Matt LaFleur, Brian Gutekunst on hot seat? What Packers coach, GM need to accomplish to receive extensions

Sports

add

The Green Bay Packers don’t have lame-duck leadership heading into 2025, but it’s not hyperbole to say that coach Matt LaFleur and general manager Brian Gutekunst are heading into a make-or-break season. Both have two years remaining on their current deals, which they inked back in 2022 with Mark Murphy serving as team president. Murphy is now set to retire, and the keys to the organization will soon be handed over to Ed Policy. 

The incoming president already noted that he doesn’t intend on giving either of them an extension this offseason, but he will be the one who weighs the future of LaFleur and Gutekunst after this season. As he noted, he doesn’t like having people in their positions working in the final year of their deals. 

“I’m generally opposed — I’d never say never — [but] I’m generally opposed to a coach or GM going into the last year of their contract,” Policy said, via ESPN. “That creates a lot of issues. I think normally you have a pretty good idea of where that relationship is going when you have two years left — not always, but normally. So I think generally speaking I would avoid lame-duck status. It’s oftentimes difficult on everybody involved. But there are certain situations that probably call for it, so I would not say never.”

So, with Policy not at the ready to give his coach or GM an extension right now, that applies quite a bit of added pressure for the Packers to perform well in 2025. If they meet or exceed expectations, it makes the decision to extend LaFleur and Gutekunst rather easy. Conversely, if Green Bay falls short this year, it’s not out of the realm of possibility for Policy to clean out and start fresh. 

With this situation now looming over the franchise, let’s dive into what the Packers will need to accomplish in 2025 that would create a lane for LaFleur and Gutekunst to secure extensions. 

Bust alert: Nine NFL players who are running out of time to prove themselves entering 2025 season

Cody Benjamin

What are the expectations for Green Bay in 2025?

To try and determine what the expectations are for the Packers this coming season, let’s first take a look at some of their betting odds. At FanDuel Sportsbook, Green Bay’s win total sits at 9.5 and is currently favored to go under that total at -125. However, they are favored to make the playoffs at -114.

Gutekunst was promoted to general manager back in 2018, and the team has gone 73-42-1 over his tenure. Meanwhile, LaFleur, who was hired in 2019, is 67-33 over the regular season as the Packers coach and 3-5 in the playoffs. Since the Packers transitioned to Jordan Love as their starter in 2023, they’ve gone 9-8 and 11-6 with two playoff appearances. 

These odds tell us that the baseline for Green Bay in 2025 is about what we saw in 2023 when they went 9-8, came in second in the division, but made it to the playoffs as a wild-card entry. That year, they also won a playoff game, advancing to the divisional round. While dropping down two wins from 2024 may not be ideal, if Green Bay does notch another playoff win and gets to the doorstep of an NFC Championship berth, that should be good news for both LaFleur and Gutekunst.

What the Packers need to improve on in 2025

Simply looking at wins and losses is a good first step, but how a team looks and plays every week will also be an important barometer to gauge how LaFleur and Gutekunst are faring. With that in mind, let’s dive into some specific areas that need improvement and predict if they’ll achieve it or not. 

Better consistency from Jordan Love

On balance, the Packers have seemed to yet again land on their feet as they’ve transitioned at quarterback. While Love has helped them to back-to-back winning seasons and two playoff berths, it hasn’t come without some unbalanced play from the 26-year-old. In his two years as the full-time starter, Love’s seasons have been a bit inconsistent as he’s been a bit sloppy out of the gate before coming on strong down the stretch.

Here’s a look at Love’s first-half and second-half splits over the last two seasons:

Unfortunately for Green Bay’s bid for deep playoff runs, that scorching run down the stretch for Love hasn’t exactly carried over into the postseason. After throwing for three touchdowns and no interceptions in his playoff debut during a 2023 wild-card win over Dallas, Love has since gone 0-2 in the playoffs and has thrown two touchdowns and five interceptions. Even if it lowers his ceiling a touch, LaFleur needs to get a more leveled Love in 2025, raising his floor and avoiding turnover-filled outings. 

