Aaron Rodgers can't fix these Packer problems that hinder their Super Bowl chances

CHARLOTTE, N.C. – Anger. Frustration. Slippage. For the second straight week, the telltale signs of weakness appeared in the Green Bay Packers.

There was linebacker Julius Peppers, who argued with safety Ha Ha Clinton-Dix after a Carolina Panthers fourth-quarter touchdown. Defensive tackle B.J. Raji walked over and ended the dispute by shoving Clinton-Dix backward and telling him to go to another bench. These were mistakes manifesting in anger. The frustration of missed opportunity? That telling snapshot belonged to quarterback Aaron Rodgers, who stared at a digital tablet late in Sunday's 37-29 loss to the Panthers. Scanning the images, he was disgusted to see receiver Randall Cobb standing wide open in the end zone on a failed fourth-and-goal.

Until viewing the tablet, Rodgers never saw him. When he finally did, he shouted a four-letter word that summed up much of Green Bay's day, and hurled the device to the ground.

"They caught that?" Rodgers asked later, when told cameras captured the moment. "Yeah, there's frustration in this game. It's a frustrating game."

Nobody knows that better than the Packers right now. And certainly nobody knows it better than Rodgers, who took blame for a loss that was hardly his to shoulder. Granted, he missed Cobb late, throwing an interception that essentially sealed the loss with 1:54 left. But we're getting to the point with the Packers that someone else outside of the quarterback has to step up. There are only so many problems that Rodgers can fix. And Sunday showed plenty of the shortcomings that need to be addressed. Teams win championships far easier with defense and running the football than with a quarterback going berserk in a hurry-up scheme. So Green Bay has some work to do.

The defense is struggling, with Peppers (among others) getting exposed Sunday – a fact that may have led to the Clinton-Dix flare-up. The secondary is having coverage issues seemingly regardless of look, something that was apparent when guys like Jerricho Cotchery and Devin Funchess made big game-turning catches. And the run defense continues to be vulnerable in spots, most obvious being the damage Panthers quarterback Cam Newton did against both four- and three-man fronts.

Rodgers can't fix those things. Nor can he kick-start the running game. He can't make Eddie Lacy's legs any healthier, or his waistline slimmer. He can't create more leverage or push on the offensive line. He can't make the decision to start James Starks, or create more separation for some of his receivers. Here's what he can do, evidenced on Sunday: run a two-minute blitzkrieg offense that can dig the Packers out of a hole and hope that there is opportunity for a win late in a less-than-ideal game. But that's not a long-term answer, and Rodgers knows it. It's a recipe to wear out an offensive line and expose the quarterback to hits and injury.

As Rodgers said of the offense Sunday, "We were taking some shots down the field and playing some schoolyard ball out there at times."

It was an entire half of two-minute offense. It became necessary after the Packers tinkered with some heavy sets (extra tight end, extra fullback) while trying to get the running game going. That didn't work, Green Bay fell into a hole and failed to convert third downs, and eventually that led to opening up the offense.

It's not where many thought this whole thing would be after the 6-0 start.

"We're not in rhythm," Packers coach Mike McCarthy said. "We're up and down."

In fairness, that lack of rhythm has come at the expense of two of the best defenses in the NFL, including last week's embarrassing loss to the Denver Broncos. There's not a lot of shame in struggling on the road against two teams that are 15-1 going into next week. Denver has a defense that could carry it to the Super Bowl this season. And the Panthers, if Packers fans didn't know it by Sunday, are a team that might have the coach of the year in Ron Rivera, and the defensive player of the year in cornerback Josh Norman. So it's not time to start sledge-hammering the panic button.

"I feel the same [as when we were 6-0]," Rodgers said. "I feel very confident in our abilities. … We played two really good opponents who are undefeated. [We played them] at their place. I think if you flip those home and away [advantages] there, I think we'd be 8-0, [but] we're not."

"We get to go home," McCarthy said. "We played two pretty good teams on the road [and] didn't play as well as we're capable of playing and that's the disappointing part. We don't take losing lightly. There's a lot of accountability with this bunch. That doesn't concern me. A lot of fight. A lot of grit."

McCarthy is speaking from a position of strength, knowing the Detroit Lions are coming to Lambeau Field next weekend. That's the NFL's version of an inhaler for an asthmatic offense. The Packers have an opportunity to get things right fast. And with the Chicago Bears, (banged up) Minnesota Vikings and Lions (a second time) on the docket in the next four, Green Bay could coast into mid-December at 10-2. That buys a lot of time to fix problems.

"We've got to play better," Peppers said. "It's that simple. … We don't have to prove anything. We know what we are. We haven't been playing well the past two weeks. But we'll get it right."

"We" is the operative word in that sentence. This is a team that has a few fixes to make that can't fall on Rodgers. It's coaching. It's personnel. It's play-calling. The 6-0 start was impressive, but it has been replaced by something more frustrating. And Rodgers shouldn't have to take responsibility for that.

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