Green Bay Packers make major commitment to HC Matt LaFleur

When the Green Bay Packers lost their wild-card playoff game to the Chicago Bears there was some noise that head coach Matt LaFleur could be on the hot seat. The Packers moved quickly to put a stop to any of that talk.

Packers make major commitment to Matt LaFleur

According to a report from ESPN on Saturday evening, the Packers and LaFleur have agreed to a multi-year contract extension. Terms of the deal were not disclosed, but it is reportedly a major commitment by the organization and not a "prove-it" deal. That means barring some sort of unexpected disaster season in 2026, he should be the Packers head coach for the foreseeable future. 

LaFleur has been the Packers head coach since the start of the 2019 season and has had a lot of success.

Overall the Packers have made the playoffs in six of his first seven seasons, while also compiling a 76-40-1 regular season record. 

The problem is the Packers have reached a little bit of a plateau in recent years, winning more than 10 games just once in the past four seasons, while also winning only one playoff game over the past five years. They also badly faded down the stretch this season by losing five consecutive games to end the season. That recent run of mediocrity, combined with the season-ending losing streak, are what resulted in the hot-seat discussions. 

Even with all of that, LaFleur is a good coach, and if you are going to move on from a good coach you better be absolutely sure it is time to do so. Also that you have a better alternative waiting to replace them. The Packers obviously felt they could not upgrade on this hiring cycle and are convinced they have the right coach. 

The season-ending injury to Micah Parsons, as well as a late-season injury to starting quarterback Jordan Love, were the major turning points in their season. Up until Parsons' injury the Packers looked like one of the best teams in the NFC. They were never able to get to that same level without him.