Packers head coach Matt LaFleur repeatedly got angry with officials during Sunday’s 20-17 loss to the Lions, but he didn’t want to make that the focus of his postgame comments.
LaFleur said there were “some tough decisions” but his team had to move past them. Among those tough calls were two passer penalties and an unnecessary roughness call on defensive tackle Devonte Wyatt for a hit that occurred without a clear whistle to stop the play as Lions receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown got up to continue running.
Although LaFleur didn’t want to go after the officials, safety Xavier McKinney was more willing to go. He said it wasn’t “good officiating” and that the calls were “kind of screwing up” the team’s games. McKinney knows that could earn him a monetary penalty from the league, but he said he’s OK with it because he feels he’s telling the truth.
“I would rather be fined and try to help my team because I see what’s happening, and it’s killing us,” McKinney said, via Rob Demovsky of ESPN.com. “We all see it. We all see what is happening. Everybody sees what’s going on, the fans see what’s going on, we see what’s going on when we’re out there.
Not every call can explain everything about the loss — Packers rookie Trey Smack missed a 26-yard field goal and blocked a 35-yard field goal at the end of drives that also could have ended in touchdowns — but McKinney’s comments make it clear they played a role.
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