The Green Bay Packers and Chicago Bears meet Sunday in Week 5. Ahead of that NFC North matchup, Packers coach Matt LaFleur gave an indirect response to Bears coach Ben Johnson. It showed that the two coaches see the rivalry in very different ways, and that they manage their teams differently as well.

“Because this game is about players and so we’ll keep it about the players,” LaFleur explained. “I’m not the one out there they’re playing, don’t get me wrong. I love the rivalry. It’s awesome. It’s great. It’s intense. You can feel it on gameday. You can feel it throughout the course of the week and also the significance, I mean, they’re the defending North champions. So what a great opportunity, great challenge for us in our home stadium to play against the defending champs.”

Johnson has been vocal about the rivalry since he took over in Chicago. He doesn’t like the Packers, and he has made it clear that he doesn’t like LaFleur specifically. He has done that by design. Johnson wants to stoke the rivalry himself and use it as fuel in the Bears’ locker room, so his players share that feeling about Green Bay. LaFleur operates at a different pace. And you can’t say it’s a bad one, because he has a 12-3 record versus the Bears as a head coach.

Players first, coaches second

That doesn’t mean LaFleur is indifferent to it. He values the rivalry and big games. The coach made it clear that he is motivated to face the Bears, especially after how things went last season. But the Packers coach doesn’t see himself as the central figure in the matchup. In his view, the players decide these games, and that’s where he wants the focus to stay.

The difference between the two approaches is easy to spot. Johnson puts himself at the center of the rivalry and invites the attention. LaFleur steps aside and points to his roster. Neither approach is necessarily right or wrong. Johnson’s style can create an edge in the locker room, while LaFleur’s keeps the noise away from his players. However, they reflect two coaches with very different personalities and very different ideas about how to get a team ready for a game like this.

Moving past last season

The other major topic for LaFleur on Monday was the way last season ended. Chicago eliminated Green Bay in the playoffs, and that loss still shapes how many people view this rivalry right now.

“You always look back at those games in terms of just, well, what did we put on tape and all that,” LaFleur said. “But, hey, it’s a new year. We’re not going to dwell on the past. We’re going to look forward and try to learn from everything we’ve gone through as a football team.”

Rosters change from one year to the next, and the circumstances surrounding Sunday’s game aren’t the same as they were in January. LaFleur made sure the current version of the roster focuses on this week’s game, not necessarily on what happened last season.

It wasn’t necessarily a surprise to hear LaFleur answer this way. He has rarely been the type of coach to trade barbs with rivals in public, and he wasn’t going to start now just because Johnson has been outspoken. But more than that, the response gives a clear picture of how the Packers are handling the week. Instead of matching Johnson’s energy, LaFleur is keeping the attention on preparation and on his players. Whether that approach pays off will be decided on the field Sunday.