Last Saturday night, the Green Bay Packers faced off against the Chicago Bears in the Wild Card round. The teams have a history of great head coaches, including Vince Lombardi in Green Bay and George “Papa Bear” Halas in Chicago.
While this rivalry is steeped in rich history, the teams’ current head coaches, Matt LaFleur and Ben Johnson, don’t see eye to eye.
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There is simply no love lost between Johnson and LaFleur. The former is in his first year as Bears head coach, having previously served as the Detroit Lions’ offensive coordinator under head coach Dan Campbell.
Johnson, at his introductory press conference in January 2025, took a slight dig at LaFleur, as he had previously gone up against the Packers’ coach when he was with the Lions.
“I’ve got a tremendous amount of respect for the coaches and the players in this [NFC North division],” Johnson said at the time. “I’ve been competing against them for the last six years. And to be quite frank with you, I kind of enjoyed beating Matt LaFleur twice a year.”
LaFleur wasn’t happy with Johnson’s comments. “There is no history at all,” said the Packers HC about his relationship with Johnson.
“In fact, when I called Matt LaFleur, I told him, ‘I didn’t know you guys were tight.’ He goes, ‘We’re not! I don’t know, I’m shocked over this,” Glazer added about his report on LaFleur’s reaction to Johnson’s comments.
When LaFleur was asked about the situation when he was a guest on the “Bussin’ with the Boys” podcast, he flatly said, “I don’t know Ben Johnson.”
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It appeared that LaFleur and the Packers coaching staff took issue with Johnson’s remarks. The tension carried into Saturday night, with a trip to the Divisional Round on the line as the Packers faced the Chicago Bears at Soldier Field.
The longtime rivals split their regular-season series at one win apiece. Green Bay claimed a 28-21 victory in Week 14, while Chicago responded with a dramatic 22-16 overtime win in Week 16.
The Bears came away with a thrilling win in the Wild Card round against the Packers, and are set to play the Los Angeles Packers in the Divisional Round. The relationship between Johnson and LaFleur appeared to worsen after the two head coaches shared a very quick post-game handshake.
The Bears’ head coach also went viral for saying “F**k the Packers” during his speech in the locker room. However, he has no regrets over it.
“There’s a rivalry that exists between these two teams, something that I recognize and am a part of,” Johnson said about his comments. “I don’t like that team. George (McCaskey, controlling owner of the Bears) and I have talked and we’re on the same page.”This is a rivalry. The city of Chicago and Green Bay, it needs to be a rivalry.”
