Matt LaFleur: From Quarterback to Architect of the Green Bay Packers' Success
Matthew Robert LaFleur, born on November 3, 1979, is an American professional football coach currently serving as the head coach of the Green Bay Packers in the National Football League (NFL). Before becoming a head coach, LaFleur honed his skills as an assistant coach for accomplished mentors such as Gary Kubiak, Mike Shanahan, Dan Quinn, Sean McVay, and Mike Vrabel. Notably, four of those years were spent on Shanahan's coaching staff. His journey to the NFL's top coaching ranks is a testament to his dedication, strategic acumen, and ability to connect with players.
Early Life and Collegiate Playing Career
LaFleur was raised in Mount Pleasant, Michigan, and he played football and basketball at Mount Pleasant High School. Despite his family's strong connections to Central Michigan University, LaFleur chose to enroll at their rival, Western Michigan University. He joined Western's football team as a walk-on player but saw no playing time. After two years, he was asked by Western's coaches to switch positions from quarterback to wide receiver.
LaFleur then transferred to Division II Saginaw Valley State University. He became their starting quarterback after Garrett Small suffered a career-ending injury in the first game of the season. LaFleur's play helped the Cardinals reach the D-II playoffs in each of his three years at the school. During his three-year run as the Cardinal quarterback, SVSU compiled a record of 29-8 overall and qualified for the NCAA Division II Playoffs each year. LaFleur left Saginaw Valley State as their all-time leader in passing yards (7,699), completions, and passing touchdowns (67). After his collegiate career ended, he briefly played in the National Indoor Football League for the Omaha Beef (Omaha, Nebraska) and the Billings Outlaws (Billings, Montana).
Early Coaching Career: Building a Foundation
LaFleur's coaching career began in 2003 as an offensive graduate assistant at his alma mater, Saginaw Valley State University. In his lone season with the Cardinals, the team posted a 12-1 season and winning the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference title, eventually losing in the Div. II playoff quarterfinals. In 2004, LaFleur was hired by the Central Michigan State University as an offensive assistant for the Chippewas. He met his wife BreAnne at Central Michigan. Northern Michigan hired LaFleur to coach their quarterbacks and wide receivers for the 2006 season under new head coach Bernie Anderson. In 2007, LaFleur moved again to Ashland University as the team’s new offensive coordinator. The two seasons that LaFleur led the team’s offense, the Eagles made the playoffs for the first time in more than a decade.
Transition to the NFL: Learning from the Best
After six seasons in college, LaFleur jumped to the NFL as an offensive assistant coach for the Houston Texans for the 2008 season. In his first season, he worked closely with Larry Kirksey to coach the wide receivers. In 2010, the Washington Redskins hired LaFleur to coach the quarterbacks. LaFleur continued to work under Kyle Shanahan who was hired as the team’s offensive coordinator. From 2011 to 2013, LaFleur worked alongside 4 other future head coaches in Washington; Kyle Shanahan, Sean McVay, Mike McDaniel, and Raheem Morris. During his tenure with the team, he coached a rookie quarterback Robert Griffin III as he established numerous franchise rookie records en route to a Pro Bowl appearance. Beyond that, the team won the NFC East for the first time in 13 years in 2012.
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In 2014, LaFleur briefly returned to college as the quarterbacks coach for the Notre Dame Fighting Irish. He was reunited with head coach Brian Kelly, with whom he worked with a decade prior at Central Michigan. LaFleur tutored senior quarterback Everett Golson who posted 3,445 yards and 29 touchdowns through the air, helping him become just the fourth quarterback in school history to eclipse such totals in a single season.
Ascent Through the Ranks: Quarterbacks Coach and Offensive Coordinator
In 2015, LaFleur returned to the NFL as the quarterbacks coach for the Atlanta Falcons for two seasons. He continued his tutelage under Shanahan, his third team he worked with the offensive coordinator. In 2016, LaFleur coached Matt Ryan on his way to winning his sole NFL MVP award. During his second season with the Falcons, the team lost the Super Bowl to the New England Patriots.
The 2017 season saw another move and promotion for LaFleur. He was hired by new head coach Sean McVay as the team’s new offensive coordinator. During his lone season with the Rams, the Rams had an explosive offense behind quarterback Jared Goff and running back Todd Gurley. As the offensive coordinator for the Rams Todd Gurley won AP Offensive Player of the Year. The Rams had a remarkable turnaround, a seven-win improvement from their 2016 campaign.
