He was supportive from the start.. I said, Listen, Im not going to wear you out, LaFleur says. When LaFleur was in Los Angeles for the NFL Honors, he met Clements, who lives in the area. LaFleur took over for the Green Bay Packers' former head coach, Mike McCarthy, in . AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/nfl and https://twitter.com/AP_NFL, Green Bay Packers head coach Matt LaFleur speaks during the NFC head coaches availability at the NFL football meetings, Tuesday, March 28, 2023, in Phoenix. IBT Fast Start - Let the best of International News come to you. Were going to have to add some bodies to that room, coach Matt LaFleur said last month at the NFLs owners meetings. But even more drastic press conferences than that have taken place during his Packers tenure. The Packers drafted a third receiver Samori Toure in the seventh round last year. When the team hosted kids and their families from the Make-A-Wish Foundation, the coach noticed Rodgers did more than provide autographs like he was signing checks to pay bills. There wasnt anything other than, This guy will work his butt off, Saleh says now. Winning 13 games three seasons in a row seems like an easy proposition with Aaron Rodgers under center. Now, theres some dispute about how much LaFleur actually knew at that time. Pete Carroll uses them. That is the most satisfying part of the entire operation: When theres a [play] that hes kind of on the fence about, and then he starts to really, truly like it., I just have such a belief in him, LaFleur continues. Citing the Packers traditional reluctance to take a pass catcher in the first round and the lack of safety prospects worth selecting that early, McShay suggested Green Bay might take a pass rusher at No. The Make-A-Wish visits and Tys tooth didnt get as much attention as the Packers flameout in the NFC Championship Game that season and the teams subsequent selection of Jordan Love with the 26th pick of the 2020 draft. Its so cool, he said, to see your entire friend group rise up in your profession with you. During an appearance on The Pat McAfee Show, Rodgers kiddingly said his toe issue, later revealed to be a fracture, was COVID toe. Now, heres the hard part: On March 18, the Packers traded away All-Pro receiver Davante Adams for a first- and second-round pick. 0 Comments. The three rules require trust because there is much left assumed with only three. LaFleur has the same job: Make Rodgerss tape look better than it used to be, an increasingly high bar. We practice in this. Im in Green Bay to find out why more people dont say that. He had no problem running on two hours of sleep. That quickly changed. Josiah Deguara, who had 13 catches for 114 yards last season, is the top tight end under contract. With all the trust I have with everybody, I would like to think Ive chilled out a little bit, LaFleur says. If you do not want us and our partners to use cookies and personal data for these additional purposes, click 'Reject all'. Its going to be more of a group effort.. Jordan Love #10 of the Green Bay Packers warms up before the game against the Seattle Seahawks at Lambeau Field on November 14, 2021 in Green Bay, Wisconsin. Green Bay hasnt selected a wide receiver in the first round since taking Javon Walker from Florida State with the 20th overall pick in 2002. Patrick MahomesAndy Reid, Bill BelichickTom Brady, Sean McVayMatthew Stafford: All three of these partnerships are drastically different, but you cannot tell the story of one man without the other. A new seasonand the Wisconsin coldis coming. The Packers lack of pass-rushing depth was exposed last season after Gary tore the ACL in his right knee. Tight end Marcedes Lewis said if he didnt have LaFleur as his coach, he might not be in the leagueand not necessarily because LaFleur uses his skill set perfectly (though he does, letting Lewis be a dominant blocker and catch passes off those blocks). That exchange of ideas, LaFleur said, is what hes after. Its not about credentials at that point. He gets reflective. In fact, the trend started well before the arrival of Rodgers, who is expected to get traded to the New York Jets before the start of the next season. Theyre always the most important. Serving mainly as Rodgers' backup for the past two seasons, Love has had some chances to showcase what Green Bay fans can expect from him after logging three total touchdowns and 606 yards while completing 60.2 percent of his passes. LaFleur has one year remaining on his initial Packers contract, and the team holds another option year. The Packers are picking 15th overall after going 8-9 last season, missing the playoffs and ending a string of three straight NFC North titles. I Want To Believe: . Last years third-round pick was UCLA offensive lineman Sean Rhyan, who played one special teams snap and no offensive snaps as a rookie and was suspended the last six games of the season for violating the NFLs policy on performance-enhancers. Rodgers remembers first being wowed by the McVay offense, and the stress it put on defenses, in 2018 when the Rams played the Vikings on a Thursday night. Most importantly, it takes these guys. I dont want to discredit the fact that hes a perfect fit for any scheme, but we would literally talk about that amongst each other, LaFleur said. Aaron Jones and A.J. GREEN BAY Matt LaFleur knew he bombed the interview. I told him Im here for him and I support him, LaFleur says. LaFleurs winning percentage of .796 is better than the winning percentages of Curly Lambeau and Vince Lombardi. Since 2007, the Vikings have sounded the. Rodgers is a rep guy who likes to practice a concept over and over to see if he feels comfortable. He was one