Matt LaFleur has been the head coach for the Green Bay Packers since 2019 but that could change soon.
He has led the Packers to the playoffs in six of his seven years, however, he has not seen much postseason success. LaFleur is 3-6 in the playoffs with the Packers and patience is wearing thin with one of the NFL’s most loyal fanbases.
The Packers were eliminated in the wild-card round against their division rivals, the Chicago Bears. It was an awful loss, which a lot of people blame LaFleur for. Green Bay was up 21-3 at halftime. Chicago only managed a field goal in the third quarter, so the Packers went into the fourth quarter with a 21-6 lead. Unfortunately for Packers fans, everything went wrong in the fourth quarter. Chicago outscored the Packers 25-6 in the fourth quarter, and the Bears ended up winning the game 31-27.
Not only was losing bad enough, but to make it worse, the Packers lost to the NFC North-rival Bears. Losing to a division rival in the playoffs makes it even worse.
This has left a bad taste in the mouths of many Packer fans.
There is no denying that Matt LaFleur is a good coach. He is a good head coach, but the lack of postseason success continued.
Blowing a 21-3 lead at halftime, and a 21-6 lead entering the fourth quarter, the blame will mostly fall on the head coach.
Following another postseason failure, is it time for the Packers to move on from Matt LaFleur?
Three Reasons The Packers Should Fire Matt LaFleur
Matt LaFleur is a good head coach, but the lack of postseason success and falling to a division rival in the playoffs could be costly.
After blowing a 21-3 lead at half against the Chicago Bears, LaFleur is now 3-6 in the postseason.
With Jordan Love under center, LaFleur is 1-3 in the playoffs.
Love was not the issue in the loss against Chicago. He played very well, which begs the question, who’s to blame in Green Bay?
LaFleur is 76-40-1 in seven seasons with Green Bay, but his regular-season success has not translated to playoff success. The Packers’ head coach was on the hot seat earlier this season, but ultimately kept his job by leading the team to a 7-2 record between Oct. 12 and Dec. 7. After that, the Packers unraveled, losing four in a row to end the regular season and blowing a double-digit lead in the Wild Card Round.
Here are some reasons why LaFleur could be gone after losing to the Bears in the wild-card round.
- Failed once again to a division rival
- Not coaching to win in the playoffs
- Results have mimicked former HC Mike McCarthy
Failed Once Again To A Division Rival
Before the season even began, Ben Johnson called out Matt LaFleur, noting how it was fun to beat Green Bay when Johnson was the offensive coordinator of the Detroit Lions.
Before Dan Campbell and Ben Johnson, Minnesota Vikings coach Kevin O’Connell got their first.
Gone are the days when the Packers could cruise to 13 victories, as they did in each of LaFleur’s first three years with Green Bay. Now, they are struggling just to make the playoffs. They were the seventh seed this time around.
Now, not only do LaFleur and the Packers need to worry about Dan Campbell and Kevin O’Connell, but Ben Johnson appears to be a force as the head coach of the Bears.
In his first year as head coach of Chicago, Ben Johnson led the Bears to the NFC North division crown. The Bears defeated the Packers in two of three meetings this year.
The NFC North is stacked, and despite being a good head coach, you can easily rank LaFleur as the worst head coach in the division.
Not Coaching To Win In The Playoffs
Green Bay blew a 21-3 halftime lead, and a lot of it was LaFleur’s fault.
Coaching to win in the playoffs seems straightforward, but LaFleur has struggled to do so.
LaFleur has not been good at adjusting when the flow of a game changes or just focusing on whatever it takes to score one more point than the opponent.
He was doing well when Love faced little pressure in the first half of the game against the Bears. Love and LaFleur were picking apart Chicago’s defense.
However, with a big lead in the second half, LaFleur kept going with the downfield passing game, despite defensive coordinator Dennis Allen dialing up different types of looks to pressure Love. Chicago dared Green Bay to run, and with a big lead at halftime, the Packers should have, but chose not to. Josh Jacobs is on the team to win games in the playoffs, but LaFleur opted not to use him much in the second half.
It was a disastrous second half for the Packers and LaFleur.
Same Path As Mike McCarthy
Matt LaFleur took over as the head coach of the Packers in 2019 when they moved on from Mike McCarthy. However, they are receiving similar results.
McCarthy still has the biggest recent playoff meltdown for the Packers when, in the 2015 NFC Championship game, the Packers were up 16-0 against the Seattle Seahawks, only to lose 28-22 in overtime. LaFleur’s Packers were up by 18 going into the third quarter and 15 going into the fourth quarter.
The problem for LaFleur is that in Week 16 in Chicago, the Packers were up 13-3 going into the fourth quarter, and Caleb Williams and the Bears just pulled off a similar comeback.
This issue can not keep happening against a division rival.
Possible Candidates If The Packers Move On From Matt LaFleur
With the lack of playoff success and once again losing to a division rival, LaFleur is on the hot seat.
If LaFleur is fired, the Packers job would rank among the best NFL head coaching jobs available in 2026.
Two candidates seem like good options to replace LaFleur: John Harbaugh and Kevin Stefanski.
Harbaugh would bring toughness and credibility to a team that is already build to win. Meanwhile, Stefanski is a two-time Coach of the Year winner and can help Love further improve under center.
After another postseason failure, it may be time for Green Bay to move on from LaFleur, especially given the high-quality head coaches available this offseason.
