The Green Bay Packers are moving on from Defensive Coordinator Joe Barry after three years. Multiple reports say Head Coach Matt LaFleur has relieved Barry of his duties. LaFleur will now be looking for his third Coordinator entering his sixth season as Head Coach. He inherited Mike Pettine from Mike McCarthy’s staff and kept him on board for two years before making a change. He was close to hiring former University of Wisconsin Coordinator Jim Leonhard who at the time, decided to stay in Madison with the Badgers. LaFleur turned to a former colleague with the Los Angeles Rams in Barry. In his first season as DC, Barry’s unit finished 8th in yards allowed per game as the Packers went 13-3 and reached the NFC Championship Game. In 2022, Green Bay slipped to 16th in yards allowed and this past season, dropped to 23 in yards per game, finishing 28th in rushing yards per game and 24th in rushing yards per attempt. Four times last season, the Packers surrendered more than 200 plus yards to opponents. Green Bay wound up a respectable 13th in points allowed per game this year but Barry’s defensive unit was prone to giving up too many explosive plays and tackling issues were prevalent throughout the season, including in the NFC Divisional Playoff loss at San Francisco last Saturday night. The Packer defense couldn’t hold a 4th quarter lead and gave up the go ahead touchdown drive with just over a minute to play. Barry has been an NFL assistant coach for 22 years including coordinator stints with Detroit and Washington. With none of the remaining defensive assistants on the Packer staff having any coordinating experience, it’s almost a given LaFleur will be looking outside the organization for a new direction on defense. Former Tennessee Titans Head Coach Mike Vrabel, who was LaFleur’s boss in Nashville in 2018, might be given top consideration.
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