The Green Bay Packers are once again in the market for a defensive coordinator - their fourth since Matt LaFleur took over as head coach. Now entering his eighth season at the helm, LaFleur is tasked with finding a new defensive voice after Jeff Hafley departed for a job with the Miami Dolphins.
This revolving door at defensive coordinator has been one of the few constants in LaFleur’s otherwise steady tenure. When he arrived in Green Bay, he kept Mike Pettine - originally hired in 2018 - on staff.
Pettine stayed through the 2020 season before his contract expired, prompting the Packers to bring in Joe Barry. Barry’s three-year stint was marked by inconsistency and underperformance, and after the defense failed to meet expectations again, the team moved on and hired Hafley.
Hafley’s time in Green Bay was brief, and with his exit, the Packers are back to square one defensively. The search begins again, and it’s a critical hire for LaFleur, who’s looking to stabilize a unit that’s lacked identity in recent years.
Meanwhile, Mike Pettine has officially stepped away from coaching, announcing his retirement following the 2025 season. After leaving Green Bay, Pettine spent time with the Chicago Bears as a senior defensive assistant before joining the Minnesota Vikings in 2022 as assistant head coach. While in Minnesota, he worked alongside defensive coordinator Brian Flores - a pairing that, by Pettine’s own admission, wasn’t exactly seamless.
When asked recently about Flores’ potential as a head coaching candidate, Pettine kept things diplomatic but didn’t hide that there were differences behind the scenes.
“We didn’t see eye-to-eye on a lot of things,” Pettine said. “That’s why I spent this past year on offense. I was there in ’23 and ’24 on defense, so you know, I’ll take the high road on that one.”
It’s a rare glimpse into the dynamics of an NFL coaching staff - and a reminder that even among experienced minds, philosophical clashes can happen. Flores, for his part, remains with the Vikings for now, having signed a new deal that keeps him in Minnesota unless he lands one of the open head coaching jobs around the league.
As for Pettine, he walks away from the game with a long résumé and plenty of stories - including his time navigating the ever-evolving world of NFL defenses, both in Green Bay and beyond.