Regrets -- Packer and Ram Fans Have a Few

Second-guessing NFL coaches has grown into a national pastime, and fans of the St. Louis Rams and Green Bay Packers will have a busy off-season analyzing decisions made by their coaches in last weekend’s playoff losses.

For the Rams, Coach Mike Martz went against quarterback Marc Bulger’s regular-season success inside the opponent’s 20-yard line when he decided to play it safe at the end of regulation in St. Louis’ 29-23 double-overtime loss to Carolina.

After kicker Jeff Wilkins recovered his own on-side kick, giving St. Louis the ball at its 42-yard line with 2:38 to play in the fourth quarter and Carolina ahead by three points, the Rams were in great position to put the Panthers away.

Bulger began the drive with a perfectly thrown pass to Isaac Bruce across the middle for a 20-yard gain to the Carolina 38. After the two-minute warning, Bulger connected with Bruce for 13 yards to the Panther 25.

Then, with the clock running, Bulger found Marshall Faulk out of the backfield for six yards, moving the ball inside the 20. That’s when Martz, who still had a timeout, got conservative.

Instead of letting Bulger throw into the end zone -- there probably was time for two passes -- Martz ordered his quarterback to let the clock run down, running only one running play with Faulk, before Wilkins kicked a 33-yard field goal to send the game into overtime. Carolina won when Jake Delhomme and Steve Smith clicked on a 69-yard scoring pass on the first play of the second overtime.

Afterward, Martz explained his cautious play calling.

“We had a lot of opportunities, but the whole point was to try to continue to play,” he said. “I think at the point after we got the on-side kick, and we’ve been in that situation a couple of times before, I was really concerned about throwing it into the end zone and having the ball tipped or bumped. I just wanted to get this thing into overtime. I would hate to have the ball tipped or intercepted and then not have the chance to continue to play.”

But Martz could have considered Bulger’s numbers inside the red zone during the regular season. After taking over for Kurt Warner in Week 2, Bulger quarterbacked the Rams inside opponents’ 20-yard line 65 times. The Rams came away 34 times with touchdowns and 25 times with field goals.

Although Bulger threw 22 interceptions during the regular season, only two were in the red zone. Of his 22 touchdown passes, 14 were thrown within 20 yards of the end zone. Bulger also had four touchdowns rushing.

Martz should have had more confidence in the quarterback he’d picked to carry the team this season. Even though Bulger had had a suspect second half, completing 12 of 25 passes for 138 yards with two interceptions, he was a quarterback in rhythm. He had completed four of his last five passes for 50 yards and had the Panther secondary on the run.

Green Bay Coach Mike Sherman’s biggest problem was deciding when not to be aggressive.

In their 20-17 overtime loss to Philadelphia, the Packers had the Eagles on the ropes late in the first half. With a 14-7 lead, Green Bay drove to the Eagle one-yard line late in the second quarter. But instead of kicking a field goal on fourth down and taking a two-score lead, Sherman chose to run Ahman Green.

Had this been a regular-season game and he’d wanted to prove a point, Sherman’s decision would have been the right one. After all, the Packers had the NFC’s top rushing offense, and Green led the league on third-down-and-one conversions.

But even with Green close to 100 yards rushing in the first half, the Packers should have taken the three points and a 17-7 lead into intermission. Instead, Green stumbled over a blocker and was stuffed for no gain, leaving Philadelphia behind by only seven points.

Late in the fourth quarter, Sherman again faced a difficult decision on fourth and one. Although the Packers had one of the best success rates on fourth downs in the NFL during the regular season -- four of seven conversions -- Sherman had quarterback Brett Favre try to draw the Eagles offside before finally punting from inside Philadelphia territory.

In Sherman’s defense, the Packers would have won if they had stopped the Eagles from converting on fourth and 26 in the final minute of regulation.

But if the Packers had kicked the field goal in the first half, Donovan McNabb’s clutch pass to Freddie Mitchell would not have mattered, because the Eagles would have needed more than a field goal to send the game into overtime.

It’s easy, of course, to question a coach’s decision after the fact, but it’s also part of being a fan, so Martz and Sherman can count on more than their share of such questions as they watch the rest of the postseason.

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Telling Statistics

A closer look at the St. Louis Rams and quarterback Marc Bulger inside opponents’ 20-yard line during the regular season, and where the Green Bay Packers and running back Ahman Green rank in the league converting first downs:

BULGER AND THE RAMS

* 65 trips inside red zone, 34 touchdowns and 25 field goals.

* 39 for 81 passing with 14 touchdown passes and four rushing touchdowns.

* Two interceptions, three sacks and one fumble.

GREEN AND THE PACKERS

* On third and one, was eight for eight, which led the league.

* Were four for seven on fourth-down conversions, tied for sixth in the NFL.

* Had 127 first downs rushing, second in the NFL behind Denver.

* Averaged 5.1 yards a rush, second in the NFL behind San Diego.

-- Lonnie White