Packers fans’ confidence gets a big boost after Mike McCarthy’s firing

For the first time in several weeks, the confidence index for Green Bay Packers fans got a significant boost. In a normal situation, watching one’s team lose to one of the worst squads in the National Football League — and seeing it happen at Lambeau Field against a warm-weather dome team, to boot.

Any normal loss like that would have driven Packers fans to the edge of a cliff, if not off it. But when considering the events of the the hours that followed the loss, however, it’s plain to see what caused a whopping 23 percent increase in the confidence index from our FanPulse surveys.

The portion of Packers fans saying they are confident in the direction of the Packers — rather than “not confident” or “meh” about the question — jumped from 17 percent a week ago to 40 percent, and this is clearly due to the team’s decision to fire head coach Mike McCarthy. This is the first increase since the Packers’ victory over the Miami Dolphins in week 10, which saw a 17 percent jump.

Here’s a look at how confidence has changed throughout the season:

A few wins down the stretch could have that bumping up a bit, as the Packers try to build some momentum forward towards the end of the season. However, we suspect that the biggest single factor that will affect Packers fans’ confidence between now and the start of 2019 will be whom the team hires to be the next head coach of the franchise.