Another set Back as Parker’s Manager…
The Green Bay Packers’ defense was trounced by Baker Mayfield and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Sunday. How will the Packers proceed with defensive coordinator Joe Barry?
Despite giving up the most points and yards in a home game during his three seasons on the job, Joe Barry will remain the Green Bay Packers’ defensive coordinator, coach Matt LaFleur announced on Monday.
“Yeah, that is the plan,” LaFleur said a day after an embarrassing 34-20 loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in which Baker Mayfield fashioned a perfect 158.3 passer rating.
“If I thought that [firing Barry] was the best solution today, then we’d make that decision,” he said.
“But when you’re having basic communication problems and you’re supposed to be in a certain coverage or a certain rotation and we’re not getting that communication, that’s what’s so disappointing to me is the fact that it was poor communication. And it always starts with us [as coaches.
It’s the coaches’ job to get the players in the right position and to have them prepared. From that perspective, the problems that plagued the defense on Sunday were viewed as more of an outlier than a regular theme.
“I’ve seen us execute this stuff before,” LaFleur said.
During the five-game stretch in which the Packers went 4-1 by beating the Rams, Chargers, Lions and Chiefs but lost to the Steelers, Green Bay allowed just 17.4 points per game.
However, on the heels of having no answers for dual-threat Giants rookie Tommy DeVito, the Packers were “shredded” by Mayfield.
LaFleur didn’t let Barry totally off the hook. As he’s done on more than a few occasions, LaFleur questioned Barry playing too much soft coverage on third-and-short.
“Hopefully, we can learn from that and not make that same mistake twice,” LaFleur said.
LaFleur “absolutely” said he’d take a bigger role in making sure the communication is on point for the final three games as the Packers (6-8) cling to playoff hopes following back-to-back upset losses.