Matt LaFleur inches closer to a Packers return, but it will only work if he is willing to evolve. To adapt. To learn.

A regular-season serial winner. Seventy-six wins in seven seasons, a record matched by only two other coaches in NFL history.

LaFleur sprinkles stardust on every quarterback he meets. A rejuvenated Aaron Rodgers to the tune of 85 touchdowns, nine interceptions, and a 116.7 rating in consecutive MVP seasons. Jordan Love on a path to stardom, Malik Willis on his way to free agency millions.

Then the playoffs arrive, and the familiar pain of heartbreak takes over.

LaFleur’s tenure in Atlanta served as a crystal ball to his head-coaching career. As Kyle Shanahan’s quarterbacks coach, LaFleur helped Matt Ryan hit MVP heights. Ryan had never looked so efficient, so explosive. The Falcons were on the cusp of greatness, but after opening up a 28-3 Super Bowl lead over the Patriots, their dreams spiraled into darkness.

It’s tragically poetic.

LaFleur brought his quarterback wizardry to Green Bay, but the playoff meltdowns also followed him from I-75 to I-94.

Kicking a field goal with 2:09 remaining, trailing by eight against Tampa Bay. A blocked field goal and a blocked-punt touchdown versus San Francisco. A fourth-quarter missed kick against the same Niners two years later. And now this, the king of all meltdowns against Chicago.

For the Tom Bradys and Bill Belichicks, the Patrick Mahomes and Andy Reids, and dare we say, the Caleb Williams and Ben Johnsons, pressure creates diamonds. They thrive under the brightest of lights. Jordan Love, too, has consistently displayed the it factor in clutch moments. But for LaFleur, pressure creates nightmares.

The playoffs don’t care for stats, or regular-season success, or MVPs. Winning is the only currency that matters. By any means necessary. Whatever it takes.

As the game goes off the rails, LaFleur’s teams inevitably sink. Robert Saleh, LaFleur’s close friend and the best man at his wedding, famously said after beating the Packers, “We felt like if we just keep taking them down to deeper water, they’ll find out they can’t swim.”

It’s why the Packers fan base is so split.

For years, many believed LaFleur’s team was a piece or two away. In 2023, Love’s first year as the starter, the Packers arrived earlier than expected and “played with house money,” shocking the world by going from 3-6 to the NFC’s final four. Two years on, the Packers pushed all their chips to the middle of the table by acquiring Micah Parsons, yet they delivered the same result: A No. 7 seed and an early playoff exit.

Packers fans want change. LaFleur’s players don’t. Jordan Love, Micah Parsons, and Tucker Kraft were among several star players to vocally pound the table for their head coach after Saturday’s defeat. LaFleur may have lost an increasing portion of the fan base, but he hasn’t lost the locker room. That’s a credit to him.

Even Aaron Rodgers, speaking to reporters following the Pittsburgh Steelers’ playoff exit on Monday night, mentioned LaFleur unprompted.

“This league has changed a lot in my 21 years,” said Rodgers. “When you hear conversations about the Mike Tomlins of the world, the Matt LaFleurs of the world, those are just two that I played for. When I first got in the league, there wouldn’t be conversations about whether those guys were on the hot seat.”

“The way that the league is covered now, and the way that there’s snap decisions, and the validity given to the Twitter experts and all the experts on TV now, who make it seem like they know what the hell they’re talking about. To me, that’s an absolute joke. For either of those two guys to be on the hot seat is apropos of where we’re at as a society and a league.”

All signs point to a reunion. ESPN’s Adam Schefter reports that LaFleur and the Packers will work on a contract extension. But this is the beginning of a new chapter, not the continuation of the last. LaFleur must evolve, or the Packers’ wheels will keep spinning.

Matt LaFleur must rebuild his coaching staff and show a willingness for change

A team takes on its coach’s identity. Ben Johnson is the ultimate villain in Green Bay. Moments after another icy handshake with LaFleur, Johnson waltzed into the Soldier Field locker room and shouted “F— the Packers!” to his players. Unconventional. Unprofessional? Maybe, but it’s made him a hero in Chicago, and his team plays with that cutting edge.

