News » One of the running storylines of the offseason

has been the construction of the relationship between new Packers head coach Matt LaFleur and quarterback Aaron Rodgers.LaFleur brings a new offense that will ask Rodgers to do things in a different way than he’s grown accustomed to doing them for more than a decade. It can take time for new partnerships to flourish Justin Vogel Jersey , but Rodgers said in April that no one gets “a pass for the first year or two as you get acclimated to the system.”The team seems to share that view. General Manager Brian Gutekunst told Albert Breer of SI.com that the team isn’t thinking about expansive windows to win with Rodgers.“The more you’re around Aaron, you realize the bar is set really, really high,” Gutekunst said. “The expectations are always high. They always are around here, they always have been, but I don’t think in today’s football, with today’s athlete, especially a guy like Aaron . . . it’s just different, guys are playing longer, guys are taking care of their bodies differently. Every year is different. I don’t think you look at windows, I think you just look at it year-to-year.”Gutekunst’s approach to this year has included a more aggressive approach to filling out the defense via free agency while Rodgers and LaFleur work to get on the same page offensively. While both sides will need to come together for great success in Green Bay, the Rodgers/LaFleur side of things is likely to capture more attention. MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — When Aaron Jones crossed the goal line early in the second quarter Justin McCray Color Rush 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 https://www.thepackersfanshop.com/Marwin-Evans-Jersey , mentally and physically, by this five-game slog with losses on the road against the Rams (10-1), 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 Jermaine Whitehead Jersey , 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, 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.”