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But after watching his Green Bay Packers' defense hold the Seattle Seahawks to just 177 net yards in Sunday's 27-17 victory at Qwest Field, the coach had one post-game request.
''We'll take that every game,'' McCarthy said after his defense allowed the Seahawks to convert just 4 of 11 third-downs (36 percent), complete just 83 yards worth of passes and gain just 83 yards with their running backs. ''It was what we needed. It was what we needed as a team.''
Indeed, coming in ranked 26th in overall defense in the 32-team NFL (363.2 yards per game) and 27th in rushing defense (161.4 yards per game), the Packers entered Sunday with a defense that had been downright offensive during the team's three-game losing streak. If the team's fortunes were going to change, it had to start with the defense.
With the Seahawks' injury-depleted wide receiving corps - Packers castoff Koren Robinson had to start for them - and the absence of Pro Bowl quarterback Matt Hasselbeck (hyperextended right knee), there was no excuse for the defense not to get its act together.
''The defense had to step up today, and we did,'' run-stuffing defensive tackle Ryan Pickett said. ''Coming into the game, we knew we had to have a big game from our defense to win this game.''
With a skeleton crew on the defensive line - with Cullen Jenkins (pectoral) out for the year and defensive ends Jason Hunter (hamstring) and Mike Montgomery (ankle) inactive, lightweight pass-rush specialist Kabeer Gbaja-Biamila and rookie Jeremy Thompson had to play extensively in the base defense - the Packers still managed to sack third-stringer Charlie Frye three times, hurry him five others and intercept him twice.
''It's a challenge (without your starting quarterback). And if you're in that situation in this league, you can't make other mistakes,'' said Seahawks coach Mike Holmgren, whose team's biggest play - a 51-yard run by Julius Jones - was wiped out by a holding penalty on ex-Packers guard Mike Wahle. ''You have to have some bullets in the gun. Right now, we have a couple of bullets, but not enough.''
The Packers' defense, meanwhile, finally looked like it had some ammunition of its own, forcing five three-and-outs and two turnovers. Pro Bowl defensive end Aaron Kampman led the charge with two sacks and three more pressures, while interceptions by Charles Woodson (his fourth this season) and Tramon Williams (his third in as many games) sealed the victory.
''It was great,'' said Kampman, adding that the game plan didn't change when Frye started for Hasselbeck. ''In the end, that's our job. To do that was great. Fundamentally, there are certain things we could clean up, but for the most part, we brought that energy today. That's what really helped us. Hopefully, we'll get on a roll now.''
