goal line early in the second quarter https://www.thepackersfanshop.com/David-Bakhtiari-Jersey , capping a 75-yard drive that gave Green Bay a 14-7 lead at Minnesota, the Packers again put themselves in favorable position for a victory on the road against a winning team.That’s a formula coach Mike McCarthy’s backsliding bunch has yet to figure out this year.Unlike so many of his past teams with Aaron Rodgers at the helm, these Packers just keep on stumbling down the stretch. Now they’ll probably need a perfect finish to squeeze into the playoffs.Kirk Cousins passed for 342 yards and three touchdowns without a turnover for the Vikings, who overtook the depleted Packers for a 24-17 victory on Sunday .“We’ll see what we’re made of for the last five weeks,” Rodgers said. “Are we going to stick together through these tough times, or are we going to start splintering? I’d like to think that the leadership is in place that we can stick together through whatever happens, but these five weeks will show it.”The Packers went three and out on their first possession, only because Davante Adams accidentally stepped out of bounds before making what would’ve been a chain-moving catch on third down. Then Rodgers finished the second drive with a vintage back-shoulder touchdown throw to Adams , before Jones raced around left end on a crack toss sweep that Vikings coach Mike Zimmer said afterward was a perfect call for the defensive play he had dialed up.But the Packers went three-and-out the next time they had the ball and didn’t score again until a field goal with 2:20 left in the fourth quarter. Over their final seven possessions, they punted five times and had a turnover on downs when Jones was stopped on fourth-and-inches midway through the third quarter at their 44-yard line. On that final drive, Adams had what would’ve been a touchdown catch on third-and-1 at the 20 slip through his hands.“Our third down has been our black eye,” McCarthy said.The Packers (4-6-1) fell into 10th place in the NFC. They were beaten up, mentally and physically, by this five-game slog with losses on the road against the Rams (10-1) Jason Spriggs Jersey , Patriots (8-3), Seahawks (6-5) and Vikings (6-4-1) when they were either tied or leading as late as the third quarter in each of those four games.The schedule softens, with four losing teams on the slate: home games against the Cardinals (2-9), Falcons (4-7) and Lions (4-7) and a trip to play the Jets (3-8) following a rematch with the NFC North-leading Bears (8-3) on the road. There’s a legitimate question, though, about whether the Packers have enough steam left to win out like they did in 2016 with six straight victories to win the division at 10-6 and reach the NFC championship game.“I knew we had a tough stretch. Four really tough places to play,” Rodgers said. “I didn’t think we’d go 1-4 on that stretch, but that’s where we’re at. We’re here: 4-6-1. We have to win our last five, and even that might not be enough.”This will be the first time since Rodgers took over as the starter in 2008 that the Packers don’t reach double-digit wins in the regular season when Rodgers doesn’t miss any games to injuries. They were 7-9 in 2017 and 8-7-1 in 2013 when Rodgers broke his collarbone. They were 6-10 in 2008.The injuries are the most tangible reason why the Packers might not be able to recover to reach the playoffs this year. Already missing several starters, they saw left tackle David Bakhtiari, left guard Lane Taylor, wide receiver Equanimeous St. Brown, wide receiver/kick returner Trevor Davis and safety Kentrell Brice all leave the game with injuries.The Packers, though Mike Daniels Color Rush Jersey , have been missing that mojo they’ve had so often in the Rodgers era all year long. This was their season low in points (14) and yards (254).“Sitting on the sideline, we kept asking ourselves why we’re so unlucky,” said Jones, who had 93 total yards on 20 touches.He added: “You can tell the guys in this locker room want it. We want it more than anyone else, and we’re right there each and every game, but it feels like it gets taken from us.” Vic Fangio makes no secret he would like to be a head coach. Last offseason, when the Packers fired the maligned Dom Capers, Fangio was one of the candidates whom Green Bay most coveted. Once Mike McCarthy got his walking papers and the Bears defense dominated the Rams on national television, connecting the dots was easy. It’s just not the right move for the Packers. Of course, it hasn’t just been one game that makes Fangio an appealing option. He built a dominating 49ers defense during their mini-run with Jim Harbaugh, one that stymied Aaron Rodgers more than once. His work with sub-par talent early in his Chicago tenure deserves its own plaudits, but even with Khalil Mack, Fangio should be lauded for his work turning the Bears into a suffocating defense in an era where such things were thought to be impossible. Fangio is one of the NFL’s true mad scientists, happiest tinkering in the lab with ways to stop opposing offenses. He’s a little gruff https://www.thepackersfanshop.com/Jamaal-Williams-Jersey , but not particularly outspoken and while he provides outstanding defensive coaching and scheme, there’s little evidence to suggest he’s the kind of alpha personality to come in and immediately demand the respect of a veteran football team set on winning a Super Bowl ASAMFP. Some have suggested the Packers need the new coach to inject accountability and discipline into the team, hold Aaron Rodgers to a higher standard and put his damn foot down. That’s not true. Mike McCarthy was an outstanding culture-setting coach and CEO of the Packers program. His voice simply ran its course. Fangio would likely represent a step back in terms of setting a Lombardi standard (as one former coach might put it). What the Packers need is a forward thinking coach with progressive ideologies about coaching, scheme, and personnel deployment. The calculation should be simple: the defense doesn’t have a coaching problem, it has a talent problem. The offense doesn’t have a talent problem, it has a coaching problem. So how does Fangio solve this exactly? If the answer to offensive stagnation is a hot young OC candidate, then just hire the offensive coach to begin with. More than likely the Zac Taylors of the world, even if successful, would be on their way to head coaching jobs in two years and then the team has to start over as Rodgers’ powers wain. What problem does Fangio solve that can’t be solved by Mike Pettine, another year of continuity, and some improved talent? The 49ers had Patrick Willis, Justin Smith, Aldon Smith and a deep group of role players. The Bears have Khalil Mack Dean Lowry Jersey , Akiem Hicks, Kyle Fuller and Eddie Jackson. That’s not underselling what Fangio has done, simply pointing out he’s been successful with more raw talent than the Packers currently have. A 60-year-old coordinator who hasn’t been an NFL head coach and doesn’t seem ideally suited from a personality standpoint to be one isn’t the answer to the Packers falling behind other top offenses with Aaron Rodgers. Fangio is closer to Social Security than a Super Bowl, making him a wonky fit on a team in need of an offensive overhaul. Pete Carroll is the oldest head coach in football and doesn’t suffer from a lack of foresight, but he was also a successful veteran coach with impossible reservoirs of energy when he got to Seattle. Replacing an old school coach with an old school coach to fix complacency in an old school way of doing business simply doesn’t follow. The culture isn’t broken in Green Bay, and even if it were, there’s little evidence to suggest Fangio could piece it back together. The whole defense, to a man, lauded Pettine for bringing accountability back in a post-Capers world. Is Fangio’s schematic advantage over Pettine so large that Mark Murphy and Gutekunst ought to eschew better offensive coaching options in the head spot? No way.Fangio’s defense should worry the Packers on Sunday when the team attempts to save its season and keep playoff hopes alive. But that’s not reason enough to hire him as the man to succeed Mike McCarthy.