Packers assistant lands on short list of buzzworthy names expected to draw attention in next head coach cycle
Jeff Hafley is in his second season with the Packers.
The Green Bay Packers had some tough times with a sequence of defensive coordinators and their mediocre results—to say the least. The final stretches of Dom Capers, Mike Pettine, and Joe Barry couldn’t maximize the talent level on the roster throughout the years. Things changed with Jeff Hafley, but it’s hard to know how much time he has left in Green Bay.
Hafley is only in his second season as an NFL defensive coordinator, but he is already talked about as head coaching material—he was a college head coach at Boston College before taking over the defense in Green Bay. This year, he interviewed for the New York Jets’ HC job.
Jeff Hafley is a name to keep an eye on
ESPN’s NFL insider Jeremy Fowler wrote some notes and included ascending assistant coaches who are generating buzz for the next head coaching cycle, and Hafley is a part of it.
“While the coaching carousel won’t spin for another three-plus months, some are making early cases to get on the ride. A group of up-and-coming defensive coordinators could get harder looks from teams filling head coaching roles. Jeff Hafley (Packers), Chris Shula (Rams) and Jesse Minter (Chargers) were not heavily featured in this past cycle, but don’t be shocked if that changes. All three coaches have their defenses in the top five in total scoring through two weeks. Packers coach Matt LaFleur firmly believes Hafley has what it takes to be a head coach as early as 2026. Shula is on the NFL league offices’ radar as a prime candidate. And Minter has done an impressive job for Jim Harbaugh dating back to 2024.” — Jeremy Fowler.
Packers head coach Matt LaFleur knows how special Jeff Hafley is. Last week, after Green Bay beat the Washington Commanders, LaFleur praised his defensive coordinator.
“[Hafley] has done a great job. He’s got a great football mind,” head coach Matt LaFleur admitted. “He understands how to attack people and put a lot of pressure on a really good offense, mixing it up.
“From an offensive standpoint, that’s always tough when you’re not quite sure what somebody’s going to do,” LaFleur added. “You’ve got to give credit to our players to be able to take what Half and our defensive staff is giving them and then go out there and execute, presenting different looks or presenting a certain look and playing something off of it. I think our safeties play a huge role in that. Our backers as well. We’ve got a lot of smart players out there, and that allows us to do what we’re doing.”
A 46-year-old, Hafley has been a football coach since 2001. His first NFL experience came in 2012, as the Tampa Bay Buccaneers’ assistant defensive backs coach. He was promoted to DBs coach one year later, then held similar positions with the Cleveland Browns and San Francisco 49ers.
Jeff Hafley returned to college football in 2019 as Ohio State’s co-defensive coordinator and defensive backs coach, then spent four years as Boston College’s head coach.
With the significant changes in the college football structure, including NIL and transfer portal, Hafley decided to move back to the NFL, where he could focus on football—and he’s done that by maximizing the Packers’ talented defense.
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Jeff Hafley has done an amazing job with Green Bay’s defense.
