Despite the stumble start and the posse surrounding quarterback Aaron Rodgers, head coach Matt LaFleur is likely to lead his Green Bay Packers to the next division title. He has a particularly versatile line-up for his team this season.

Munich – Head Coach Matt LaFleur was visibly relieved after the narrow victory over the Baltimore Ravens.

His Green Bay Packers had to tremble until the final seconds, but after a successfully defended two-point conversion there was finally certainty: His team wins already the eleventh game in the current season.

“Fortunately, our defence made an important stop in this situation,” LaFleur explained after the game. In doing so, he added that he could understand Ravens coach John Harbaugh’s decision: “I would have definitely gone for it. I was even counting on it before they scored the touchdown,” LaFleur explained.

The win puts the Packers atop the NFC and on track to secure a bye week in the first round of the playoffs for the second straight year. Yet there was little to speak of for LaFleur and Co. at the start of the season.

Quarterback drama and stumble start

The Packers’ offseason was dominated by the drama surrounding superstar quarterback Aaron Rodgers. While LaFleur and the playmaker always seemed to spark on the same wavelength, the relationship between the two was also strained during this time.

For a long time, Rodgers stayed away from the Packers’ training camp and publicly flirted with leaving. The personnel decisions from the previous year – in which LaFleur was not entirely uninvolved – caused a major rift between franchise and player that was only mended, at least temporarily, shortly before the start of the season.

The Packers went into the current season correspondingly unprepared and were taken apart by the New Orleans Saints in the first game of the season with 3:38. Both Rodgers and LaFleur came in for a lot of criticism.

However, the longer the season went on, the better the team found its way back to each other. At the latest since the success over the Los Angeles Rams at the end of November, the Green Bay offence has been in absolute top form.

Aaron Rodgers in MVP form – defence shines with big plays

With eleven touchdowns in the past four games, Rodgers has finally played his way back into the MVP conversation. However, the fact that games were won in the weeks before even though the offense didn’t shine throughout has to do with the much-improved defense this season.

Especially when it comes to turnovers, LaFleur and Co. seem to have made the right adjustments. With Joe Barry, LaFleur brought in a new defensive coordinator before the season, who was previously part of one of the best big-play defenses in the league as linebacker coach for the Los Angeles Rams.

The Packers defence has committed 22 turnovers this season – already four more than last season. So the defence should have Rodgers and Co.’s back for the rest of the season.

“I hope we win the next few games differently,” LaFleur said after two straight wins in which the defence conceded 30 points or more, “We want to hold opposing teams to fewer points. We’ve already shown we can do that,” said the coach.

Matt LaFleur defies injury woes

There are many reasons why LaFleur is considered a hot candidate for the “Coach of the Year” award again this season. It is impressive that he has been able to keep the team together despite several injured players – only 17 players played in all matches this season – and Corona problems.

The 42-year-old was also able to compensate for the long-term absences of real superstars like tackle David Bakhtiari or cornerback Jaire Alexander. The Packers signed Rasul Douglas from the Arizona Cardinals’ practice squad to replace Alexander in the interim.

In the past three games, Douglas had two interceptions, which he then returned for a touchdown. Ultimately, the head coach can also be credited with personnel decisions – all the more so because LaFleur was also criticised for some decisions of this kind last year.

Coach of the Year as a result?

Although right now the bookies still have Patriots coach Bill Belichick ahead of LaFleur as the hottest candidate for Coach of the Year, that could change in the coming weeks. With a doable remaining schedule (Cleveland Browns, Minnesota Vikings and Detroit Lions), it is not unlikely that the Packers will end up with 14 wins and three losses.

Combined, that would put LaFleur at 40 wins and nine losses in his first three seasons as a head coach in the NFL. This incredible record alone cries out for the Packers coach to finally be rewarded with the coveted trophy.

After all, while Rodgers and the offence in particular have been at the forefront in previous years, LaFleur has quietly moulded the Packers into a genuine Super Bowl contender this season – on both sides of the field.