Mike Pettine under fire after Bucs touchdown before half-time

Kevin King didn’t have his best game on Sunday. The Packers cornerback, who played after being questionable with a back injury, gave up a 39-yard touchdown to Scotty Miller on the penultimate play of the first half and was fined defensive pass interference penalty on Tyler Johnson at the end of the fourth quarter.

But King doesn’t take as much responsibility as defensive coordinator Mike Pettine for the pre-halftime play, which frankly was overshadowed by the final 2 1/2 minutes of the game.

In the aftermath of one of the most disappointing losses in the Packers’ long history, tire tracks are everywhere, including Pettine’s back.

Matt LaFleur’s comments immediately after the game prompt one to wonder if Pettine’s future is already decided.

“It was a male blanket. It’s definitely not the right choice for the situation, and you can’t do things like that against a good football team and hope to win, ”LaFleur said, via Jason Wilde of Wisconsin State Journal. “When you look at it, there have been 120 bizarre games on both sides of the ball plus all the special teams. There were a lot of plays in this game that could have been made, that could have changed the outcome of the game.

“But what really hurt us the most was this game, then going out to start the second half, [Aaron Jones] had the fumble and they score to make 28-10. It really was the big difference in the football game. You just can’t do that.

“I blame us as coaches for putting our guys in this situation. It is inexcusable. It shouldn’t have happened. So we have to take a look at it, do some personal reflection and try to find ways so that it cannot happen again.

The Bucs were ready to kick Green Bay 45’s fourth and fourth before rethinking it after a timeout. They took a first down on a throw from Tom Brady to Leonard Fournette at 39 and called their last time out with eight seconds left.

Brady saw Miller get a step over King, who was in individual coverage, which resulted in a touchdown with one second left in the half and a 21-10 lead at the half.

Hall of Fame coach Tony Dungy was among those who criticized the Packers’ coverage in this situation, writing: “Maybe it is the worst defensive design I’ve seen it with 8 seconds and no timeouts. Green Bay – I don’t know how you play inside the man-to-man technique and [not] just play the zone and protect the touchline and the end zone? Unbelievable.”

Pettine’s mistake could cost him his job.