From a preparation standpoint, this year for the Green Bay Packers coaching staff compared to last has been a “night and day” difference, as offensive coordinator Adam Stenavich put it on Monday.
A year ago, there wasn’t only the question marks around Jordan Love and what the Packers had in him as a quarterback, but they didn’t really know who was going to make up their skill positions either.
Returning at the receiver position from the 2022 season were Christian Watson, Romeo Doubs, and Samori Toure. At tight end, it was only Tyler Davis and Josiah Deguara.
“Oh it’s night and day,” said Stenavich. “Night and day because like last year, going into the draft, we had maybe three receivers on the roster. We had two tight ends on the roster, so it was just one of those things where you didn’t really know what direction you could go yet because you didn’t really know who was gonna be on your team and what skillset they had and even going into camp and going into the season, it was the same deal like, how much can you put on these guys plates and allow them to go out and execute?”
Like any offense, the Matt LaFleur system has core principles that lay the foundation for it, and that playbook and concepts are built off of. But the specifics of it can ebb and flow based on the skill sets of the players that are on the roster.
Well, you can imagine how challenging it can be to get into the nitty-gritty of the play designs when LaFleur and his coaching staff don’t even know who is going to make up his wide receiver and tight end rooms.
Even once the draft concluded and LaFleur knew who was on the roster at each of those positions, there was a feeling-out process that went well into the season, with the coaching staff trying to learn what each of the new players does well and how to put them into positions to be successful.
This year, however, with very little roster turnover at tight end and receiver specifically, the Packers feel like they are miles ahead of where they were this time last year. Not only do they know their personnel and where they excel, but rather than starting from nothing and having to implement a brand new playbook with many, they can now build off of what they built in 2023.
“Now everyone has a year under their belt, so to speak,” said Stenavich. “It’s been great to just know what these guys are good at, what they need to improve on and just allow them to just go ahead and be the best players that they can be.”
By the end of last season, the Packers were operating as one of the best offenses in the NFL. The goal at this time, which is easier said than done, is to use that foundation as a jumping-off point heading into the 2024 season rather than having to climb that mountain all over again.
The Packers picking up where they left off certainly isn’t guaranteed, but they’re much further ahead in May of 2024 than they were in May of 2023.
“Yeah, I think so,” said Stenavich when asked if the offense can pick up where it left off. “We’re just coming in and I wouldn’t say — everyone’s just gotta have the same mindset of improving, starting from the foundation, but being able to then take those steps faster than we did last year and really improve a lot.”