The Green Bay Packers face considerable uncertainty at the top of their coaching staff just one day after a brutal playoff collapse against the division rival Chicago Bears at Soldier Field on Wild Card Weekend.
While head coach Matt LaFleur could be looking at the end of his tenure in Titletown, defensive coordinator Jeff Hafley is drawing major interest form around the NFL as a head coaching candidate.
ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler reported Sunday, January 11 that two more teams have requested to interview Hafley in the hours since Green Bay’s campaign ended in Chicago.
That will be five requests and counting for Hafley.
“The Las Vegas Raiders and Miami Dolphins are requesting to interview Packers DC Jeff Hafley for their head coaching positions, per source,” Fowler wrote on X. “That will be five requests and counting for Hafley.”
Packers Among NFL’s Best Defenses in Both of Jeff Hafley’s Seasons With Team
GettyGreen Bay Packers defensive coordinator Jeff Hafley.
The Arizona Cardinals, Atlanta Falcons and Tennessee Titans had all previously requested an interview with Hafley. The only two franchises currently with head coaching vacancies that have not asked for a sit-down with the Green Bay DC are the Baltimore Ravens and Cleveland Browns.
Hafley has been the Packers’ defensive coordinator for the past two seasons. Green Bay finished with the NFL’s 12th-ranked defense in 2025 (311.8 yards per game), despite a slew of injuries to important players like edge-rusher Micah Parsons and defensive tackle Devonte Wyatt.
The Packers owned the league’s No. 6 defense (315.6 yards per game) in Hafley’s first season in 2024.
Green Bay recruited Hafley back to the professional ranks after he spent four years as the head coach at Boston College. He coached defensive backs for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers (2012-13), Browns (2014-15) and San Francisco 49ers (2016-18). He spent one year as the DB coach/co-defensive coordinator at Ohio State before landing the job at Boston College.
Matt LaFleur Mum on Packers Future, as Calls for His Firing Grow Louder
GettyGreen Bay Packers head coach Matt LaFleur.
If the Packers end up firing LaFleur this offseason, there is a chance the team will want to officially consider Hafley as his potential successor.
Multiple reports indicated that Green Bay was unlikely to part ways with LaFleur if the Packers won the playoff opener against the Bears in Chicago on Saturday night. The one sticking point was thought to be his annual salary on an extension, as LaFleur is heading into the final year of his current contract in 2026.
However, after the heartbreaking loss and second consecutive one-and-done playoff appearance, the fanbase is making more noise about a potential change and some longtime Packers writers have altered their positions on LaFleur’s future to become part of the rising tide of discontent in Green Bay.
“The logical thing is to part ways,” Milwaukee Journal Sentinel’s Tom Silverstein wrote Sunday. “Both the Packers and LaFleur need a fresh start. LaFleur probably would have a job in Miami or Tennessee within a week, and [Packers President Ed] Policy would have his choice of candidates.”
LaFleur spoke with media members on Saturday night following Green Bay’s loss to the Bears, but chose not to engage when a reporter asked about his job security/future with the Packers.
“With all due respect to your question, now is not the time for that,” LaFleur responded. “I’m just hurting for these guys. I can only think about what just happened, and there will be time for that.”
LaFleur is 76-40-1 across seven regular seasons in Green Bay. The Packers have made the playoffs six times over that span and hold a postseason record of 3-6, including two appearances in the NFC Championship Game (2019, 2020).
2 More NFL Teams Circling Packers DC Jeff Hafley, as Matt LaFleur’s Future in Question