“We knew we had to stop the run. That didn’t happen.”

Matt LaFleur’s summation of his defense’s performance against the Minnesota Vikings was spot on. The Green Bay Packers had no answer for Dalvin Cook even though the Vikings made it clear they were going to run it down their throats. In the end, they deserved to lose.

Seven games into 2020 and it seems very possible that the run defense could lead to this team’s downfall once again. Last year it was Raheem Mostert who racked up 220 yards on the ground and four touchdowns during the NFC Championship Game. Today, Cook totaled 226 yards from scrimmage and scored all four of the Vikings’ touchdowns to secure the win. Both instances just so happen to be the last two times a player has had 200 yards and four touchdowns in a single game. And both occurred against the Packers.

If Green Bay had made Jimmy Garoppolo beat them, they would have had a better chance of playing in the Super Bowl. However, Garoppolo only needed to throw it eight times to win the game. Sunday, Cousins only needed 14. Not exactly a winning recipe. Cousins, who leads the NFL in interceptions, wasn’t forced to throw the ball. Play physical and run the ball, that’s how you beat this Green Bay team.

So, what did the Packers do to improve their run game after it weighed on them for an entire offseason?

Less than a month after seeing his defense get gashed, LaFleur announced that Mike Pettine would stay on as the defensive coordinator. LaFleur wasn’t a prisoner of the moment. He clearly thought Pettine was worthy of another chance if they could add a few more tools at his disposal.

The Packers went into the offseason knowing what they needed to strengthen the middle of their defense. They started by letting their best run-stuffing linebacker Blake Martinez walk in free agency. It wasn’t the wrong decision. Martinez was paid like a playmaking linebacker despite lacking obvious playmaking traits.

Green Bay replaced him with Christian Kirksey, who was far cheaper but also less durable. Kirksey missed a combined 23 games in 2018 and 2019 due to injury. This season, he’s missed four games, including Week 8’s train wreck. With every game he misses, the Kirksey signing looks more and more like a black eye for general manager Brian Gutekunst.

In Gutekunst’s defense, linebackers Krys Barnes and Kamal Martin look like two pretty good finds. However, games this one against Minnesota show how easy it can be to exploit two young and inexperienced starters.

Gutekunst followed up the Kirskey signing by making no impactful additions to the defensive line. Not through free agency or the draft. By standing pat, they chose to rely on collective jumps from Montravious Adams, Dean Lowry, Tyler Lancaster, and Kingsley Keke. This strategy has yet to pay off.

The Packers aren’t making it easy to defend their decisions from the offseason. Pettine is still the defensive coordinator even though the defense is still facing the same problems after almost no changes to their personnel. If it’s talent you lack, the scheme needs to be better to help offset those deficiencies. It hasn’t been, so inevitably this has to fall back on Pettine and his inability to get the most out of what he’s been dealt. It’s not like he has nothing to work with on this defense, either.

Unfortunately for Green Bay, they don’t have time to lick their wounds. They are set to face a tough 49ers team in just a few days. San Francisco is pretty banged up, which could help the Packers. However, if the defense lays an egg, Pettine might have coached his last game with Green Bay.

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Green Bay Packers defensive coordinator Mike Pettine spent over a half hour chatting with reporters about various topics regarding his defense during a conference call on Friday afternoon.

Pettine specifically talked about linebacker Christian Kirksey, edge rusher Rashan Gary, cornerback Tramon Williams, defensive lineman Kingsley Keke and safety Darnell Savage while answering questions.

Here’s a rundown of the biggest highlights from the call:

– Pettine said adding veteran linebacker Christian Kirksey was “great signing for us for a lot of reasons.” Mentioned his “great leadership ability” and the “head start on learning the system” he got with Pettine in Cleveland. The Packers signed him to a two-year deal, and he’ll replace Blake Martinez as the top inside linebacker. Pettine noted the risk of Kirksey’s recent injury history but said the Packers were “more than willing” to take the risk.

– Pettine and the Packers are expecting Rashan Gary to make a “big jump” in Year 2. “He needs to take a big jump.” Said he envisions a much bigger role for Gary in 2020. Will likely handle more snaps, both as a versatile chess piece and as a way of reducing the volume of snaps for Za’Darius Smith and Preston Smith. Pettine sees a role similar to how the Packers use Za’Darius.