Say what you want about the sustainability of the Bears’ slow starts and fourth-quarter rallies — the Packers had multiple chances to deliver a knockout blow — they deserve credit for always showing up for the fight when it matters the most.

Is LaFleur too nice? Does he lack the ruthlessness to finish teams off? A day after the defeat, LaFleur showed emotion in his end-of-season press conference, but he still found time to smile and laugh with reporters. He was polite and well-spoken, hurt but never rude. It reflects beautifully on LaFleur the person, but how about LaFleur the head coach?

His philosophy on hiring and firing staff reflects that a million times over.

Arguably his biggest flaw is an unwillingness to fire coaches when the situation screams out for it. LaFleur retained Joe Barry for at least one season too many, to put it kindly, while his loyalty to Rich Bisaccia (even handing him a new contract last January) is actively hurting the special teams and crushing the Packers in the playoffs.

LaFleur took too long to replace Jason Rebrovich on his defensive staff, and there are now similar questions about those who surround him on offense.

To LaFleur’s credit, he sounded fully aware of the need for change during his end-of-season presser. When asked specifically about Bisaccia’s future, he refused to make anything even resembling a commitment.

“That’s all the stuff that we’re kinda focused on right now. Just going through everything, having the conversations with all our coaches. We’ll determine all of that,” LaFleur said.

Hardly a vote of confidence for a coach he handed an extension to just 12 months ago. It’s an early sign, but perhaps an indication of the evolution LaFleur needs.

In Chicago, Ben Johnson ventured into his first head-coaching gig by surrounding himself with proven, experienced coaches like Dennis Allen, Eric Bieniemy, and Richard Smith. LaFleur is largely relying on inexperience, including several position coaches new to their specific roles.

It has to change. Immediately.

For the Packers to ascend to the next level, he must rebuild his coaching staff. LaFleur said he “ancticipates” Jeff Hafley leaving for a head coach job. Hafley is a tough act to follow. LaFleur must also learn from his special teams mistakes and replace Bisaccia. He may even need a new No. 2 on offense if Adam Stenavich isn’t the answer.

“One of the things Matt LaFleur has to do well to make sure things are different is hire really well,” ESPN’s Jason Wilde said. “It’s possible that he will have to hire for all three coordinator positions.”

On defense, maybe that means swinging for the fences with an elite talent like Brian Flores. Perhaps it means bringing in Raheem Morris, whom he previously coached with in Atlanta. Could he convince his former colleague and good friend, Mike McDaniel, to become his offensive coordinator? That’s likely a more challenging task, as it would certainly require handing off play-calling duties.

LaFleur must rebuild several positions of his coaching staff, brick by brick. Rather than settling and promoting from within or, worse still, showing an unwillingness to make changes, LaFleur needs to hit a home run. Find experienced, respected voices to stand alongside him.

An offensive line coach capable of extracting the most out of the starting five. A wide receivers coach who specializes in the details. A defensive coordinator who can utilize Micah Parsons and put the star pieces in position to thrive, just as Hafley did. Perhaps most importantly, a special teams coordinator who can, well, not make catastrophic errors in the playoffs.

The Packers have the quarterback. The receiving weaponry. A battery of star defensive pieces, like Micah Parsons, Edgerrin Cooper, and Xavier McKinney. Brian Gutekunst must replenish the roster at areas of need, restocking depth along the lines and searching for upgrades at cornerback, but in terms of talent, the Packers are close.

You can’t collapse in Chicago without first building a 21-3 lead. LaFleur deserves praise for that. It’s far better than Jim Harbaugh and Justin Herbert scoring three points in their playoff disaster versus New England.

But the Packers need the nastiness. The ruthlessness to deliver the knockout blow. The calmness to remain poised when the world is crashing down around them.

LaFleur must learn. He’ll likely sign a new contract in the near future, but the Packers can’t afford to maintain the status quo. Along with the increase in salary and commitment must come a willingness to adapt. To evolve.

A failure to do so will only crank the temperature up even higher, regardless of how many years the Packers add on to his new contract. Saleh once said you beat the Packers by taking them into “deeper water.” Ironically, LaFleur now finds himself in a true sink-or-swim moment.

He will likely return on a new contract, but it’s the end of LaFleur’s Packers as we know them. It has to be.