The Green Bay Packers made the widely accepted choice to fire defensive coordinator Joe Barry after the defense continued to fail to make significant strides.
The Packers defense has the ability to be one of the best in the NFL, as evidenced by the eight former first-round picks on the current roster. Unfortunately, Barry failed or refused to use the full potential of his players.Barry is scheduled to interview for the coaching staff of the Chicago Bears and Philadelphia Eagles. He won’t get a chance to be considered for one of several defensive coordinator roles.Meanwhile, Packers coach Matt LaFleur must choose his third defensive coordinator in as many seasons. When he was first hired in 2019, he kept Mike Pettine on staff to keep Mike McCarthy.
After Pettine’s contract was not renewed, he tried to hire then-Wisconsin Badgers defensive coordinator Jim Leonhard, but Leonhard decided to stay in Madison. So Pattin hired Barry instead.
It goes without saying that LaFleur, who has been heavily criticized for his hiring practices, should make a good hire with this one. Green Bay’s latest report does little to assuage concerns that he is too loyal to those he considers friends in NFL coaching circles. Green Bay interviews LaFleur’s friend and the man who taught Barry how to manage Fangio’s teams. That’s the style of defense, according to The Athletic’s Matt Schneidman, who previously broke the news that Staley would not be a top candidate for the defensive coordinator role.
In 2020, Staley served as the defensive coordinator for the Los Angeles Rams before becoming the head coach of the Los Angeles Chargers.
It was the only year in my career as a coordinator. Before that, he coached the Denver Broncos and Chicago Bears.As head coach of the Chargers, Staley went 24–24 in the regular season and his club lost the only postseason game in which he played. As mentioned above, Staley was not expected to be the first line of defense. The coordinator position with the Packers. That’s not to say he never gets attention or even gets an interview opportunity. He’s one of the hottest players on the market and his short stint as the Rams’ defensive coordinator has impressed many front offices. But the real question is whether LaFleur wants to try something different or stay on defense like Fangio.
Staley is using a very similar strategy to what Barry used in Green Bay, which has upset many fans and, to some extent, players. After being unemployed for two days, Staley was the first person to interview on Barry’s behalf. There may be more interviews and Staley may find another job before the Packers complete the interview process.