of the best NCAA players Ive ever faced., The two would play for hours, alternating between playing as Central Michigan, where their father, Denny, was an assistant, or Florida State or Notre Dame. Its about whether youre willing to put in the grind and work your tail off to accomplish what they need.. Its still tricky for him, he said. If Rodgers was ticked off at LaFleur, hed get frustrated and stew. As a leader, you have to own everything, he explains. He mentions Tom Clementswho just returned as the Packers quarterbacks coach and who coached him earlier in his careerand former quarterbacks coach Alex Van Pelt, now the offensive coordinator in Cleveland, as people whove given him extremely granular tasks to improve on each day. So hes like, Whatever, Im not gonna concern myself with the trivial nature of getting mad. He just wants to know the answer.. When LaFleur worked for Dan Quinn on the Falcons in 2015 and 16, Quinn had three rules. On the day I was at practice, a reporter asked LaFleur whether he was worried about Rodgers being suspended for admitting to using ayahuasca on a podcast. The partnership between LaFleur and Rodgers now is 53 games old. Like I told him, the beauty of this game is winning is a hell of a lot of fun, but its about the relationships you make. It all starts with Kyle, Mike LaFleur said. We live in this. Things become second nature to a Shanahan assistant that arent second nature to other coaches, Mike LaFleur said. You can change your choices at any time by clicking on the 'Privacy dashboard' links on our sites and apps. Glenn Erby. The best coaches push you to do things that youre uncomfortable with, Ryan says. He asked Rodgers about him again this January. Our football philosophies kind of developed together.. Its important to really think about how we talk because our words are spells. I do think theres something to just momentum, and obviously coming out of those byes I would say maybe we havent kept the momentum going, at least last year. He starts to run through the teams that beat the Packers: A pretty darn good 49er team in the 2019 season, the Super Bowl champion two years ago, Tampa Bay. Holmgren is in the Packers Hall of Fame and soon could be inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame. LaFleur draws a line from those experiences to now, when he has to drown out noise on a weekly basis. The Packers played in Green Bay last Christmas Day. He didnt know everything, and that really bothered him, McDaniel said. He was cooking dal and kitchari. Oops. Under Shanahan, Matt LaFleur learned about the illusion of complexity. This was drilled into him further by McVay, who taught him the nuances of knowing how teams study tape and using it against them: Plays that start out looking the same that arent. I get hired by the Texans, Im 28 years old, our offensive coordinator was my age and I was thinking, This kid cant know that much more than me. And I was blown away. It doesnt matter to your brain, doesnt matter to your body if you believe it, that becomes the reality. LaFleur claims he is the only one who touches his eyebrows. His name was Kyle Shanahan, and hed been promoted from quarterbacks coach under Gary Kubiak. Already, LaFleur has more 13-win seasons in three years than Mike Holmgren had in 17. But what if youre playing against a defense that says all right and is gonna load up the box? Theres almost a rom-com-y feel to how Rodgers and LaFleur talk about following each others careers long before they joined up. His response reflected rule No. Ill always wish him well.. But that obscures the fact that if it were so easy to win 13 games, LaFleurs predecessor Mike McCarthy would have done it at least once in any of his last seven years at the helm. He always says, Man, the NFL playoffs is the closest thing to March Madness, its going to be super competitive and theres always lessons you can take from your triumphs and defeatsprobably more so when you come up short.. So if LaFleur was mad about something Rodgers said or did, he would take it out on the backup quarterbacks. Ultimately, it was his decision.. #10 Jordan Love of the Green Bay Packers. The group effort means personnel and schemes. LaFleurs beginnings have been more successful than the beginnings of his Packers predecessor, who also inherited a Hall of Fame quarterback. I thought (Clements would) be great for him. And we need to make sure that were manifesting through our words the reality we want to achieve. LaFleur is fine with the cold now. Those rules and the trust they fostered helped the Packers to 26 regular-season victories in LaFleurs first two seasons. In June, before his first season, LaFleur threw the first pitch at the Green and Gold charity softball game at Fox Cities Stadium in Grand Chute, Wis. His sons, Luke and Ty, were there, as was his quarterback. On ESPNs Jan. 3 Manningcast for Monday Night Football, Rodgers joked about his coachs eyebrows and hair and also pointed out his game-day attire has included Jordans, lululemon pants and a quarter-zip sweater. Not saying theyre gonna learn anything, but I didnt take advantage of that time., I didnt learn ball ball until I got to the National Football League, he said. I really sit back and think, here we are, with the Green Bay Packers of the National Football League. The third round has been disastrous for the Packers recently. But those undiscovered moments helped bring LaFleur and Rodgers together and keep them together through the coming turbulence. There was a dance, Rodgers explainshe uses that word often in our talkafter LaFleur got hired in 2019, when the two did not know they could just say whatever they wanted to each other directly, sometimes