– Pettine described the performance in San Francisco in the NFC title game as “beyond disappointing.” Pointed to scheme, effort, energy and technique as reasons for the collapse. “Tough pill to swallow.” Doesn’t want the performance to be a dark cloud over the 2020 season but it will be a focal point heading into this year.

– Pettine isn’t worried about the system or the scheme. Believes the Packers can stop the run “pretty damn well.” Likes how the system allows players to attack up the field and not play horizontally. “We feel good about what we do and how we teach it.”

– The situation of the offseason is forcing coaches to go “back to the basics.” Not expecting to throw a bunch at the players schematically. The defense wants to focus on their fastball. Hoping players go deep into the core concepts.

– Pettine still has deep respect for veteran cornerback Tramon Williams, who remains a free agent. “He was highly effective for us.” Understands the big picture, business side of it. “It’s up in the air. We don’t know his final chapter will be written.” Bringing him back has been discussed.

– Excited to have Jerry Gray’s experience coming to the Packers as the new secondary coach. Other coaches and players raved about his coaching ability. “It’s great for me, having his experience.”

– Pettine specifically mentioned Kingsley Keke as a potential breakout candidate in 2020. “He was a guy that, as the year went on, he was productive for us.” Looking forward to him having a much bigger role this year.

– Pettine liked the tape of new defensive linemen Gerald Willis and Trayvon Hester, excited to see them once players can get back on the field.

– Pettine never worried about not returning as the defensive coordinator in 2020.

– Pettine is seeing a lot of mental advancement from safeties Darnell Savage and Adrian Amos in the second year of the defense, an exciting part of developing the group overall. Sees the safety position as the “nerve center” of the defense.

– Pettine liked the development of Savage throughout 2019. “Really improved as the season went on.” Mentioned improvements in dealing with the speed of the game. “The sky’s the limit for Darnell.”

– Pettine is expecting more of the package that gets Rashan Gary, Za’Darius Smith and Preston Smith on the field together. Thinks Gary can play more on early downs, setting the edge against the run. Likes how physical and violent he is in the run game.

– Pettine wants a better rotation along the defensive line. Hoping for more development behind Kenny Clark, Dean Lowry and Tyler Lancaster.

– Pettine says the 49ers present a unique challenge. They have the roster and scheme to create big challenges in the run game. “49ers showed they were a little bit of an exception. I don’t see that many teams that are built to do that, from an offensive line and tight end standpoint.”

– Pettine said his use of dime personnel in 2019 was a combination of factors. Putting the best 11 players on the field was an emphasis. Injuries and lack of depth at inside linebacker contributed. Packers lack a true do-it-all linebacker, so Pettine has gone with extra defensive backs. Having more safeties on the field helps provide more versatility in coverage. More than anything, Pettine pointed to a deficit at linebacker as the driving factor for the preference.

The Green Bay Packers are retaining Mike Pettine as the team’s defensive coordinator in 2020, according to reports from both Rob Demovsky of ESPN and Jason Wilde of The Athletic.

Despite an ugly shellacking at the hands of the San Francisco 49ers in the NFC Championship Game on Sunday, Pettine will get another shot at running Matt LaFleur’s defense next season.

Here are the pros and cons of the Packers’ decision to keep Pettine:

Pros

– Continuity. All of the Packers’ most important defenders will be going into their second or third season in Pettine’s scheme. There’s real value in knowing the defense, both individually and collectively. Everyone should know their job and everyone else’s job, which should aid in communication and reduce the number of breakdowns from missed assignments or mental mistakes. The young secondary, especially safety Darnell Savage and cornerbacks Jaire Alexander and Kevin King, might get the most benefit from Pettine returning.

– Possibility of more improvement. The Packers improved in almost every significant defensive category in 2019, Pettine’s second season in Green Bay. To be fair, the bar was set low in 2018, and GM Brian Gutekunst made major additions on defense through the draft and free agency. Still, the Packers finished ninth in points allowed, seventh in takeaways, sixth in opposing passer rating and red-zone scoring percentage and third in interceptions. There’s a strong foundation. The Packers probably feel they’re close. Even incremental improvement could tip the scales, turning an above-average defense into a very good one.

