GREEN BAY, Wis. — As Packers coach Matt LaFleur looked ahead to a rematch with the Bears on Saturday, he had a lot of compliments Wednesday for how new coach Ben Johnson has turned them around.
The Bears took the Packers to the final minute two weeks ago at Lambeau Field in a 28-21 loss, and it looked a lot different than the way LaFleur’s teams pounded previous coaches Matt Nagy and Matt Eberflus, against whom he went 11-0.
“I don’t want to get into comparisons, but what they do offensively is very sound and it’s a good scheme,” LaFleur said at Lambeau Field before practice. “He’s done a great job of putting he quarterback in a lot of great positions, and then the quarterback has gone out there and executed. Their run game has been definitely a catalyst for the offense in terms of what they’ve been able to do. They do a great job with both those backs. The offensive line, they come off the ball, they’re physical, they’ve upgraded the talent there. Then they’ve got weapons on the perimeter both at tight end and wide receiver.
“So when you combine good players with good scheme, generally speaking, you get good results.”
The most publicized part of the first game, though, was the icy post-game exchange between LaFleur and Johnson. Both coaches have downplayed it, but Fox broadcaster Tom Brady made a big deal out of it in the post-game show and it was covered extensively in the national media.
When asked Wednesday what he thought of the widespread reaction to it, LaFleur said, “I didn’t think anything of it, to be honest with you.”
Johnson said the day after the game the exchange felt “like every handshake I have at the end of a game.”
Johnson took aim at LaFleur in his introductory news conference in January, saying he liked the Bears opportunity because he “enjoyed beating Matt LaFleur twice a year.”
LaFleur said on a podcast a few months later he didn’t know Johnson and thought his comments were “interesting.” He discussed the Bears’ roster improvement and added, “You get a good football coach, as he said himself, in Ben Johnson.”