Matt LaFleur was hired to be the head coach of the Green Bay Packers on January 8th of 2019 following a disappointing 6-9-1 season where they missed the playoffs for the second straight season under Mike McCarthy. McCarthy’s storied tenure with the Packers came to a disappointing end as the Packers struggled the final two years under McCarthy, going 15-18-1 with no playoff appearances and a team that ranked in the bottom half of the NFL in both offensive and defensive stats.
LaFleur has seen plenty of success as the 15th head coach of the Green Bay Packers. Currently, LaFleur has recorded 47 wins to only 19 losses since the start of the 2019 season, and has led the team to three playoff appearances in four years. LaFleur’s playoff success has been limited, with only a 2-3 record in the postseason and two of those three losses coming in the NFC Championship game.
Despite playoff struggles, which we will see plagues many of the Packers head coaches across the franchise’s history, LaFleur has been an excellent coach for the Packers, and his three year stretch from 2019-2021 that saw the Packers go 39-10 and Rodgers returning to his hall-of-fame self with back-to-back MVPs is one of the best starts for a head coach in NFL history. He currently holds the record of the best win percentage through a head coach’s first 40 games with a .825 win percentage. His 33-7 record passes legendary Don Shula who held it with a 31-7-2 record (.815 percentage).
LaFleur’s career is far from over as the Packers head coach, but his start ranks as one of the best in NFL history, so how does he stack up against the other head coaches in Packers history?
Funnily enough, the Packers first ever head coach has an argument as one of the best in Packers history. Curly Lambeau coached the Packers from 1921 to 1949. Under Lambeau, the Packers racked up 209 wins to only 104 losses and 21 ties (ties were very common in the early years of professional football). Lambeau led the Packers to six championship wins and was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1970 and had the current home stadium for the team named after him to honor the success he brought to the franchise.
Despite Lambeau’s success and accomplishments, there is still a coach that many consider not only the greatest Packers’ head coach, but also one of the greatest coaches in NFL history. Vince Lombardi was the fifth head coach of the Green Bay Packers, coaching them from 1959 to 1967. Lombardi led the Packers to a 89-29-4 record in his nine seasons with them, for a win percentage of .746, on his way to five NFL Championships, including the first two Super Bowls.
Lombardi’s success didn’t just come in the regular season, in the playoffs, Lombardi was something special. In 10 playoff games, he posted a 9-1 record for a .900 winning percentage. This 90% win rate is the best in NFL history among coaches who coached three or more playoff games. It is unlikely this record will be broken any time soon.
Other famous head coaches in Packers history include Mike Holmgren and Mike McCarthy, who led the Packers to a .670 and a .618 winning percentage respectively. McCarthy and Holmgren had their fair share of playoff success, each of them earning a Super Bowl win as coach for the Packers. That being said they also had plenty of struggles outside of their Super Bowl runs. Molgren had a playoff record of 9-5 with the Packers, while McCarthy’s was nearly even at 10-8.
So where does Matt LaFleur rank among some of these greats? LaFleur’s .712 regular season winning percentage record currently has him second on the Packers all time winningest coaches list, just behind Lombardi and above Holmgren, Lambeau, and McCarthy who rank third, fourth, and fifth respectively.
Despite his regular season success, his postseason failures without a doubt tarnish his legacy, and his inability to get over the NFC Championship hump cannot be ignored. LaFleur still has more years to come as coach of the Packers so he has more chances to led the Packers to the promise-land, but for right now his lack of playoff success holds him back from being considered in the same breath as Lombardi and Lambeau.
Right now LaFleur is, at best, the fourth best head coach for the Green Bay Packers franchise. I have LaFleur ranked Lombardi (first), Lambeau (second), and Holmgren (third). You could argue McCarthy was a better coach than LaFleur due to his Super Bowl win, and I would agree; however LaFleur was able to revive Rodgers career with the Packers for his final three years and make a playoff push when Rodgers looked to be on his way out of the league. As a result, LaFleur and McCarthy are interchangeable at the fourth and fifth position on the all-time list.
