Green Bay Packers

What A Late-Season Run Means For Joe Barry?

Photo Credit: Mark Hoffman/Milwaukee Journal Sentinel-USA TODAY NETWORK

The Green Bay Packers kept their playoff hopes alive with Monday night’s victory over the Los Angeles Rams. The Packers still have three tough games against the Miami Dolphins, Minnesota Vikings, and Detroit Lions, and it’s still an uphill battle to even sniff at the postseason. But beating the underperforming Rams was the first step.

Green Bay mostly performed well in all three phases. There were obvious mistakes, and the team didn’t put the Rams away as efficiently as possible. Still, the offense moved the ball well, protected Aaron Rodgers, and utilized their running-back tandem better than they have all season. Special teams did their job thanks to the revelation that is Keisean Nixon. And even Joe Barry’s maligned defense performed capably, making life hard for Baker Mayfield and the surviving Rams’ receivers.

The Rams’ offense features a quarterback who’s been with the team for 10 days and a slew of weapons pretty far down the preferred depth chart. The offense isn’t a powerhouse, even if Sean McVay was the play caller. But the defense’s performance begs the question: If the defense can hold strong in these final games and make the playoffs, or even just win out, could Joe Barry return in 2023? How well does the defense need to be for the polarizing defensive play caller to retain his job?

Despite Matt LaFleur’s comments defending Barry, it seems highly improbable at best that Barry keeps his job when the season ends. LaFleur won’t make changes during the season — it’s not his M.O. — but we saw this movie last year when LaFleur defended special teams coordinator Maurice Drayton throughout the season, then fired him at season’s end.

There’s no benefit to firing Barry right now other than making most fans feel better. Green Bay’s defense needs a top-to-bottom overall filled with fresh faces. It seems like a lifetime ago when the media thought the Packers could have a top-five defense and be carried by it until the offense found a rhythm with its rookie receivers. Even if there are small moments of glory, there is no argument that this defense is massively underperforming.

Barry doesn’t exactly have a track record of success in his long career. But what happens if the Packers defy the odds and win out, maybe even win a playoff game? Is it enough to keep Barry around?

It shouldn’t be, but it’s not hard to imagine a world where LaFleur, who has not always made the best decisions regarding his coordinators, rides recent success and keeps his embattled DC on for another year.

LaFleur has valued continuity with his coordinators. He believed special teams just needed a new leader and promoted Drayton from the previous lousy staff. He opted to promote Adam Stenavich to OC rather than look outside the building when Nathaniel Hackett left to sabotage the Denver Broncos. And when he hired Barry, he kept the rest of Mike Pettine’s assistant defensive coaches around. LaFleur might think a solid winter run can be the norm rather than the exception and keep the staff intact.

Aaron Rodgers’ potential status could also be another factor in whether to keep Barry or move on. Rodgers still doesn’t know if he’ll return in 2023. However, he’s admitted the ascension of Christain Watson and Romeo Doubs makes returning appealing.

Rodgers has said that he doesn’t want to be part of a rebuild, and as he plays out the final years of his career, he needs a defense that can help shoulder the load of victory. He might not want to gamble on a revamped, unproven defense and choose to move on. If that were the case, would LaFleur keep Barry on staff?

But no matter how well the defense plays in this final three-game stretch, it shouldn’t overshadow the fact that this unit isn’t living up to the sum of its parts and has weekly communication breakdowns. Every week, it seems like Barry’s group allows an offensive player to achieve a career/season-high, opponents easily convert third downs regardless of how many yards the opposing team needs, and even elite and Pro Bowl-caliber players consistently look lost. Obligatory nod to “players must execute,” but this team rarely looks prepared.

Barry’s soft zone coverage is an abomination I loathe seeing every week, and his unit does not know how to play physical football. Even the players that elevated themselves under Barry in 2021, like Rasul Douglas, De’Vondre Campbell, and Eric Stokes, are playing lackluster football this year. Rose-colored glasses at the end of the season won’t help this team take the next step forward.

Brian Gutekunst has invested too much into this defense to be satisfied with this inconsistency. This is a pivotal offseason for the Packers, who already have one foot in the past and one in the future. Getting the defense in order benefits whoever is throwing under center next year. Barry has been in the league a long time, and we know what he is. There are plenty of exciting coordinator options, and LaFleur is experienced enough not to need a journeyman handling the entire defense. Regardless of how the team plays these next few weeks, LaFleur needs to stay strong and find a new defensive coordinator.

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