Matt LaFleur and the Green Bay Packers had the chance to kick off the season with a win. However, they blew a 12-point second-half lead, giving the Minnesota Vikings the opening to secure a 39-22 comeback victory on Sunday.
After the game, former Packers quarterback Kurt Benkert did not shy away from criticizing LaFleur's play-calling decisions and game management. On X, he shared a graphic of how the team lost their last three games despite a double-digit lead.
"At some point you have to look in the mirror," Benkert wrote.
Benkert also called out Matt LaFleur for his "conservative" play-calling and blamed it for the loss.
"You really let Carson Wentz walk down because of conservative playcalling when the last meaningful game played you got walked down BC of conservative playcalling. At what point does something change?"
In other tweets, he urged the Packers to fire LaFleur and find a suitable replacement.
"Clean House," Benkert wrote.
"There are some coaches that give you a competitive advantage and some that hold you back and that's just a fact," Benkert added.
At halftime, the Packers had a 19-10 lead thanks to two touchdowns by quarterback Jordan Love and two field goals by Trey Smack. In the third quarter, Smack scored another 26-yard field goal to make it 22-10.
However, Vikings quarterback Carson Wentz then connected with Justin Jefferson for a 39-yard passing TD, opening the comeback route for his team. Heading into the fourth quarter, the Packers struggled to adjust their defensive pressure against Kevin O'Connell's offense.
In the fourth quarter, Matt LaFleur made a questionable decision after accepting a penalty. This set up the Packers for a fourth-and-1 from the Vikings' 17-yard line. They attempted a quarterback sneak but turned the ball over after failing to secure a first down.
Aaron Jones and Jordan Mason scored two rushing touchdowns to put the Vikings ahead 32-22. Wentz sealed the win with 3:55 left on the clock after connecting with Jefferson for a nine-yard TD.
In the postgame presser, Matt LaFleur explained his decision to take points off the board and attempt a quarterback sneak with Jordan Love on fourth down in the fourth quarter.
The Packers coach said that they planned to be aggressive and secure a comfortable lead. However, the decision did not work out in their favor.
"I think that's just, we're gonna be aggressive," LaFleur said. "I mean, it was gonna be an eight-point game. If it would have been a two-possession game, I probably would have thought otherwise.
"But, I thought we had a chance. We didn't do very well in the red zone. I think we were one of four. They were four for four. But, sometimes, you live and die by that. But we're gonna be aggressive and we're gonna try to go for that throw in that situation."
The Packers will next take on the New York Jets at MetLife Stadium on Sept. 20.
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