Practice Changes Crank Up Competition Before Facing Bears

Coach Matt LaFleur has gone back to the practice approach that helped fuel the Packers’ strong second half to last season.

Green Bay Packers coach Matt LaFleur calls a play at Jacksonville. / Morgan Tencza-Imagn Images

GREEN BAY, Wis. – It’s not just the fresh legs from the bye week that have the Green Bay Packers flying around at practice this week.

It’s a fresh approach.

Coach Matt LaFleur has cut into his scout-team periods in exchange for more competitive snaps featuring the starting offense vs. the starting defense.

It’s something he did last season, and he believed it helped the Packers go from 3-6 at midseason to a playoff run.

“I thought it was good for us last year,” LaFleur said. “I thought that’s when we kind of started to show a little bit more improvement.

“I thought it was important for the first part of the season, implementing a new defensive scheme, that we get as many carded periods as possible. But I think we’re to that point now where we can do a little less cards and a little bit more good on good.”

“Cards” is coaches’ lingo for scout team, since the scout-team players run the play that’s drawn on the card that’s shown in the huddle. “Good on good” means starters vs. starters.

Jeff Hafley’s turnover-producing defense is a big reason why the Packers will take a 6-3 record into Sunday’s game at the Chicago Bears.

With Hafley’s scheme established, LaFleur, in consultation with his coaches during the bye, decided to heighten the level of competition on the practice field in hopes of heightening the level of play on gamedays.

Hafley likes what he’s seen during a spirited week of practice.

“It’s your best on their best, and that’s how you get better,” Hafley said.

Hafley appreciates how LaFleur chose to step on the gas rather than backing off the throttle.

“There’s a lot of guys late in the season that go the other way, and they start walking through and dialing it back,” Hafley said. “But I think what you look at is, how can we get better in the second half and improve on what we did?

“I’m grateful he has that mindset and wants to do that. Because, you know how you get better at football? You practice football, against good players.”

The Packers on offense have to get better at third-down football. LaFleur’s offense entered Week 11 ranked 19th on third down while Hafley’s defense ranked sixth.

So, Hafley said there were about 10 snaps during a third-down period on Thursday.

“Jordan Love and our wide receivers and our O-line, that’s arguably one of the best, most explosive offenses in the NFL. So, we got those 10 reps today rather than doing a walk-through or some three-quarter speed [scout-team period].

“So, our guys got better today, and there were some shots both ways, right? You’re not going to win every single one, but that’s what you want, and I hope we continue to do that.”

Offensive coordinator Adam Stenavich saw first-hand how the approach can work, because Jordan Love and the rest of the offense took flight last season after a dismal first half of the season.

“I think it just gives fast looks,” Stenavich said. “You never know what coverage you’re going to get. It’s kind of like a game where it’s an unscouted look and you just have to react and play the play. I think it’s really valuable for everybody. Sometimes when you’re in carded periods or scouted periods, you don’t get as good of looks, so any time you can go against the defense and get fast looks, I think it’s beneficial.”

LaFleur foreshadowed the changes the day after the Packers lost to the Lions in their final game before the bye. Thinking back to last season, LaFleur recalled that “practices (had) more energy.”

So far, so good.

“I feel like the last two days, the energy has been exactly where you want it to be,” LaFleur said.

Now, it has to show up in a rivalry road game.

“They’ve gotten after it these last two days, they really have,” Hafley said. “It was physical yesterday. Today was really competitive. Our guys know how good they can be and they see we’re getting better, and they’re excited about that. There’s a different energy that they came back with from the bye week, which is very encouraging, and it’s a lot of fun to coach these guys.”

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