The Green Bay Packers have to get on the same page in a lot of ways. They need to get their offensive line on the same page, and their head coach and offensive coordinator need to get on the same page when it comes to the messaging coming from the team.
When head coach Matt LaFleur was asked about the Packers’ potential game plan and personnel decisions, he had a line of reasoning. Then, offensive coordinator Adam Stenavich talked to the media and contradicted him in two different areas.
Green Bay Packers Head Coach and Offensive Coordinator Cannot Get on Same Page
When the Packers head coach was asked about the fourth-down decision that ended up getting stuffed for a turnover, LaFleur made it clear that the team could have used Tucker Kraft for their version of a tush push. He was asked if the play was off of the table due to the ACL injury to Kraft, and LaFleur said it was not.
On Tuesday, Stenavich said that the play was indeed out of the playbook in Week 1 due to the injury to Kraft.
Unfortunately, it was not the only time the two were not on the same page. When asked post-game why the Packers chose to start veteran Donovan Jennings over rookie Jager Burton, LaFleur noted that it was due to ‘time on task’.
This implied that Jennings had more NFL experience. However, in his latest press conference, Stenavich noted that Jennings earned the job due to his recent performance. He was the player who looked better in practice. He did not mention the experience.
Perhaps it could be because of both. Still, the two coming out with confusing explanations for important decisions is not the messaging the team wants out there after an embarrassing loss to a division rival.
Packers Continue Embarrassing Decline
The coaching is particularly under the spotlight based on the way the Packers have lost games recently. The team was 9-3-1 and had a lead against the Denver Broncos last year. They lost after the Broncos outscored them 7-3 in the fourth quarter.
Green Bay has not won since then. They blew a lead to the Chicago Bears twice: once in the regular season and once in the playoffs. Chicago outscored them 44-9 in the fourth quarter of those games.
They lost to the Baltimore Ravens, getting outscored 14-0 in the fourth quarter. Now, in Week 1 of the new season, the team was outscored 22-0 in the final quarter against the Vikings.
LaFleur is typically a highly respected coach, but right now, his coaching job is hurting the team. So, when he is not on the same page with his offensive coordinator, it is not going to look good.
Packers Coaches Spark Confusion With Conflicting Messages