After taking a look at the one big question facing each of the Packers’ position groups on offense, it’s now time to do the same on the defensive side of the ball.
The defense again underperformed in 2023, which led to a change at defensive coordinator, with the Packers hiring Jeff Hafley. With Hafley at the helm, the Packers are making the shift to a 4-3 defensive scheme, and it is anticipated that we will see a more aggressive defense, which will include five or six-man rushes, press coverage, and single-high safety looks.
Of course, the type of defense that Hafley is going to run matters, but a big factor in Matt LaFleur hiring him is noted ability as a teacher, his willingness to make adjustments week-to-week based on the opponent, and the energy that Hafley and his assistant coaches will bring to that side of the ball.
“I think he’s just got a way to make it very easy for our players so they can go out there and let their natural ability take over,” said LaFleur. “And we’re kind of working through some of the schematics right now,. Been a part of some of those meetings and I definitely like the vibe.
“It’s never about one person. You better have the collective, the people that we’ve surrounded him with, there’s a lot of good football coaches and guys that are coming from different schemes and different systems. But I do believe that if you have the right kind of people, the right teachers, they’re going to get the most out of our players, whether they’ve coached in this scheme or not.”
Looking ahead to 2024, this is a Packers team with Super Bowl aspirations, and getting to that point will require more consistency and impact plays from the defensive side of the ball. Here is the one big question facing each of the Packers’ position groups on defense with the NFL Draft on the horizon.