GREEN BAY, Wis. — The Green Bay Packers are keeping Matt LaFleur as head coach, sources told ESPN on Saturday.
He signed a multi-year contract extension that a source said was “not a confirmation deal but a real commitment.”
The two sides met earlier in the week to discuss the future direction of the organization. They were joined by general manager Brian Gutekunst and vice president/director of football operations Russ Ball, and the first order of business was to make sure they had the right trio in place.
Once they all agreed to move forward, LaFleur’s contract became the first order of business. It didn’t take long, the deal was agreed on Friday evening and signed on Saturday. Deals for Gutekunst and Ball are also in the works, sources said.
It was the first major decision for new club president Ed Policy, who took over from Mark Murphy in July. It was Murphy who hired LaFleur in 2019 to replace Super Bowl-winning coach Mike McCarthy.
The Packers are keeping their organizational structure in place even with the new extensions, sources said, as Gutekunst and LaFleur will continue to report to Policy.
The Packers lost in the wild-card round of the playoffs for the second straight season, but this time it was in heartbreaking fashion. Not only did they blow an 18-point halftime lead and drop 25 points in the fourth quarter, but they did it against the rival Chicago Bears.
LaFleur and Policy spoke briefly as they boarded the plane from Chicago after the loss and then returned to Green Bay to discuss the coach’s future.
LaFleur had one year remaining on his 2022 contract extension. He wouldn’t say whether he would like to coach through the 2026 season without a contract extension, but he did emphasize that he would like to continue coaching the Packers even though he may be a top player for other NFL head coaching jobs.
“This is one thing,” LaFleur said Sunday when he met with reporters after the season ended. “I love this place. I love the people … I love our players, the locker room, everybody in our organization. I mean, this place is unique. The community has been outstanding.
“I’ve lived in other places, so I think this place is unique, and it’s a special place. My kids love it here; my family loves it here.”
Goal said last summer that he would prefer not to have a coach or general manager working out the final year of their contract, but at the time he also said he was not ready to offer any extensions.
“I’m usually opposed to — I would never say that — [but] “I usually don’t agree with a coach or a GM going into the last year of their contract,” Policy said last June, just before he took over as president. “That creates a lot of problems. I think you usually have a pretty good idea of where that relationship is going after two years — not always, but usually.
“So I think if I just speak up I can avoid the lameness situation. It’s usually difficult for everyone involved. But there are certain situations that call for it, so I can’t say never.”
That increased the pressure on the 2025 season, which ended with five straight losses.
LaFleur has a 76-40-1 regular season record as the coach of the Packers, the fourth-highest winning percentage (.654) among all active NFL head coaches, and his 76 wins are tied for second-most in NFL history by a coach in their first seven seasons.
LaFleur got a strong vote of confidence from quarterback Jordan Love after Saturday’s loss.
“I think Matt should be a great coach,” Love said. “I have a lot of love for Matt, and I think he’s doing a great job. And that’s it.”
The Packers made the playoffs in all but one of LaFleur’s seven seasons. However, after posting three straight 13-win seasons and going to two NFC Championship games, LaFleur is 37-30-1 over the past four seasons with one playoff win — a wild-card game in the 2023 season.
LaFleur was hired in 2019 in part to restore Aaron Rodgers to MVP status, and that’s exactly what happened. Rodgers won the award twice (2020 and 2021) under LaFleur. He was also charged with developing Love, who three seasons into his first career appeared to be Green Bay’s starting quarterback.
LaFleur came to the Packers after one season as a quarterback with the Tennessee Titans. Before that, he was part of the Kyle Shanahan-Sean McVay coaching family.
Perhaps the biggest problem during LaFleur’s tenure was his hiring of consultants. He fired four coordinators in his first five seasons. He kept defensive coordinator Mike Pettine on former coach Mike McCarthy’s staff but moved on after two seasons. Pettine’s replacement, Joe Barry, lasted three seasons before LaFleur hired Jeff Hafley in 2024. LaFleur also had three special teams coordinators. Rich Bisaccia has been in that position since 2022 after LaFleur fired Shawn Mennenga after two seasons and Mo Drayton after one.
LaFleur said he expects to lose Hafley from the coaching job but would not say if he plans to make other coaching changes.
