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Despite the fact that they were led by first-year starting quarterback Jordan Love, the Green Bay Packers had a better season than they did last year, their final with Aaron Rodgers at the helm.
In addition to Love establishing himself as a franchise QB, Packers head coach Matt LaFleur also established himself as one of the game’s elite coaches as he was able to make a playoff run and prove that he could be successful without Rodgers.
In fact, the departure of Rodgers could be one of the main reasons why the Packers improved this season, which ended with them in the NFC Divisional Round after not making the playoffs at all in 2022.
According to a report from The Athletic, LaFleur has “taken control of” the Packers in recent years after Rodgers previously did “whatever he wanted.”
“McCarthy would call some play, and then Rodgers would change it to whatever he wanted,” a veteran coach told The Athletic.
“Aaron did what he wanted, and then all the other guys who saw him as a leader felt like, ‘OK, I’m going to do my own thing as well.’ When they suspended the corner [Jaire Alexander], they were saying, ‘Listen, guys, you don’t just do what you want.’ It’s clear that LaFleur has taken control of that team.”
Not only did the Packers improve without Rodgers but his new team, the New York Jets, also failed to live up to their lofty Super Bowl aspirations that they had during the season after Rodgers tore his Achilles just four snaps into his career with the team.
Despite having not yet completed an official regular season pass for the New York Jets, Rodgers says he hopes to be with the franchise beyond just the upcoming 2024 season. If they fail to live up to expectations again, however, he could be out the door along with head coach Robert Saleh and general manager Joe Douglas.