Packers’ Matt LaFleur delivers hilarious yet heartfelt message to brother Mike after he takes over as Cardinals head coach
It was a special day for the LaFleurs.
The LaFleur family had a special day on Tuesday. Matt has been the Green Bay Packers’ head coach since 2019, but his younger brother Mike took over as the Arizona Cardinals’ HC. Matt was there to support his little brother, and admitted that it’s still a wild experience.
When asked about what he would say to his younger self if he knew he and his brother would be NFL head coaches, Matt LaFleur had a hilarious response.
“I’d say you’re full of [expletive],” the older brother said.
Beautiful football journey
After the joke, though, Matt was serious and shared a heartfelt message about the journey he and his brother had in the sport.
“It’s pretty surreal,” Matt LaFleur added. “We come from humble beginnings. My dad is from Central Michigan. I walked on at Western Michigan and played Division II football. Mike played at Elmhurst College in Division III. I think we have a deep appreciation for guys who play purely for the love of the game. That’s at the core of who we are.”
Matt is eight years older than Mike and has been in the NFL since 2008 — outside of the 2014 season as a quarterbacks coach at Notre Dame. He climbed the ladder from a Houston Texans offensive assistant to Washington and Atlanta Falcons quarterbacks coach, to Los Angeles Rams and Tennessee Titans offensive coordinator, finally becoming a head coach.
Mike LaFleur had his first NFL experience in 2014, as an offensive intern for the Cleveland Browns. He worked alongside his older brother in 2015 and 2016 as an offensive assistant for the Falcons, then they went separate ways. Mike became the wide receivers coach and passing game coordinator for the San Francisco 49ers, then an offensive coordinator for the New York Jets and Rams. Now, he is the head coach of the Arizona Cardinals.
“We’ve also been incredibly fortunate to be around so many great people,” Matt highlighted. “I say this all the time: I wouldn’t be standing here today if I hadn’t built a relationship with Robert Saleh when we were starting out as graduate assistants at Central Michigan University, living in less-than-ideal conditions. Those are great memories. Life felt a lot simpler back then. The relationships built along the way and being around so many great football minds, from the Shanahans to the McVays to the Dan Quinns, made this an incredible journey.”
Matt and Mike are sons of Denny LaFleur, a former linebacker and long-time assistant coach at Central Michigan University. It’s a family dream coming true, and you can’t overestimate how special this moment was for all of them.
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