean McVay's Los Angeles Rams suffered a similar fate.
They could've made the Super Bowl had it not been for Xavier Smith fumbling a punt return. He actually fumbled two, but the Rams recovered one of them. They ultimately lost to Seattle by four points.
Gutekunst watched the Packers' special teams meltdown again, yet he still won't make changes.
"We certainly have added a lot of those kind of guys, that are just more special teams-oriented players, and we improved," he said during his end-of-season presser on February 4. "We've gotten a lot better. I have a lot of faith in Rich (Bisaccia) and what we're doing there. That last game, obviously, we missed some kicks. Brandon had made 32 straight going into that game, so we certainly didn't see that coming. But we've got to be better in those situations."
Why then did the Packers have Romeo Doubs returning punts this season? Why did Bo Melton return 19 kicks when they have Keisean Nixon, a first-team All-Pro returner, focusing solely on defense?
Seattle's defense led the way in the Super Bowl. Nobody is doubting that. Mike Macdonald's unit sacked Drake Maye six times, hit him 11 times, made eight tackles for loss, and forced three turnovers.
But they also reminded the world, just as they have throughout the postseason, why special teams is so important.
The sooner the Packers realize that, the better their chances of ending their Super Bowl drought.