Packers have a tough decision to make after loss to Giants
The Green Bay Packers are 3-2 after losing to the New York Giants in London on Sunday. A lot of the blame for the Packers' tough start to the season has fallen on the offense. There's a good reason for that — the first few weeks of the season the defense carried Green Bay. On […]
The Green Bay Packers are 3-2 after losing to the New York Giants in London on Sunday.
A lot of the blame for the Packers' tough start to the season has fallen on the offense.
There's a good reason for that — the first few weeks of the season the defense carried Green Bay.
On Sunday, however, the defense was far too predictable.
And the Giants were able to exploit it.
Packers defensive coordinator Joe Barry doesn't appear to be up to the job in Green Bay.
Barry, a Monte Kiffin disciple, is in his third stint as a defensive coordinator.
He was fired in his previous two stints (not retained by Detroit after 2008 and fired by Washington after 2016).
There's a good chance he'll suffer the same fate in Green Bay.
Barry is coaching the Packers' defense like he's scared. He isn't being aggressive and teams across the NFL have picked up on it. When Green Bay shows a blitz, teams don't respect it because they know the defenders are just going to drop into coverage.
So what's the move for the Packers?
The obvious answer is to just fire Barry. If he's not confident as a coach, it probably won't get any better. And we know based on his past work history that he's probably in over his head.
I think a better idea, however, would be to demote Barry (strip him of play-calling duties).
If Green Bay goes that route, they could just promote defensive backs coach/passing game coordinator Jerry Gray, who has defensive coordinator experience.
Gray has also been let go, so I'm not under the illusion that he's suddenly going to be a coveted defensive coordinator in the NFL. But if he has a more aggressive approach, then it would be more than worth it.
I wouldn't expect Matt LaFleur to do anything this drastic — NFL coaches tend to stick with their guys this early in the season — but if the Packers want to get on the right track, it's a move they should consider.
Featured image via Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports
