Coach Proves To Be LaFraud

Many people are to blame for the Packers’ now annual choke in the playoffs. Quarterback Aaron Rodgers, who’ll likely win his fourth MVP next week and is being paid over $33 million, led the offense to 10 points. Tight end Marcedes Lewis fumbled to thwart early momentum and allow the reeling 49ers to regain their footing. Wide receivers Allen Lazard and Randall Cobb combined for six more yards than the slightly overweight fan with nacho stains on his Therme Parka in Section 476. But nobody came up smaller on Saturday night than third-year head coach Matt LaFleur, who, despite a sparkling 39-10 regular-season record, has up until now proven to be no better than Mike Sherman and post-2010 Mike McCarthy.

Like his much-maligned predecessors, LaFleur hasn’t been able to get it done in January. Sherman went 2-4 in the playoffs from 2000 to 2005, and McCarthy went 5-6 from 2011 to 2018. LaFleur is now 2-3 in his three years on the job. And like Sherman and post-2010 McCarthy,  a big reason is his inability to hire quality coordinators. Sherman gave us Tom Rossley and Bob Slowik, and McCarthy gave us way too much of Dom Capers, along with Shawn Slocum and Ron Zook. But as bad as those hires were, nothing compares to LaFleur’s decision to entrust special teams to Maurice Drayton.

After rightfully firing Shawn Mennenga following last season when the special teams ranked 29th in the National Football League, LaFleur inexplicably decided to promote Drayton, who had been by Mennenga’s side for two years. McCarthy made the same nonsensical move multiple times when he changed special teams coordinators. It’s as if both head coaches thought the assistants were sitting around playing Call of Duty while their bosses ran things into the ground.

Surprising to nobody except LaFleur, his unfounded faith in Drayton wasn’t rewarded. Special teams were even worse this season, and Saturday night was the cherry on top of a shit sundae. The Packers had both a field goal and a punt blocked, costing themselves 10 points in what ended up being a three-point loss. During the season, mistakes on special teams were a weekly occurrence, as were Drayton’s promises to get it fixed. That never happened. And why would it? If he truly had any ideas worth hearing, wouldn’t he have shared them with Mennenga? But for some reason, that thought never occurred to the person who just recently set a record for most wins by a coach in his first three seasons.

While special teams were a season-long problem, LaFleur’s offense decided to wait until Saturday night to shit the bed completely. After scoring a touchdown on a beautifully designed and executed 69-yard drive to open the game, a unit led by the “genius” young coach and the future first-ballot Hall of Fame quarterback scored three points in the final 55 minutes. Three fucking points! That means in the last three playoff losses, the combination of LaFleur and Rodgers has managed to score a grand total of 56 points, and 20 of those came in garbage time in the 2019 NFC Championship Game.

Injuries to All-Pro tackle David Bakhtiari, Pro Bowl guard Elgton Jenkins, tight end Robert Tonyan, and wide receiver Marquez Valdes-Scantling certainly didn’t help, but there’s still no excuse for any offense, let alone one with Rodgers, All-Pro wide receiver Davante Adams and Pro Bowl running back Aaron Jones to score three points and gain a total of 58 yards in the second half of a home playoff game. Unless, of course, the opposing defense was the ’85 Bears, and the 2021 49ers are far from the ’85 Bears. Heck, the Packers put up 30 points against this same defense earlier in the season.

With the speedy Valdes-Scantling sidelined due to a back injury, the 49ers often employed nine or 10 men within five yards of the line of scrimmage. LaFleur had to know that was coming, yet he had few answers. Defensive coordinator DeMeco Ryans typically rushed four and dropped seven into coverage, and with very few exceptions, nobody other than Adams could get separation down the field. So much for the idea that LaFleur would be able to scheme receivers open. With minimal motion, little creativity, and no useful adjustments, it was as if McCarthy was in his headset all night.

I’ll deal more with general manager Brian Gutekunst at another time, but he’s also very much responsible for the debacle that took place on Saturday night. Yes, he deserves a lot of credit for signing inside linebacker De’Vondre Campbell and cornerback Rasul Douglas and for drafting cornerback Eric Stokes, but he also did or didn’t do the following:

-He didn’t replace Tonyan at the trade deadline. Instead, he left the offense without a tight end capable of making a play anywhere on the field. Evan Engram (Giants) and Hayden Hurst (Falcons) were among the veterans available, but Gutekunst passed. Lewis fumbling and Josiah Deguara dropping a ball in the second half only made that bad decision look worse.

-He didn’t seriously pursue Odell Beckham Jr., who reportedly wanted to play in Green Bay after being released by the Browns. OBJ would’ve come with some noticeable warts, but he also would’ve caught more than the one pass for six yards that Lazard and Cobb combined for last night. LaFleur loves goons like Lazard who do the dirty work and never complain, but sometimes a talented pain in the ass is the difference between scoring in the red zone and settling for a field goal.

-He didn’t do a thing to help improve special teams, even though it was a problem from Week 1. He could’ve signed a couple of proven veterans to bolster a young and undisciplined unit, but he chose to stick with his own players. His only in-season addition from the outside – wide receiver and returner David Moore – wasn’t even active on Saturday night.

-He did replace Hunter Bradley with Steven Wirtel, the smallest long snapper in the league. Did you happen to notice how easily the 228-pounder was run over on that season-defining blocked punt late in the fourth quarter? As I watched that play in horror, I remembered tweeting about Wirtel’s lack of size when he was first promoted from the practice squad.

New long-snapper Steven Wirtel is listed at 228 pounds. That’s very small for the position, and you can be sure opponents will take notice.

— Michael Rodney (@PackersNotes) November 2, 2021

I’m only mentioning Gutekunst’s shortcomings in a story about LaFleur’s failings because these are the two men who’ll be expected to rebuild the Packers after Rodgers is gone, which could very well happen in the next couple of months. And because both Gutekunst and LaFleur are entering the final years of their respective contracts, they’ll each likely receive massive long-term extensions sometime between now and the start of training camp in late July. It’ll be a reward for all the success they’ve had the past three seasons. But have they really been successful? That’s a matter of perspective.

I once opined that the Packers, as long as Rodgers was healthy, could win at least 10 games and make the playoffs with Mr. Magoo as coach. Sherman and McCarthy proved me right for almost two decades. After this season and Saturday night, in particular, I’m beginning to think LaFleur is on his way to further bolstering my hypothesis. And while his boss will receive far less criticism, Gutekunst shouldn’t get off scot-free. It took a collective effort to fail as badly as the Packers failed, and he was a part of it. Sadly, I have a feeling things are going to get a lot worse before they get better again.

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