The 2018 season saw LaFleur move to the Tennessee Titans as their offensive coordinator.
Head Coaching Career: Green Bay Packers
In 2019, LaFleur was named the head coach of the Green Bay Packers. On September 5, 2019, LaFleur made his regular-season head coaching debut against the Chicago Bears, and led the Packers to a 10-3 victory. He also became the first Green Bay coach to win his first game against the Bears since Vince Lombardi in 1959. The Packers finished with a 13-3 record in LaFleur's first season as a head coach, and in the process, LaFleur became the first Packers rookie head coach to win 10 games, make the playoffs, and win the NFC North (as well as going 6-0 in division play in the process).
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The Packers began the 2020 season by winning all four games prior to an early Week 5 bye. After a 5-1 start to the season, the Packers dropped a home game 22-28 to the Minnesota Vikings, the team's first loss in the division under LaFleur. Despite this, the Packers continued playing well, and LaFleur clinched his second consecutive NFC North title and playoff berth in Week 14 with a 31-24 victory against the Detroit Lions. With a 35-16 win over the Chicago Bears in Week 17, Green Bay clinched the NFC's 1st seed and homefield advantage throughout the playoffs for the first time since the 2011 season. LaFleur finished with a 26-6 record in his first two seasons as coach, tied for the second-best start for a coach since the 1970 merger (only George Seifert, at 28-4, has a better record). As the head coach for the Packers Aaron Rodgers won Most Valuable Player (2).
In the playoffs, LaFleur and the Packers hosted the Los Angeles Rams, who had the league's number one scoring defense and were led by one of LaFleur's former bosses, Rams coach Sean McVay. The Packers defeated the Rams, 32-18, to host the NFC Championship Game for the first time since 2007, where they lost to the eventual Super Bowl champion Tampa Bay Buccaneers, 31-26.
LaFleur's 2021 season began with a 38-3 loss to the New Orleans Saints. They proceeded to win each of their next six games to bring the 6-1 Packers to a Thursday night showdown with the NFL's last unbeaten team, the 7-0 Arizona Cardinals. In addition to playing on the road on a short week, the Packers were forced to play without their top three wide receivers, after Davante Adams and Allen Lazard tested positive for COVID-19 and Marquez Valdes-Scantling remained out with a hamstring injury since Week 3. The following week, star quarterback Aaron Rodgers tested positive for COVID-19, and LaFleur named second-year quarterback Jordan Love the starter for their Week 9 game against the Kansas City Chiefs. Although Love was relentlessly blitzed during his first career start, he managed to complete 19 of 34 passes for 190 yards, 1 touchdown and 1 interception. The Packers then shut out Seattle Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson the following week, the first such occurrence in his career, to win their Week 10 game 17-0. With a 37-10 Week 17 victory over the Minnesota Vikings, LaFleur's Packers clinched home-field advantage throughout the NFC playoffs and became the first team in NFL history to win 13 games a season in 3 consecutive years.
The Packers dealt with a notable amount of injuries throughout the season. Top outside linebacker Za'Darius Smith had not played since Week 1, while top cornerback Jaire Alexander had been out since spraining his shoulder in Week 4. Top left tackle David Bakhtiari tore his ACL during the 2020 season, and didn't return until Week 18. His replacement, Elgton Jenkins, was lost for the season with a similar ACL injury in Week 11. At the end of the regular season, quarterback Aaron Rodgers was named NFL MVP for the second consecutive year and fourth time overall. Rodgers noted LaFleur's contributions to his winning MVP in 2 of LaFleur's 3 seasons as head coach. Rodgers became the first player in the NFL to win consecutive MVP awards in 12 years, when Peyton Manning won in 2008 and 2009. In the playoffs, they lost their first game to the San Francisco 49ers, 13-10, giving LaFleur a 2-3 postseason record and no Super Bowl appearances in their three straight 13-win seasons.
LaFleur's 2022 season as head coach began with another opening day loss, this time to the Minnesota Vikings. The Packers would go on to win 3 straight, however, after the 3-1 start the season started to fall apart. The Packers won their next four games to get back to a .500 record, setting up a matchup with the Detroit Lions at home with a playoff berth on the line.
