Packers Coach Matt LaFleur Is Keeping Joe Barry, But Taking A Greater Role In The Defense

Matt LaFleur’s answer was direct and straight forward.

LaFleur, Green Bay’s fifth-year coach, was asked Monday if he’d take a greater role in the Packers’ much-maligned, underperforming defense.

“Absolutely,” LaFleur said.

LaFleur also said he won’t be firing embattled defensive coordinator Joe Barry, something he indicated after the Packers’ 34-20 loss to Tampa Bay Sunday.

In the last two weeks, with the Packers fighting for their playoff lives, Barry’s defense was shredded by New York Giants undrafted rookie quarterback Tommy DeVito and Tampa Bay journeyman quarterback Baker Mayfield.

DeVito completed 17-of-21 passes, posted a 113.9 passer rating and led a last-second drive in the Giants’ 24-22 win. DeVito was then named the NFC’s Offensive Player of the Week.

Mayfield will likely win the same honor this week after completing 22-of-28 passes for 381 yards, four touchdowns and no interceptions. That helped Mayfield achieve a perfect passer rating of 158.3, the first time a visiting quarterback had ever done that at Lambeau Field.

Overall, Tampa Bay piled up 452 total yards, averaged 7.5 yards per play and scored its second-most points of the season.

But that wasn’t enough for Barry to get an early pink slip. When asked about retaining Barry for the final three games of the 2023 season, LaFleur said, “that is the plan.”

When pressed on the subject, LaFleur didn’t exactly give a ringing endorsement of Barry.

“Well … if I thought that was the best solution today, then we’d make that decision,” LaFleur said. “But when you’re having basic communication problems and you’re supposed to be in a certain coverage or a certain rotation and we’re not getting that communication, that’s what’s so disappointing to me is the fact that it was poor communication.”

“And it always starts with us. It starts with myself and it goes to all our assistant coaches. So obviously the coaching wasn’t up to the standard and our performance on the field definitely showed that as well.”

LaFleur said communication is the No. 1 problem with Green Bay’s defense right now. And he’s going to take an active role in trying to fix what ails these Packers.

“It happens by people not talking,” LaFleur said of Green Bay’s communication breakdowns. “There was way too many examples of that and … as dumbfounded as you are right now, that’s how I felt watching it.”

“I’ve got to be more present with those guys in making sure that we’re all on the same page because, I mean, football is, if you don’t have all 11 on the same page, it obviously starts with our staff making sure all our coaches are in lock step, but if you don’t have all 11 on the same page, it takes one guy and then everything goes to crap. After that you get exposed. Unfortunately we got exposed in a really bad way (Sunday).”

Hiring Barry has always been a controversial move in Green Bay.

LaFleur dumped Mike Pettine as his defensive coordinator after the 2020 season, one in which the Packers ranked ninth in total defense (334.0) and 13th in points (23.1).

After LaFleur was turned down by former Wisconsin defensive coordinator Jim Leonhard, he turned to his pal Barry, who he had coached with during their time with the Los Angeles Rams. And that move has been a colossal mistake.

Barry was a defensive coordinator in Detroit in 2007-08 and in Washington in 2015-16, where things went remarkably bad in both cities.

Detroit ranked dead last in yards and points in both of Barry’s seasons running the Lions’ defense.

In 2015, Washington ranked 28th in yards (380.6) and 17th in points (23.7). Then in 2016, Washington was once again 28th in yards (377.9) and 19th in points allowed (23.9).

Despite being handed a wealth of talent — for example, this year’s Green Bay defense has eight first round draft picks — Barry’s units have been mediocre, at best.

The Packers currently rank 22nd in total yards allowed per game (349.9) and 17th in points allowed (21.5).

“It was just a lot of little things,” Packers cornerback Eric Stokes said of Green Bay’s defensive problems. “We can’t play the blame game. That’s exactly what we just ended the meeting on. We’ve got to find solutions.

“There’s no reason to play the blame game. The blame game ain’t going to get us nothing. We’ve got to find solutions because it’s on to Charlotte next week. So yeah, we’ve got to look back in the mirror.”

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