The end of every NFL season brings with it the challenge of keeping a team’s core together, both on the roster and coaching staff. The Green Bay Packers are likely to face issues in both regards once their playoff run ends in either January or early February.
Free agency doesn’t begin until mid-March, but the coaching carousel kicks in more or less immediately upon a team’s exit from Super Bowl contention. As of Friday, January 2, the New York Giants had already put together a preliminary list of top candidates for their open head coaching position following the dismissal of Brian Daboll mid-season.
Featured prominently among those names was that of Packers defensive coordinator Jeff Hafley.
“The team had a head start on compiling a list of candidates that includes former NFL head coach Mike McCarthy, Packers defensive coordinator Jeff Hafley, Colts defensive coordinator Lou Anarumo, former Raiders coach and Giants player Antonio Pierce and Rams defensive coordinator Chris Shula, among others,” Jordan Raanan of ESPN reported. “[Interim head coach Mike] Kafka will also be given an interview.”
McCarthy also has longtime roots in Green Bay, where he served as head coach for 13 years (2006-2018) and won a Super Bowl in 2010. He most recently served as head coach of the Dallas Cowboys for five seasons (2020-24) before owner Jerry Jones dismissed him ahead of this season.
Jeff Hafley Has Turned Around Green Bay Defense in 2 Years as Defensive Coordinator
GettyGreen Bay Packers defensive coordinator Jeff Hafley.
Hafley, 46 years old, served as a defensive position coach in the NFL for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and San Francisco 49ers between 2012-2018 before landing a head coaching job at Boston College.
“Hafley, originally from New Jersey, is the Green Bay Packers’ defensive coordinator and has some head coaching experience, albeit at Boston College, where he finished with a sub-.500 record,” Raanan continued.
He came into the Packers organization ahead of the 2024 campaign and has helped turn the defense into one of the more fearsome units across the league.
Green Bay’s defense currently ranks 11th in terms of total yardage surrendered per game, according to ESPN. The Packers finished last season with the No. 6 defensive unit. The defense ranked 17th in 2023 and 2024.
Packers Defense Hampered by Injuries Late in Season
GettyGreen Bay Packers edge-rusher Micah Parsons.
The Packers were trending as a defense likely to finish well inside of the top 10 before injuries to key contributors began to pull the unit down later in the season.
Namely outside linebacker/superstar edge-rusher Micah Parsons went down with an ACL tear against the Denver Broncos in Week 15, which will keep him sidelined until at least Week 1 of next year.
Parsons was third in the league with 12.5 sacks before going out in his first season with Green Bay following a trade with the Cowboys in late August.
The Packers reunited Parsons with former Dallas teammate and cornerback Trevon Diggs, who the Cowboys released unexpectedly ahead of Week 18 following a year full of injury and tumult. Diggs may or may not suit up in Week 18, but will definitely help bolster an injured secondary during the Packers’ playoff run.
Green Bay is locked into the No. 7 seed regardless of what happens against the Minnesota Vikings this weekend and will play a road contest against either the Chicago Bears or Philadelphia Eagles in Round 1.
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