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In the offseason, star quarterback Aaron Rodgers was traded to the New York Jets, leaving 2020 first round pick Jordan Love as the team's starting quarterback. In Week 1, the Packers defeated the Chicago Bears 38-20, marking the Packers' first win without Aaron Rodgers as the starter since December 10, 2017, when they defeated the Cleveland Browns 27-21. It was also LaFleur's first opening week win since 2020. In the Wild Card Round, the Packers traveled to AT&T Stadium to take on the #2 seed Dallas Cowboys. The Packers jumped out to an early 27-0 lead, and held on to beat the Cowboys 48-32, the first win by a #7 seed in NFL history. The win made LaFleur 3-0 against the Cowboys and 2-0 at AT&T Stadium. In Week 4, LaFleur was criticized by Packers fans for his playcalling, settling for a field goal rather than going for a win against the Dallas Cowboys in a 40-40 tie. The Packers ended the season 9-7-1, losing their last four games.
During his time period, the Packers compiled a 76-40-1 record. He was the head coach of the Green Bay Packers from 2019 until the 2025 season, during which time the Packers went 76-40-1. During his career he was a head coach for seven seasons. One assistant coach from his coaching staffs, Nathaniel Hackett, was eventually hired as a head coach. After coaching on Matt LaFleur's coaching staff, he was the head coach of the Denver Broncos for one season where he combined for a regular season record of 4-11-0 and 0-0 in the playoffs.
Coaching Philosophy and Impact
LaFleur's coaching philosophy emphasizes loyalty, preparation, and accountability. He inspires others to live by his three simple rules: 1) Team first. 2) No excuses. 3) Be on time and be prepared. Known within the Packers organization as “the glue of the Packers,” his leadership style and ability to connect with players is rooted in his own time on the field.
Accolades and Recognition
Matt LaFleur is not just the head coach of the Green Bay Packers-he’s one of the most successful head coaches in NFL history. With the highest winning percentage through three seasons of any coach in league history (.796), LaFleur’s coaching career began with a thunderclap, smashing the record for most wins (39) by a first-time head coach in his first three years. On top of breaking records as a first- year head coach, he has been given tremendous praise throughout the media; ESPN broadcasters described him as the “undoubted coach of the year” in 2022 and arguably the “Packers’ Most Valuable Weapon.”
Coaching History
| Year | Team | Position | Record | Playoff Record |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2003 | Saginaw Valley State | Offensive Assistant Coach | 12-1 | |
| 2004 | Central Michigan | Graduate Assistant | 4-7 | |
| 2005 | Central Michigan | Graduate Assistant | 6-5 | |
| 2006 | Northern Michigan | Quarterbacks Coach / Wide Receivers Coach | 3-7 | |
| 2007 | Ashland University | Offensive Coordinator | ||
| 2008 | Houston Texans | Offensive Assistant Coach | 8-8 | 0-0 |
| 2009 | Houston Texans | Offensive Assistant Coach | 9-7 | 0-0 |
| 2010 | Washington Redskins | Quarterbacks Coach | 6-10 | 0-0 |
| 2011 | Washington Redskins | Quarterbacks Coach | 5-11 | 0-0 |
| 2012 | Washington Redskins | Quarterbacks Coach | 10-6 | 0-1 |
| 2013 | Washington Redskins | Quarterbacks Coach | 3-13 | 0-0 |
| 2014 | Notre Dame | Quarterbacks Coach | 8-5 | |
| 2015 | Atlanta Falcons | Quarterbacks Coach | 8-8 | 0-0 |
| 2016 | Atlanta Falcons | Quarterbacks Coach | 11-5 | 2-1 |
| 2017 | Los Angeles Rams | Offensive Coordinator | 11-5 | 0-1 |
| 2018 | Tennessee Titans | Offensive Coordinator | 9-7 | 0-0 |
| 2019 | Green Bay Packers | Head Coach | 13-3 | 1-1 |
| 2020 | Green Bay Packers | Head Coach | 13-3 | 1-1 |
| 2021 | Green Bay Packers | Head Coach | 13-4 | 0-1 |
| 2022 | Green Bay Packers | Head Coach | 8-9 | 0-0 |
| 2023 | Green Bay Packers | Head Coach | 9-8 | 1-1 |
| 2024 | Green Bay Packers | Head Coach | 11-6 | 0-1 |
| 2025 | Green Bay Packers | Head Coach | 9-7-1 | 0-1 |
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