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Green Bay Packers general manager Brian Gutekunst (left) has assembled terrific rosters most seasons that head coach Matt LaFleur (right) hasn't been able lead to a Super Bowl.
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Find a defensive tackle. Check.
Add a kickoff/punt returner. Check.
Land a linebacker. Check.
Don’t overspend for your own free agents. Check.
Green Bay Packers general manager Brian Gutekunst continues to do his job at an elite level, checking several boxes during the start of free agency last week. Will eighth-year head coach Matt LaFleur ever do the same?
Don’t bet your mortgage.
Packers invisible team president Ed Policy extended the contracts of both Gutekunst and LaFleur after Green Bay’s remarkably disappointing 2025 season. Policy got it half right.
Year in year out, Gutekunst has given LaFleur and his underwhelming coaching staff championship-level rosters to work with. For the most part, LaFleur has turned wine to water.
Gutekunst mortgaged the future and went all in late in the Aaron Rodgers-era, putting together Super Bowl quality rosters. When that bill came due following the massive salary cap hits of Rodgers (trade) and former left tackle David Bakhtiari (release), Gutekunst impressively rebuilt the roster and kept Green Bay among the league’s elite.
Gutekunst’s decision to draft quarterback Jordan Love in 2020 has paid off in spades, with Love developing into one of the NFL’s top-eight quarterbacks. Gutekunst’s 2022 draft class produced seven quality starters, including four that appear destined to receive second contracts in Green Bay.
Gutekunst landed one of the NFL’s best tight ends in Tucker Kraft, and several other key contributors in his 2023 draft. He signed standouts Josh Jacobs and Xavier McKinney during the 2024 free agency period after Green Bay escaped salary cap hell. And he made the Packers’ best trade since Brett Favre arrived in 1992 when he landed star defensive end Micah Parsons from Dallas last August.
Gutekunst’s foray into free agency this year has been more subtle, but could prove extremely effective.
Gutekunst signed defensive tackle Javon Hargrave and return ace Skyy Moore, who should help fix positions of extreme need. He traded for former Indianapolis Pro Bowl linebacker Zaire Franklin. And he chose not to get in bidding wars for replaceable free agents like wideout Romeo Doubs and linebacker Quay Walker and will gladly take the lofty compensatory draft picks in 2027.
Gutekunst’s impressive roster building should have been enough for Green Bay to reach a Super Bowl at same point since LaFleur arrived in 2019. Instead, the Packers’ Super Bowl drought is now at 16 years and they continue to be one of the NFL’s most disappointing teams every January.
In fairness, LaFleur’s 76-40-1 regular season record and .654 winning percentage is impressive. In Titletown, though, few remember September wins against the Colts or Titans. Instead, LaFleur’s dismal 3-6 postseason record is burned deeply into the brains of Packer Nation.
LaFleur was terrific in his rookie season of 2019, when he led Green Bay to a surprising trip to the NFC Championship Game. And LaFleur’s best coaching job might have come in 2023, when he guided the Packers to the NFC Divisional playoffs in Love’s first season as a starter.
LaFleur’s other five seasons have left a taste comparable to pickled eggs or anchovies.
Gutekunst assembled the best roster in football in 2020, Green Bay earned the NFC’s No. 1 seed and was a 3.5-point favorite in the conference title game against visiting Tampa Bay. Trailing, 31-23, with just more than 2 minutes left, though, LaFleur opted for a 26-yard Mason Crosby field goal instead of going for it on fourth-and-goal. Tom Brady made sure the Packers never got the ball back, the Buccaneers prevailed, 31-26, and won the 55th Super Bowl two weeks later.
“I remember walking off the field, looking at the clock going, what the …” Rodgers said in the Netflix documentary ‘Enigma.’ “What are we doing? Kicking a field goal? For what? We still gotta get a touchdown.”
Green Bay earned the NFC’s No. 1 seed again in 2021, then laid an egg in its first playoff game — a 13-10 home loss to San Francisco in the divisional round. LaFleur’s high powered offense managed just three points after finding the endzone on its opening drive, and the Packers’ miserable special teams allowed a late-game blocked punt that was returned for a tying touchdown.
LaFleur could never find the winning formula during Green Bay’s second-rate, 8-9 season in 2022, then Gutekunst traded Rodgers to the New York Jets 3 ½ months later.
The Packers raced to an 11-4 start in 2024, then lost their final three games. In a 22-10 Wild Card playoff loss to Philadelphia, LaFleur’s offense went silent and Love had a dreadful 41.5 passer rating.
When it comes to miserable endings, though, nothing from the LaFleur-era compares to 2025.
Green Bay was 9-3-1 last season and challenging for the NFC’s No. 1 seed. The Packers then had one of the greatest collapses in team history, losing their last five games, including a pair of contests against arch-rival Chicago that defied logic.
Green Bay led the Bears, 16-6, with 2:05 left on Dec. 20, and at that point, had a 99.0% chance to win the game. Instead, Chicago rallied for a 22-16 overtime win.
When those same teams met three weeks later in a Wild Card game, Green Bay led, 21-3, at halftime and held a 97% chance of winning. The Packers’ odds were still at 96% with 5 minutes left when they held a 27-16 advantage. Of course, Chicago rallied for a 31-27 win that ranks among the worst losses in Packer history.
LaFleur is now the NFL’s longest-tenured coach who hasn’t reached a Super Bowl. LaFleur is 1-5 in his last six playoff games with just one postseason win since the 2020 campaign. And the Packers enter 2026 with the NFL’s fourth-longest losing streak at five games.
Those that carry water for LaFleur will find an endless stream of excuses. They’ll blame injuries — which haven't been any better or worse than the other 31 teams. They’ll fault certain players or substandard assistant coaches.
The one constant, though, in Green Bay’s eventual failures since 2019 has been LaFleur — even though he’s had a top-10 roster most seasons. It’s why Policy’s decision to extend the head coach was a head scratcher.
Instead of Policy telling the fan base why he opted to keep LaFleur for an eighth season, it’s been crickets from Packer headquarters. In fact, “Silent Ed” hasn’t commented publicly about anything since last summer, choosing instead to only answer fan questions in a team-published newsletter.
Talk about the anti-Bob Harlan.
Like Sisyphus, Gutekunst continues to try pushing the boulder that is LaFleur up the hill. Much like Greek mythology, though, it’s pretty clear how this story will end.
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