The Green Bay Packers suffered a devastating home upset in Week 9 when they hosted the Carolina Panthers at Lambeau Field. Dave Canales took his men to Wisconsin and, instead of going head-to-head in a shootout, made it a game of defensive chess.
It was a game of defending and rushing for Carolina, featuring a 130-yard, two-touchdown performance by running back Rico Dowdle. The Packers were held to their second-lowest scoring total of the season, losing 16-13.
The tough loss resulted in harsh criticism online toward Green Bay head coach Matt LaFleur.
Packers Fans Call for Big Changes on the Team’s Coaching Staff
The low-scoring affair saw the Packers faithful demanding a change in the team’s play-calling structure, in which LaFleur is responsible for calling plays on offense.
ReX was among those directly calling for LaFleur to hand off play-calling duties. “Step down from play calling,” he tweeted.
Dro considered the bigger picture with the head coach in Green Bay. “Yesterday I was so sad and pissed I wanted him fired,” he posted. “But now, since I had a night to sleep it over and think about everything, I still don’t think he will get us over the hump If nothing changes this year then next year I wouldn’t mind going into New Direction.”
Jordan specifically criticized the resemblance between LaFleur’s style and that of LA Rams head coach Sean McVay. They worked together in various capacities with the Washington Redskins and the LA Rams during the 2010s.
“How about you stop trying to call a game like mcvay, because you are not him,” he wrote. “Stop calling 400 screens a game as well.”
Another user is only interested in LaFleur’s firing.
“I don’t care what this man gotta say if it isn’t resigning with the team,” they tweeted.
Idris was another fan of the opinion that the Packers’ coach should relinquish play-calling duties.
“He better be announcing he’s giving up play calling duties,” he posted.
Captain Packer man took it a step further, believing that LaFleur should be completely fired.
“I hope you get fired,” he said.
Nick acknowledged the media’s perspective on the situation, as he feels the establishment isn’t hard enough on the head coach.
“Green Bay media isn’t tough enough on MLF,” he wrote.
It seems unlikely that any drastic steps will be taken against LaFleur at this point. Despite the upset loss, the Packers are still Super Bowl contenders in many people’s eyes, as they lead the competitive NFC North with a 5-2-1 record.