Matt LaFleur and the Green Bay Packers have found their next defensive coordinator. Former Boston College coach Jeff Hafley was hired to take over the Packers’ defense a week after firing Joe Barry, who had a weak defense with eight first-round picks in three years.
Hafley’s name was unknown to Packers fans or media covering the team until the hiring was announced. Instead, the names of the current NFL defensive coaches interviewed by the team were revealed. Those names include Denver Broncos coach Christian Parker, former Los Angeles Chargers coach Brandon Staley and Baltimore Ravens coaches Dennard Wilson and Zach Orr.
In addition, reports late after Hafley’s hiring announcement indicated that LaFleur interviewed former New York Giants defensive coordinator Wink Martindale.
LaFleur appears to have interviewed a total of eight candidates in this defensive coordinator search. Barry interviewed nine people when he was hired in 2021. Something seems different from Hafley’s other interviewees, but what is it? You’ll know what it is when we list five things Packers fans need to know about the new defensive coordinator.
1. Contrary to rumors, Jeff Hafley had no prior relationship with Green Bay Packers coach Matt LaFleur.
Early reports of Hafley’s hiring indicated that he and LaFleur had been very good friends for many years. Of course, this has many Packers fans worried that this will be another Joe Barry-like hire with an equally dubious impact on the field. However, several members of the Packers have denied these claims.
As we saw above, Lafleur and Hafley knew each other, but they cannot be said to be close friends. As Tom Silverstein mentioned above, LaFleur knows his new defensive coordinator through his brother Mike LaFleur, New York Jets head coach Robert Saleh and San Francisco 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan.
Hafley was the 49ers’ defensive backs coach from 2016 to 2018, when he was on the coaching staff of Mike LaFleur and Saleh Shanahan.
2. The Green Bay Packers defense is very aggressive.One of the biggest criticisms of Joe Barry’s Packers defense was how soft they played late in the game. He rarely got as much media coverage as people in his corner would have liked, and he didn’t pull as many stunts.
That will change under Hafley, who had more safeties than any coach in the NCAA last season. This means he likes to pack the box and work every corner or die in man-to-man coverage. The Packers’ addition, if healthy, is one of the best wide receivers in the NFL in coverage. And when it comes to defense, look at Mike Golic Jr. Who said anything about promises?”Haos on the Frontlines” sounds like a great plan.
3. Jeff Hafley is good at planning and preparing games.No one could explain Hafley’s training better than asking Richard Sherman about coaching Hafley during his time with the 49ers.
“His training is one of the best I’ve ever seen. We’ve had great defensive coaches, great defensive coaches, great defensive minds and he’s the best.
“He knows what he’s doing in preparation, how he breaks down the film, how easy and simple he makes the game plan, how easy it is for guys to understand. It paints a very vivid picture of what you see, and it’s all about the execution.”
Last season in particular, the Packers defense looked very confused about what each player was doing at any given time. That means either the defensive scheme is too complicated or Barry hasn’t had a chance to properly teach it to the team.That doesn’t seem to be a problem for Hafley.
4. The Green Bay Packers defense adjusts to its opponents.One of the most frustrating aspects of the Packers defense in recent seasons has been their inability to stop mobile quarterbacks. Barry’s defense helped Tommy DeVito win NFC Offensive Player of the Week honors in 2023. Because when they blew a fourth-quarter lead, he couldn’t stop an undrafted rookie from jumping on them.In a similar vein, the Packers’ defense has allowed over 200 rushing yards per game this season, more than any other team in the NFL. Although most of it has passed