brutally. The last couple of years have been really, really seamless for us, Rodgers says. I know a lots been speculated, Oh, theyre gonna lean more on the run game. Well, maybe. And these days, you can watch the Packers practice on the street called Mike McCarthy Way. He sat with them, ate lunch and showed genuine interest in their interests. And you have let the ball rip as soon as you plant your back foot, giving the quarterback just a split second to read the defense. Hiring Clements was a bow to Rodgers, but like a lot of what LaFleur has done, it was more than that. LaFleur was intrigued by him because of Rodgers praise. Try a week on us. First-year coach Matt LaFleur has a chance to lead the Green Bay Packers to an NFC championship and a trip to Super Bowl 54 against the San Francisco 49ers on Sunday night. The Packers drafted Auburn kicker Anders Carlson in the sixth round on Saturday. Please enter a valid email and try again. While some figured it was a foregone conclusion that the Packers would pick up the fifth-year option on their 2020 first-round draft pick at a $20.272 million fully guaranteed price tag for the 2024 season Gutekunst turned down the opportunity after the draft ended to flat-out say that yes, Love will indeed have his option picked up. Is he trying to get under my skin to rile me up? I tried to play a poker face as best I could, but internally, my heart might have skipped a beat or two. LaFleur said the jokes came from multiple guests at the wedding. Matt LaFleur will coach one more game this season. Arguably one of the best receivers of all time, especially when it comes to route running, Packers receiver Allen Lazard said of Adams. Whats so exciting about this league is when there is a situation like this, it seems to me guys will always step up and assume the role. I liked to be coached. In LaFleurs second season, the Packers were trailing the Bucs 31-23 in the NFC Championship Game with 2:09 remaining when LaFleur called for a 26-yard field goal attempt on fourth down from the 8-yard line. LaFleur visited Rodgers in California a second time in 2021 before Rodgers acquiesced to playing for the Packers last season. Between LaFleur and Rodgers, there is trust. In LaFleur's first three seasons, they had 13, 11 and 13 turnovers. Stay up to date with our daily newsletter, Aaron Rodgers Hints At Finishing Out Contract With New York Jets, Baltimore Ravens Earn Strong Grades For 2023 Draft Picks, 2023 FIBA World Cup Excitement Hits Fever Pitch In Philippines, 'Special' Jaiswal: From Homeless To IPL Hero, Thousands Protest French Government's Immigration Plans, Wars, Religion And Football: Five Faces Of Erdogan, Qatar Spends Big To Beat Post-World Cup Blues, The Green Bay Packers have finally dealt Aaron Rodgers to the New York Jets, His departure has firmly entrenched Jordan Love as the Packers star quarterback, Head coach Matt LaFleur is all in on his new lead guy. He wasnt grilling T-bones. When Rodgers used the hashtag boycottLafleursBrows on Twitter, LaFleur responded with a text: Boycott COVID toe.. The NFL announced Friday that LaFleur will be the NFC coach for the 2022 Pro Bowl, while Tennessee Titans coach Mike Vrabel will coach the AFC.. LaFleur's Packers and Vrabel's Titans were both the No. Dillon. I was learning from him, not the other way around, McVay said of LaFleur. He guesses that if he called him 20 minutes before a Packers game and hes got a problem, LaFleur might skip the pregame speech. The most common answer is obvious. Green Bay Packers Head Coach Matt LaFleur spoke to the media on Sunday about the mindset of the team after the 15-9 road loss to the Detroit Lions. As much as anything, its why Rodgers will be a Packer in 2022. He is a bottom-line guy. Five coaches in the 2019 hiring cycle have already departed their teams. Its going to be different guys at different times. And hes a guy I have a special place in my heart for. Trust from the locker room will be crucial as he tries to fill the crater in his offense left by the trade of Adams, whose desire was to play for the Raiders. Theres also one more evolution thats taken place. Matt LaFleur said he has entertained the idea of Nathaniel Hackett returning to the Packers' staff. Its not about me, its about everybody else. On the special teams side, LaFleur curiously chose to promote internally from Mennenga's staff and gave Maurice Drayton the job. Hes not confrontational, but hes not afraid of conflict, McDaniel said. Sean McVay, too. The good news is that the offense is built for just that. 15 and then get a safety, tight end and receiver later. But the team that plays the best in that three-hour window wins, he told me. You can lay out a vision and certainly youve got to make some decisions, but it takes everyone. He mentions a handful of executives, then points to the locker room. But weve got a pretty good quarterback that can help other guys. So whether you were vaxed or unvaxed, it doesnt shield you from it. Rodgers appreciated his coachs stance, even if it wasnt verbalized at a podium. This period ended organicallya meeting here, a play there, a series of expansive Zoom calls before the 2020 season. "I think it's been a cool process from the day we drafted him to see him now, just to see how he's matured in every facet of life. Theirs has been the most scrutinized relationship in the NFL, and it has held up under the surgical lights. I think you guys probably notice it even when you're in the locker room," LaFleur said in a press conference this past Saturday, April 29. I think most coaches, a lot of coaches tend to stay away from the truth and I think Matt has figured out the way to do it is to go straight at it, Saleh said.