Green Bay quarterback Aaron Rodgers
On what is different about the Panthers versus last season:"Well, Josh Norman didn't play that game and he is a difference maker on the outside. I just think they're being very consistent on defense. Their pass rush has been good. Obviously, they have some very talented linebackers who have incredible name recognition and the back end has been very consistent. Those guys have been playing really well, making plays on the ball, creating turnovers, tackling well so they are all playing really well together."
On what didn't work for their offense on Sunday night:"I would say mostly everything: didn't throw it well, didn't get open consistently, didn't run it very effectively and didn't convert third downs. You know, we talk about a number of different areas of emphasize every week, especially in situational football and you got to convert third downs and give yourself more opportunities. You got to get down in the red zone. You need more opportunities down there to score points. They did a good job. They had a good plan but it comes down to execution when you have two good football teams lined up against each other and they did on both sides and we didn't."
On if he tries to forget the loss from last week or use it to learn: "I think that is a good question. You don't really ever forget any of that stuff. I think you try and really harness that and learn from it and turn it into a positive if you can. It is obviously very frustrating. You put so much into it and a lot of preparation, practice, you know, thoughts, presentations and different things that are put together for the week in order to get yourself in the right frame of mind to go out and play your best and then we go out there and play that poorly individually and collectively. You have to go back and you know, be very honest about how the week went, how you felt leading up to it and how you performed. I didn't play well enough and offensively, we need to improve in some areas."
On the importance of this game based on where both teams stand in the standings: "I mean it is. Yeah, it is an important game for both of us. I mean, they are undefeated, they are at the top of the conference right now. They have I believe a game-and-a-half up on Atlanta, so there are lot of implications. We are a game up in the North. You know, it has potential implications down the road. We both have goals bigger than this game, but this could go a long way when the weather starts to change."
Green Bay head coach Mike McCarthy
On the difference between this year's Panthers team and last year's team: "As I recall, last year they had a number of injuries they were going through, starting with Cam Newton, but they're playing football. It's a very balanced football team. They can get it done on offense, defense and special teams so they can see everyone contributing in their last victory on Monday night against Indianapolis so this is a huge challenge for us."
On what Denver's defense did well against them:"They pretty much loaded up the box and set the edges on us and we didn't really do enough about it. They're an excellent defense and they performed at a very high level and it's definitely something that we need to learn from because people are obviously playing us a lot more aggressive than they have in the past."
On if that aggressive approach has been the case against other teams as well: "It's something we've seen the last couple weeks. Every time you line up and play you learn from your last experience, and that's what we're going to do and we're going to apply it to our preparation this week."
On how much emphasis they put on the result of last year's game: "I think the biggest thing, honestly, to look at last year's game and this year's game is more for personnel reasons. I think it's more for when you get in the position room for film study and you lined up and played against the same player last year, there is a benefit, but I think both teams are different teams. I'm a big believer in that. I think we're a different team than we were last year. Obviously, 20 percent of our personnel is different and really our approach has changed some too so I don't know how much you can really gather from that outside of the personnel matchups."
On the Panthers secondary: "Well we have a lot of respect for Josh (Norman). Anytime you get to watch a game on TV, especially live, you really get the close-up and just the video and the things they show and the way his athletic ability is highlighted and his ability to make plays on the ball. I think their secondary as whole has excellent ball skills, so that's something that we're coaching and talking about, so this will be a big challenge for our offense."
On Panthers and Packers fighting for homefield advantage in playoffs:"I hope we're talking about it but, I'm focused on what Sunday brings and coming down to Carolina is going to be a big challenge and their team is undefeated and I'm sure the fans are going to be rabid. I've always found Carolina to be a tough place to play so they're definitely on the way for that."
