When the Green Bay Packers blew a 16-6 lead in the waning minutes of the fourth quarter to the Chicago Bears in Week 16, many assumed that would be their biggest gut-punch loss of the year - little did they know that three weeks later, Green Bay would blow another double-digit lead, in Soldier Field again, no less, and be the subject of the largest comeback in Bears postseason history.
That's what happened, though, to close out wild card Saturday. The Packers led 21-6 in the fourth quarter, but were outscored 25-6 in the game's final 15 minutes to fall 31-27, marking the second straight season in which they were one-and-done in the postseason. Considering how their last two seasons have ended, it's time to ask hard questions about Matt LaFleur and if it's time for the Packers to move on.
Should the Green Bay Packers fire Matt LaFleur?
In the first two months of the season, it looked as if the Packers were going to steamroll everyone in their path. They defeated the Detroit Lions and Washington Commanders in the first two weeks of the 2025 campaign by a combined score of 54-31 and registered eight sacks. After seven games, they were 5-1-1 and arguably the best, and most balanced team, in the league. However, it was a tale of two seasons for the Packers.
From Weeks 1-8, the Packers were second in the NFL in EPA per play and fourth in success rate on offense. They were also 10th in defensive success rate and sixth in defensive EPA per dropback. From Weeks 9-18, though, Green Bay's defense dropped to 23rd in EPA per play and 25th in success rate. And while their offense was still one of the more efficient units in the league, they scored 20 or fewer points in six of their final 10 games to close out the regular season.
The offense is not to blame for the loss to the Bears, which may lead to some suggesting keeping LaFleur and moving on from defensive coordinator Jeff Hafley. But this is the second consecutive season in which the Packers stumbled to the finish line before getting eliminated in the wild card round. They lost their final two regular season games in 2024 before behind beaten handedly by the Philadelphia Eagles 22-10.
And while this may come across as a cheap point to some, it feels worth pointing out that the Packers were the No. 7 seed in the NFC in each of the last three seasons. Had the NFL not expanded the playoff field back in 2020, Green Bay would have missed the postseason in each of the last four seasons.
While he helped the Packers transition seamlessly from the Mike McCarthy era, winning 13 games in three consecutive seasons from 2019-21 to start his head coaching career, it looks more and more like those three seasons were his peak. Considering the historic choking of a playoff game to close out this season, along with the dud in 2024 and multiple end-of-season collapses, it's hard to justify LaFleur returning in 2026 as the head coach of the Packers, especially when it looks as if Ben Johnson has already surpassed him.
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