Like many of their playoff losses over the years, the Green Bay Packers lost 24-21 to the San Francisco 49ers on Saturday night.A missed red zone opportunity by the offense, a botched interception by the defense and a missed field goal kept Green Bay out of the NFC Championship Game. Here are the weekly overreactions:One. Patience is not always a virtueIn his second career game of 2018, fifth-round pick Daniel Carlson went 0-3 in a 29-29 tie at Minnesota’s Lambeau Field. The Vikings released him the next day. It was stupid. Impatience will get you nowhere in life. The Packers selected Anders Karlsson with a sixth-round pick in 2023. From the start, they made it clear they were going to be around him for the long haul. Why not? The team’s expectations were low. Much like when Jordan Love traded Aaron Rodgers, this season was one in which Carlson replaced Mason Crosby and was reevaluated after the season.Carlson started very well. In the first five games, he made all 17 extra points and one touchdown. He missed Denver’s first kickoff since Week 7, 43 yards before halftime in a two-point loss. Three weeks later in Pittsburgh, his missed extra points cost him four points.During the regular season, Carlson missed a league-high 11 shots. He ranked in the bottom quartile of the league in field goal percentage and extra point percentage.The Packers were especially patient with Carlson, which would be understandable if the team’s 3-6 start led to a 7-10 final record. But the Packers got hot and made the playoffs. Just as you knew special teams would hinder the team’s chances of winning the 2021 Super Bowl, you knew Carlson’s habit of missing every game would be a problem again. It was clearly a mistake for the Vikings to move on from Daniel Carlson, who has been an almost automatic starter for the Raiders the past four years.Anders Karlsson is too talented to keep getting better. But there was also a simpler solution, such as signing a veteran player to the practice squad and allowing him to play instead of immediately releasing a rookie. They featured two of the NFL’s leading scorers, Mason Crosby and Robbie Gould. Have him kick short field goals and use Carlson for long field goals and kickoffs.Instead, general manager Brian Gutekunst decided to sink or swim with Carlson. During the broadcast, the Fox announcer said manager Matt LaFleur prayed before each at-bat. What a damning statement about the state of kicking. So the season ended on Saturday night.Would the Packers have beaten the 49ers if Carlson hadn’t missed a 41-yard catch with about six minutes left? Who knows. Could it be that an anonymous veteran struck that blow? Again, who knows? But the truth is, Carlson missed the kick and the Packers lost by three points. Everything was so predictable.”I think there’s a lot to learn,” Carlson said. “It’s hard for me to watch these guys because I know how much effort they put in. I want to put them in the best possible position. “I only think about them and work for them.”2. Jordan LoveIn his debut season in 2008, Aaron Rodgers and the Packers went 6-10. In their 2009 playoff debut, the Packers lost 51-45 to Arizona. Rodgers’ first pass was intercepted and a controversial fumble in overtime was returned at the end of the game. A year later, the Packers won the Super Bowl.Who knows if the Packers will follow that trajectory. But Love’s big-game experience this season, which Rodgers lacked in 2008, could pay big dividends. “I think you can see throughout the season that he’s grown as a leader as well as his ability to continue to play winning football,” coach Matt LaFleur said. “I think it’s very important to be a franchise quarterback that we expect to be here for a long time.”It’s great that the Packers have their next “franchise letter.” The Bears keep getting beat because they haven’t had success in forever. It is inconceivable that the Packers’ elite quarterback could play non-stop for 40 years. No, Love did not perform well against the 49ers. In the final 19 minutes, Love was 7 of 13 for 29 yards and had two kills. The final interception was a risky play by a young and inexperienced linebacker.Of course, this is love. The next time the Packers find themselves in this situation, he needs to be a true franchise quarterback. I’m confident the Packers are in good hands. 3. Request for defenseThe Packers have a lot of questions heading into the offseason. The biggest is the future of defensive coordinator Joe Barry.Coach Matt LaFleur decided to stick with Barry after his defense was overwhelmed by the Buccaneers and the league-worst Panthers in back-to-back games. In this case, patience was rewarded.Green Bay’s defense has been stellar over the last four games. Green Bay held the Cowboys to seven points in the first half last week before giving up 24 points and 356 yards to the 49ers. That’s nearly five points and 40 yards shy of his season average. The Packers would have won the game had Darnell Savage and Keysian Nixon not thrown interceptions.“I thought it was great,” LaFleur said of the defense. “Of course you want to quit eventually. This is one of the best offenses in the league. This is one of the best football teams in the league.
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