9 Big Things from the Green Bay Packers 2021 Season
By Paul Bretl
Green Bay Packers special teams unit requires major changes
I know, not exactly some groundbreaking info in the headline, but what I mean by that is if we hope to see this special teams unit actually improve, it’s going to take more than finding a new special teams coordinator.
Don’t get me wrong, this season was awful, as pretty much anything that could go wrong did for this Green Bay Packers special teams unit–from the kick and punt return units to the coverage units, as well as the field goal team, they all had their issues.
But, unfortunately, this isn’t the first time things have gone wrong; in fact, maybe not to this degree, but overall, this is fairly common territory for the Packers. In Rick Gosselin’s yearly special teams rankings, the Packers finished 32nd, which is the third time that’s happened since 2014.
And as Bill Huber of SI would write, Green Bay has finished 20th or worse in seven the last nine seasons, including 29th in 2020, 26th in 2019, and 32nd in 2018.
For things to truly change, the Packers need to look into utilizing more starters on special teams–something Matt LaFleur mentioned following the loss to San Francisco. They also could benefit from more experience on that unit, and while I’m not in the building or at practice, it certainly looks like special teams play could use more of an emphasis during training camp and in-season practices.
These issues run far deeper than any one coordinator; it’s going to take an organizational shift if they hope to improve.