– The 2019 personnel limited his ceiling. The Packers reloaded on defense, but there’s no overlooking the talent deficiencies at inside linebacker and along the defensive line. It’s hard to consistently stop the run and guard the middle of the field with obvious flaws at those two position groups. Blake Martinez and B.J. Goodson are limited players, and Oren Burks couldn’t find the field. The defensive line outside Kenny Clark was a huge disappointment. Rebuilding the inside linebacker position with a young difference-maker and a veteran starter and adding a few legitimate run stuffers could really raise the ceiling of Pettine’s defense.

– The players appreciate him. Pettine is a player’s coach who stresses the details but also molds the defense around his players. Almost every defensive player in the locker room has sung his praises at one point or another. There’s a good chance most of the defensive players are happy about him returning in 2020.

Cons

– Results weren’t good enough. The Packers invested major resources into fixing the defense over the last two years. Multiple high picks and millions and millions of dollars were spent on the defensive side of the football. Were the results good enough? The Packers actually went backward in yards allowed per play (5.6 in 2018 to 5.7 in 2019) and finished 16th in weighted defensive DVOA and 18th in expected points added in 2019. The defense picked on bad teams and mostly folded against the good ones. The 49ers scored 74 points in two games, and for a stretch in the middle of the year, the Packers played like one of the NFL’s worst defenses, partly due to level of competition. Pettine’s group played a leading role in three of the team’s four losses.

– The Niner effect. Pettine was overmatched and out-coached in two different games by Kyle Shanahan, who leads the current gatekeepers in the NFC. The Packers may need to go through the 49ers to get to a Super Bowl in the coming years. Shanahan’s offense will be considered a big schematic favorite over Pettine’s defense.

– Run defense may continue to suffer. Pettine has prioritized stopping the pass. In theory, that’s a smart thing. The passing game is the more efficient and effective manner of playing offense, and it’s hugely valuable when a defense can make it hard to throw the ball. However, Pettine allowed his defense to get gashed by the run in 2019, with Sunday’s one-dimensional destruction in San Francisco providing the new low point for Pettine’s group. Teams have attacked when he’s played recklessly light in the box, and a lack of competitiveness against the run can quickly negate any advantage in the passing game. Over the last two seasons, only five teams have allowed more rushing yards and rushing touchdowns than the Packers.

– Bend but don’t break: The Packers were 18th in yards allowed but ninth in points allowed because the defense bent but didn’t often break. The group gave up explosive plays but was a top-10 defense in the red zone. They delivered stops inside the 20 and even produced a few big takeaways late in games. Can the Packers count on the red-zone performance continuing in 2020? Even a slight slip inside the 20-yard line and the defense could take a substantial step in the wrong direction.

– Accountability? Matt LaFleur was highly critical of the Packers’ energy, intensity and urgency on defense against the 49ers. That’s a player issue, but it’s also a coaching issue. Pettine wasn’t just out-coached. How does a coach not have his guys ready to play in a conference title game? The Packers weren’t prepared in any way and got beat up physically and mentally. The NFL is a results business, and when the optics are as bad as they were Sunday in San Francisco, people have to be accountable. Pettine is getting a pass.

Green Bay Packers coach Matt LaFleur is bringing back Mike Pettine to be his defensive coordinator in 2020, according to Rob Demovsky of ESPN.

Earlier Wednesday, LaFleur was non-committal when asked whether Pettine would return next season. Demovsky reports LaFleur and Pettine met later Wednesday and determined to move forward with the partnership in 2020.

In retaining Pettine, the Packers will keep continuity on a defense that improved to ninth in points allowed, seventh in takeaways, sixth in opposing passer rating and red-zone scoring percentage and third in interceptions.

However, Pettine’s defense collapsed in several games, including during Sunday’s hugely disappointing loss to the San Francisco 49ers in the NFC Championship Game. The Packers gave up 285 rushing yards and 37 points with a trip to the Super Bowl on the line.

LaFleur said the defense’s performance wasn’t good enough and he was bothered by the group’s lack of urgency and energy during the 37-20 defeat.

Other red flags: The Packers ranked 22nd in yards allowed per play and 26th in yards per carry, and they gave up 60 points and over 700 yards in two playoff games.

Pettine was originally hired by former coach Mike McCarthy in 2018, replacing Dom Capers. With significant personnel additions, the Packers improved in almost every significant defensive coordinator between 2018 and 2019.

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