Unser Chat » Aaron Rodgers missed a couple of open receivers.

He got picked off. He came up empty when the Green Bay Packers needed a big play.Nothing like his usual work against the Chicago Bears.Rodgers looked shaky in Green Bay's 24-17 loss to Chicago on Sunday http://www.thebearslockerroom.com/authentic-jordan-howard-jersey , throwing an interception for the first time since September and failing to throw a touchdown pass for the first time in more than a year.Coupled with Minnesota's 41-17 victory against Miami, the Packers (5-8-1) were eliminated from playoff contention for the second straight year. The outcome also clinched the NFC North title for the Bears (10-4), who blew a 20-0 lead in a Week 1 loss to Rodgers and company in Green Bay."Obviously, there will be some changes in the offseason," said Rodgers, who turned 35 on Dec. 2. "We'll finish this year out the right way and then we'll look to the future, which I think is still really bright in Green Bay."Rodgers has towered over one of the NFL's most heated rivalries for years, directing Green Bay to 17 wins in his previous 21 starts against Chicago 鈥?including a victory over the Bears in the NFC championship game in the 2010 season at Soldier Field. He had 1,043 yards passing, 10 touchdowns and no interceptions in his past four games against Chicago.But the two-time NFL MVP was never able to get into a rhythm in his first loss at Chicago's longtime home since September 2010. He finished 25 for 42 for 274 yards and an uncharacteristically low passer rating of 68.9."It's a little bit of everything," interim coach Joe Philbin said. "Sometimes it's been the protection, sometimes it's been the routes, sometimes it's been the throws. I don't know that it's just Aaron missing throws. Certainly, there's some throws I'm sure he wish he had back today. I think that's kind of common for a quarterback."Playing behind a banged-up offensive line, Rodgers was on the run for much of the day and was sacked five times. He misfired on a potential touchdown pass to Equanimeous St. Brown midway through the second quarter, and threw long on a deep pass intended for Marquez Valdes-Scantling in the fourth.Asked about the passing game this year Womens Eddie Jackson Jersey , Rodgers said he has missed some throws, but "some of the ones you probably think are missed throws maybe we are just not on the same page."Rodgers also said his groin tightened up on him near the end of the first half and it bothered him "a little bit" the rest of the day. But he plans to start Green Bay's last two games, even with the Packers out of playoff contention."I'd like to be out there, lead us the last two weeks," he said.Even with Rodgers struggling, the Packers headed into the fourth quarter with a chance to win. But Mitchell Trubisky tossed a tiebreaking 13-yard touchdown pass to Trey Burton and Cody Parkey kicked a 24-yard field goal to give the Bears a 24-14 lead with 6:43 left.Green Bay then drove down the field to the Chicago 9. On third down, Rodgers tried for tight end Jimmy Graham over the middle, but the ball got tipped into the air and Eddie Jackson picked it off in the end zone.It was Rodgers' first interception since Sept. 30 against Buffalo, ending an NFL-record streak of 402 pass attempts without an interception."I feel pretty good about the way I've taken care of the football this season," Rodgers said. "We just haven't made enough big plays over the year. That's why the completion percentage is what it is, the yards-per-attempt is what it is, the touchdowns are where they're at. That stuff is disappointing."Jay Cohen can be reached at s://jcohenap Mike Smith is out as defensive coordinator of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, replaced by linebackers coach Mark Duffner.Riding a three-game losing streak and not showing any signs of being able to fix a porous unit that keeps undermining the team's chances of winning, the Bucs dismissed the former Atlanta Falcons coach Monday after yielding 92 points in the first half of consecutive losses to Pittsburgh, Chicago and Atlanta.Tampa Bay, which has the NFL's second-ranked offense and No. 1 passing attack Ha Ha Clinton-Dix Jersey , rallied to make two of those games close, however pressure on coach Dirk Koetter to make a change had been mounting since Mitchell Trubisky threw a career-best six touchdown passes in the Bears' 48-10 rout of the Bucs on Sept. 30.The day after the loss to Chicago, Koetter said he had no intentions of dismissing Smith because the defensive woes were not the fault of any one person.The Bucs had a bye after that game, but having an extra week to prepare for Atlanta didn't turn out to be an advantage. The Falcons gained 219 yards and scored touchdowns on their first three possessions to open a 21-6 lead before holding on late for a 34-29 victory that apparently sealed Smith's fate."I have the utmost respect for Mike Smith as a man and as a football coach," Koetter said. "These decisions are always difficult, but our top priority here is to ensure that we do everything possible to help this team succeed."Through five games, the Bucs (2-3) are 31st in total defense at 439.8 yards per game. They're last in pass defense (355.6), while also allowing a league-high 34.6 points per game.Opponents have scored 30 or more points four times, including 40-plus twice."I thought it was important that both sides of the ball be able to go through the self-scouting process during the bye week to see if we could make some adjustments that would help us play better as a football team," Koetter said, explaining the decision to keep Smith after the loss to Chicago."I do think we had a good plan on defense for Atlanta. We did a lot of things we planned to do. We did some things differently. It just didn't work out that way," Koetter added. "This is a production business. We have to play better on defense. We have to play better as a football team."Smith coached the Falcons from 2008 to 2014. He sat out a year after being fired in Atlanta, where Koetter served as his offensive coordinator, and joined the Bucs when Koetter succeeded Lovie Smith as Bucs coach after the 2015 season."Mike and I worked together as coordinators in Jacksonville, and I worked for Mike in Atlanta. I didn't ever see this day coming, but it's here. We have to make decisions that give us the best chance moving forward. That's all you can do http://www.thebearslockerroom.com/authentic-allen-robinson-jersey ," Koetter said."It's a tough business," linebacker Lavonte David said, adding Smith was a "standup guy" who "never threw anyone under the bus.""Everybody in the locker room had a lot of respect for him," David said. "It's a tough situation he was in."Duffner, 65, was the logical choice as a mid-season replacement for Smith, primarily because of his experience. He's in his 22nd season as an NFL assistant, third with the Bucs.Duffner has also coached in Miami, Jacksonville, Green Bay and Cincinnati, where he was defensive coordinator for two years."When you change five games into the season ... it's not like you're going through a whole lot of options," Koetter said. "Duff has been a coordinator is this league. He's the most experienced coach on our staff, period, at any position."