GREEN BAY, Wis. -- Mike McCarthy’s decision to give up play-calling duties made sense at the time given that the Green Bay Packers head coach felt like he needed to pay more attention to the defense and special teams after last season’s NFC Championship Game debacle. But here’s one thing that never changed: McCarthy remained the best offensive play-caller in the building.

So it makes sense that with four games remaining and the Packers’ offense struggling like never before in McCarthy’s 10 years as head coach, he decided to take back that job from associate head coach Tom Clements.

According to multiple league sources, McCarthy will call the plays on Sunday against the Dallas Cowboys. With Clements as the play-caller, the Packers rank 22nd in the NFL in total yards and 23rd in passing yards per game.

With McCarthy in control from 2006 to 2014, the Packers ranked in the top 10 in total offense and passing offense all but one season (2012, when they were 13th overall but still ninth in passing yards). Even in 2013, when quarterback Aaron Rodgers missed nearly half the season because of a broken collarbone, the Packers were third in total offense and sixth in passing.

To be sure, the loss of Pro Bowl receiver Jordy Nelson to a preseason knee injury significantly handcuffed Clements.

But McCarthy’s succession plan for play calling was flawed from this standpoint: He didn’t have anyone who could do it as effectively as him. A quarterbacks coach by trade and then a play-calling offensive coordinator before he became a head coach, McCarthy was widely considered by those around the league to be one of the top offensive minds in the game.

Back at the NFL scouting combine in February, shortly after McCarthy announced the change, the move was met with surprise. Cowboys coach Jason Garrett said at the time: "Whatever they're doing there, they should keep doing it.”

Although Rodgers praised the move and talked often about his great relationship with Clements, who tutored him as the quarterback coach in his early years, Clements had not called plays in more than 10 years. He did it for two years as the Buffalo Bills offensive coordinator in 2004 and 2005. The Bills ranked 25th in total offense in 2004 and 31st in 2005.

McCarthy said last month that he had begun to spend more time with the offense during the week leading up to the games.

But last week’s Hail Mary win over the Detroit Lions must have been the final straw for McCarthy. The Packers trailed 20-0 midway through the third quarter.

However, in the days after the game McCarthy gave no indication that he was leaning toward this change. In fact, he said, “I need to shut up more, frankly,” when asked about his influence over the play calling.

“I’m not sure what he was referring to,” Clements said this week. “Football, especially from the coaching standpoint, is a collaborative effort. You have to talk and communicate. If anyone sees something, you’ve got to communicate and try to get it done correctly.”