Trusting, embracing a rookie coach,
GREEN BAY, Wis. – When Packers president Mark Murphy let go of the only coach he’d ever had in Green Bay and fired Mike McCarthy before the end of the 2018 season, he said the reason was, in part, because time had run its course and the message had gone stale.
Murphy took a chance on a then-39-year-old to lead the Packers into their 101st season.
One year later, Matt LaFleur answered with a performance for the ages.
How? On first impression, players could see LaFleur’s boundless energy and enthusiasm, but it would take time to learn his coaching style, philosophy and football competence.
But it happened. Day by day LaFleur won them over, with his play calling and demeanor, his approachability and honesty, and even subtle changes.
LaFleur took down all of the old photos of former Packers greats in the meeting rooms of Lambeau Field and replaced them with the faces of the men on the current roster. The message was this:
“You can talk about the history all day long, but it’s about the present too,” Packers cornerback Tramon Williams said. “We respect all of the history that we have here; we can’t let that put us in a ‘stale’ moment. We have to move forward.
“There’s guys here who you want to make feel like they’re going to make their own history. That’s what he brought, and that’s what everybody bought into.
“We needed that.”
Still. Who would have ever predicted this:
❚ LaFleur became the first coach to lead the Packers to the postseason in his first season;
❚ The first coach to lead the Packers to a division title in his first season;
❚ Had the biggest one-year win improvement in franchise history, with seven more regular-season victories than last year;
❚ Was the first Packers coach to get 13 wins in his first season;
❚ Was the first to guide Green Bay to a 6-0 record in the NFC North;
❚ And was the first Green Bay coach to win seven games at home in his first season.
But months ago, naturally there was uncertainty. Players had to work with LaFleur and see if they could count on him, especially the veterans, who were turning over their careers and ambitions to him.
“Matt came in and really won us over,” said All-Pro left tackle David Bakhtiari, who had a good relationship with and felt loyal to McCarthy.
Bakhtiari said LaFleur did that by being a man of his word, humble, the first to take the blame for anything, transparent and honest.
Those might sound like clichés, but they are traits that can be admired when a team is bound together for a year, win or lose.
“Some of his best qualities,” Bakhtiari said.
And those traits translated to the field, where LaFleur simply followed through on his promises.
“I literally hear the call coming in, and I knew what he had said to us, and now I see it in the play. That’s big,” Bakhtiari said.
The tests of LaFleur came early and on a big stage. LaFleur became only the second person to make his head coaching debut in the NFL’s prime-time kickoff game (created in 2002) and, facing the Bears, the first to win it.
“Week 1, we got that big win? That was huge,” defensive lineman Kenny Clark said. “That propelled us. Like, ‘We need to get behind this guy.’ ”
There were early individual tests, too. Defensive lineman Dean Lowry had a couple of rough games from Weeks 3-5 that were unusual for him. LaFleur pulled him aside.
“And he said, ‘We believe in you for a reason. Calm down,’ ” Lowry said. “‘Go out there and just make plays.’ That meant a lot.”
By the time LaFleur turned 40 in mid-November, the Packers started to view him as someone who was relatable, rather than someone who was inexperienced.
“His age helps him a ton with the locker room,” linebacker
Blake Martinez said. “To communicate and have normal conversations – it makes you want to play harder for that type of guy. Oh yeah, 100%.”
Added Lowry: “He doesn’t act like a first-year head coach.”
And Williams: “We’re close to the same age – we kind of jelled together a little bit. I mean, he has a young soul.”
Mason Crosby laughs at all of this. At what point does age matter? Crosby is five years younger than LaFleur and has kids who are older than LaFleur’s.
What did matter, said Crosby, was the in-house competition from training camp that was then “forced out against our opponents,” he said.
Crosby also noted that veterans were often consulted by LaFleur for their input.
“Our expectations, for what we want to accomplish on game day are very clear and concise,” Crosby said. “Without adding a ton of fluff.
“You’ve seen a really gutsy, gritty team that’s made some gutsy wins here, and that starts from the top.”
Now, was this a pageantworthy season? Nope. Not all victories were pretty. But there have been some flashes of ingenuity on offense for a first-year coach calling the plays.
“So many great calls like the reverse plays and the different schemes,” Lowry said. “It’s really impressive to watch how he attacks defenses.
“You’re like, wow, that’s really tough to go against. Wow, this guy really has a great mind for football.”
Another Packers win. Sunday night, the Packers exited Lambeau Field and filed into the locker room one by one. Bouncing. Joyous. Exhilarated. Rodgers patted those around him on the back. Teammates threw arms around one another.
In the middle of them, blending in – almost to the point of invisibility – jogged Matt LaFleur. He just beat 68-year-old Seahawks coach Pete Carroll. Of course this is a team game, and this was a team effort, but what a game to add to LaFleur’s résumé. He and the Packers will now compete for the NFC championship against San Francisco.
“I mean, stepping in and immediately changing our culture, changing our record, and putting us one win away from the Super Bowl,” Bakhtiari said. “Look what he’s done. It’s impressive.
“I like how no one’s brought it up, no one’s talked about it. I don’t think people even realize, this is a first-year head coach, look what he’s doing.”
When the players were asked what credit they gave to LaFleur for it, this is what they said. They grew to trust this newcomer, outsider. And LaFleur decided he would keep the high standards and would make everything about them.
“From the first day he came in, he kind of gave this team to the players,” Clark said. “He made everything about us. He gave us the keys to the car, let us be us.
“You can have fun, you can dance, you can joke around. We’re a young team! Everybody is being themselves, and it truly is a joy coming in and working with each other.”