The Green Bay Packers’ offensive problems reached a boiling point on Monday night. Stuck in the mud after a season-ending injury to Tucker Kraft, the Packers managed just seven points in their loss to the Philadelphia Eagles in Week 10. With the taste of the previous week’s 16-13 loss to the Carolina Panthers stuck in their mouth, fans wanted heads to roll on Tuesday, perhaps signaling the end for head coach Matt LaFleur and general manager Brian Gutekunst.
LaFleur and Gutekunst are under contract through the 2026 season, but teams rarely let their GM and coach enter lame duck status. If the Packers' offense continues to struggle and waste the efforts of a championship-caliber defense, it could leave new Packers CEO and president Ed Policy with no choice but to fire both at the end of the year.
But for now, the Packers need to figure out what’s the problem. LaFleur’s conservative play-calling has come under fire in the days since the Eagles' loss, but Gutekunst is just as much to blame for a team that is coming short of its expectations in recent weeks.
Matt LaFleur’s Predictable Play-Calling is Exposing Brian Gutekunst’s Offseason Mistakes
If you ask any fan on the street, they’ll tell you that LaFleur needs to be the one kicked out of Green Bay. His controversial decisions, including calling an ill-fated inside zone run on a 4th and 1 Monday night, have come under fire in the past two games and have many wondering if he’s running the ball too much.
Going back to last season, the answer might disappoint Packers fans. Green Bay had the sixth-most rushing attempts in the NFL last season, but its efficiency on the ground helped its passing attack become one of the most efficient in the league. While the Packers are attempting fewer runs this season and their passing game remains efficient, their execution on the ground has faltered, with their yards per carry dropping from 4.7 in 2024 to 3.9 in 2025.
2024 | 2025 | |
|---|---|---|
Rushing Attempts Per Game | 30.9 | 28.3 |
Yards Per Carry | 4.7 | 3.9 |
Passing Attempts Per Game | 28.1 | 31.7 |
Net Passing Yards Per Attempt | 7.6 | 7.1 |
One conclusion Packers fans could take from this data is that LaFleur has become too predictable about when he’s calling a run. This was the case when Eagles defensive lineman shouted out the 4th and 1 play call on Monday night, but it also has something to do with the Packers’ overhaul on the offensive line.
This is where Gutekunst has contributed to the mess. The Packers finished sixth in Pro Football Focus’s final offensive line rankings for the 2024 season, but they had a weak link to replace in center Josh Myers. Gutekunst rightfully allowed Myers to walk in free agency, but instead of signing or drafting a center to replace him, he overpaid guard Aaron Banks with a four-year, $77 million contract in free agency and slid Elgton Jenkins to center.
Both moves have looked like a galaxy-brain moment for Gutekunst this season. While Banks has dealt with injuries, his 53.5 overall PFF grade ranks 60th out of 84 qualifying guards this season. Jenkins has also had trouble acclimating to his new position, grading 25th out of 39 qualifying centers, and also had his future with the team thrown into uncertainty when he suffered a lower-leg fracture on Monday night.
The issues go beyond the decisions made with Banks and Jenkins. The Packers chose Jordan Morgan in the first round of last year’s draft and moved him to right guard to replace a struggling Sean Rhyan. But the second-year pro ranks 56th among qualifiers with a 54.8 overall grade. Anthony Belton was also supposed to provide depth as a second-round pick, but after committing eight penalties (two declined) in the preseason, he suffered an ankle injury that has kept him in reserve status for most of the year.
The end result? The Packers' offensive line ranks 17th in PFF’s rankings entering Week 11 and could be on the verge of falling down the list after Jenkins’s injury on Monday night.
This leaves several things that need to be cleaned up. LaFleur needs to find ways to open up the running game – a task that has also become more difficult with Gutekunst’s whiff on 2024 third-round pick MarShawn Lloyd. Gutekunst also needs to give him better personnel up front to execute on the ground, freeing up more opportunities for the passing game.
It’s a combination that has doomed the Packers’ offense over the last two games, and it could be a mess that Policy decides to do away with at the end of the year if both sides can’t figure it out.