Call me crazy. Call me a hater. Call me whatever…and only time will tell if I am wrong, but I just don’t buy that the Green Bay Packers-Matt LaFleur negotiations are all but tied up. Grab a Snickers, because I don’t think we’re goin’ anywhere for a while. To me, this has the makings of a rocky, drawn-out saga, and no newsworthy nugget that has surfaced to this point has convinced me otherwise.
This post is not to argue the pros and cons of a Matt LaFleur led Green Bay Packers team. Let me start there. This is pure analysis of the information we have, what my gut is telling me, and this simple fact: there’s is no deal until there is a deal, and a deal isn’t done isn’t the deal is done.
The insiders are telling us that all that remains is a financial tit-for-tat. Essentially, both sides want it, we’ll come to that number, and we’re good to go. Ed policy hasn’t been the man in the corner office long enough for me to glean his tells, to understand how he turns the wheel on the S.S. Packers, but this much I know for sure: Ed has had his eyes on and his hands in this organization for Matt’s entire tenure in Titletown. He knows LaFleur as well as any, and the fact that we have reached the doorstep of a lame duck year is a tremendous red flag to me. It doesn’t scream confidence that we’ve gotten this far. If Ed was certain that he had his guy, the offseason was a perfect time to hammer out that extension, no? Why put yourself in a position to lose leverage by allowing your chosen candidate the opportunity to have a dynamite season, maybe even bring home the title? That’s just bad business. It’s always better to move on too early than too late, and always better to lock ’em up before they smash their ceiling. Why not get that deal done on your first day in the seat? Or how about at 9-3-1, no? If that’s your guy, but you just want to see a little more, isn’t 9-3-1 enough?
Next up: the players are really backing him. Of course they are! Just like game film, these men know that every interview, every sound bite, every statement is admissible when it comes time to determine THEIR future. Their existence can turn on a dime, and it’s a bad look to be the guy who tosses his HC or teammate under the bus. More powerfully, Matt LaFleur is STILL the man. What player in his right mind would fire missiles at the dude who, by all reports, is likely to be at the front of the meeting room next year? Finally, all sports aside, this analysis is simply a product of the human condition. In the end, nobody really likes catastrophic change. Think of the garbage you put up with in life simply out of fear of change? Relationships, employment, brand loyalty…you name it. We stay in toxic environments, we remain in toxic relationships, we pay more to shop at the corner store versus driving across town. Why? Because routine, because familiarity, because safety is comforting. These guys have a routine with LaFleur, and in the world of professional sports, comfort is tough to come by. A new regime is a threat to their present routine and their present level of comfort.
Finally (and this may be the most influential piece of evidence to my opinion): the Green Bay Packers don’t need a head coach…they already have one under contract. The Pack doesn’t have to do a darn thing. There’s no desperation on January 12th, 2026. Organizationally, they may not like lame duck years, but that year affords them the luxury of kickin’ tires and exploring all avenues before them, all while retaining the services of a successful head coach. I don’t think the Packers are in any hurry, and they don’t have to be.
None of these, by itself, is a smoking gun; but together I think they make a strong case for the argument that if this drags on, there’s less 1265 confidence in Matt LaFleur than the reports are suggesting.