• Why Love will be more consistent: The Packers have a young core of pass catchers, including first-round pick Matthew Golden, to give Love more outlets. He also has Josh Jacobs in the backfield to give him a stable running game. This offseason, Green Bay added Aaron Banks at left guard to help solidify the offensive line. 
• Why Love will remain inconsistent: Love continues to make poor decisions with the football, forcing it into tight windows down the field, and fails to build chemistry with the young skill-position group. 
• Prediction: Will be more consistent.

More competitive against top competition, win tight games

Over the last two years, the Packers have been able to beat good/bad competition, but have been unable to conquer the NFL’s elite teams. Since 2023 (including playoffs), Green Bay is 11-1 against teams that have won 10 regular-season games or fewer. Against teams that have won 11 or more regular-season games, the franchise is 0-6 over that same stretch. 

Moreover, the Packers haven’t been the best at grinding out wins in close games. In the last two years, the club has lost 10 games that have been determined by five or fewer points, which is tied for the second-most in the NFL over that span. While there’s always context to wins and losses, when you compile these results together, it doesn’t put LaFleur in a favorable light. 

• Why Green Bay will be better vs. elite opponents/edge out tight games: Love develops into a more consistent quarterback from week to week. The pieces they added this offseason fit seamlessly. LaFleur makes better decisions in high-pressure moments. 
• Why Green Bay will still come up short: Schedule is daunting (10th-toughest in the NFL), headlined by arguably the most competitive division in the league. The offense still struggles with inconsistency, and the defense takes a step back. 
• Prediction: Will be more competitive vs. elite opponents/be better in tight games.

New additions make quick impact

This is where Gutekunst comes into focus. This offseason, the Packers picked their spots in free agency and in the NFL Draft, but did address some key needs. 

On offense, they drafted Matthew Golden with the 23rd overall pick, making him the first wide receiver selected by the franchise in the first round since 2002. Green Bay breaking that drought only adds more pressure onto Golden to make an impact as a rookie, and the club is hoping he can provide some stability and high-end play to a position group that has been inconsistent. 

Along the offensive line, Gutekunst signed Banks to a four-year, $77 million deal in free agency to be the club’s starting left guard. For the 49ers, Banks started in all 13 of his games played in 2024 and gave up just one sack over that span. He’ll now be tasked with helping keep Love upright. 

Defensively, the biggest move was letting go of cornerback Jaire Alexander. We went into further detail on how he’ll specifically be replaced, but it’ll in part fall on Nate Hobbs, who signed a four-year, $48 million deal in free agency, as one of the outside corners. 

Those three additions by Gutekunst in particular need to hit for Green Bay to reach its ceiling. 

• Why these new additions will succeed: Golden has already shown flashes during offseason workouts, and has speed that’ll help create explosive plays. As for Banks, he has a prior history of helping keep quarterbacks upright so long as he remains healthy. In the secondary, Hobbs will be part of a solid collection of defensive backs that should help cushion the blow of parting ways with Alexander.  
• Why these new additions won’t succeed: Golden needs more time to develop, Banks allows too much pressure on Love, and Alexander’s departure in the secondary is more apparent than initially thought.  
• Prediction: Will succeed

Will LaFleur, Gutekunst earn extensions?

In short, yes. I believe the Packers are primed for a solid season that could even result in an NFC North title. After all, the Lions could take a step back after losing both coordinators, the Vikings have an unknown at quarterback with J.J. McCarthy, and we don’t know how quickly Ben Johnson will be able to establish himself in Chicago. That opens a lane for Green Bay, and would effectively guarantee extensions for both LaFleur and Gutekunst. We’ll project that each of them receives a three-year extension, linking them to the organization through the 2029 season. 

This news was originally published on this post .

Share on

email

Previous

trending_flat

Paul Skenes goes viral as no one can tell if he looks at Olivia Dunne with love or like he’s had enough

Celebrities - English

Next

trending_flat

Is Caitlin Clark wearing a target on her back as she rises to stardom? | The Facility

Sports