New Packers Coaching Staff Reveals Defensive Scheme

The Green Bay Packers have played it tight to the vest, but the job descriptions listed on Matt LaFleur’s new coaching staff provide a big clue about how they’ll line up under new defensive coordinator Jonathan Gannon.

Last year’s defensive line coach, DeMarcus Covington, has a new title:

OLBs/run game coordinator/assistant head coach – defense.

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“OLBs” is short for outside linebackers. That’s a 3-4 defensive term. That means a new job description for Micah Parsons and a famiilar one for Lukas Van Ness.

That the Packers are going to a base 3-4 defense isn’t a surprise. That’s what the Cardinals used during Gannon’s three seasons as head coach.

As defensive coordinator for the Eagles, Gannon’s base defense was a 4-3 though he ran some 3-4 elements, as well.

With a history of both defenses, general manager Brian Gutekunst at the Scouting Combine said the team would run “a little bit of both” schemes.

“I think Jonathan’s got some 3-4 principles in base that you’re going to see that maybe we hadn’t in the last couple of years,” Gutekunst said last month. “All these defenses are so multiple now. It’s really more about the back end and how we’re going to approach it from that angle. But it’s a nickel defense league right now, so more likely you’re going to see four down, two linebackers, five DBs.”

It’s true that nickel is the universal base defense in the NFL. The Packers lined up in something other than Jeff Hafley’s 4-3 base defense on 62 percent of the defensive snaps last season, according to Sharp Football. The league median was 70 percent.

The Packers had been a 3-4 defense starting in 2009 with the hiring of Dom Capers through the hiring of Hafley in 2024.

Here’s the new staff, with notes on some of the key newcomers.

Offensive Coaching Staff

Adam Stenavich: Offensive Coordinator

Luke Butkus: Offensive Line

John Dunn: Tight Ends

Luke Getsy: Quarterbacks/Assistant Head Coach – Offense

Getsy took over as quarterbacks coach in 2019, when Aaron Rodgers won his third MVP, and he returned after failed stints as offensive coordinator for the Bears in 2022 and 2023 and Raiders in 2024.

Now he’s back in the role, having replaced new Eagles offensive coordinator Sean Mannion, with an upgraded title.

Eddie Gordon: Assistant Offensive Line

Rob Grosso: Assistant Receivers

Connor Lewis: Pass Game Specialist/Game Management

Noah Pauley: Receivers

Pauley was hired this offseason to be Penn State’s receivers coach. Instead, he went to Green Bay, where he’ll be reunited with his star pupil from North Dakota State, Christian Watson. He fills the role previously held by Ryan Mahaffey, who is the new run-game coordinator and tight ends coach for the Eagles.

“Coach Pauley, now that I’ve been with him for a few years, the amount of effort and dedication he puts into the program and the receiver group, I think it’s really shown in terms of my success and other receivers’ success,” Watson said in 2021. “I can’t thank Coach Pauley enough for what he’s done to help me develop as a man, a player, a leader on this football team.”

Ben Sirmans: Running Backs

Jason Vrable: Passing Game Coordinator

Jeremiah Kolone: Offensive Assistant (Minority Fellowship)

T.C. McCartney: Offensive Quality Control

Packers coach Matt LaFleur has tapped into a legendary football family in adding to his staff. https://t.co/pPGjp6kaF5
— Bill Huber (@BillHuberNFL) March 19, 2026

Defensive Coaching Staff

Jonathan Gannon: Defensive Coordinator

Bobby Babich: Secondary/Pass Game Coordinator

Babich was Buffalo’s defensive coordinator the past two seasons, the Bills finished seventh in total defense and 12th in points in 2025 and 17th in total defense and 11th in points in 2024.

“Bobby’s a go-getter,” Micah Hyde told Spectrum News. “He’s always yelling. High-energy guy and I think people love that. People love that he’s like that and he’s always going to bring the juice. A lot of people joke around and be like that’s fake juice. No, literally, Bobby wakes up every single day and he’s ready to go, and I think he delivers that to his players and his players play that same way.”

Daniel Bullocks: Cornerbacks

Bullocks spent the past nine seasons with the San Francisco 49ers, first as assistant defensive backs coach in 2017 and 2018 as part of Kyle Shanahan’s original staff, then as safeties coach from 2019 through 2022 and finally as defensive backs coach the past three seasons.

“D.B.’s done a great job for us here over the years,” Shanahan said after the 2023 season. “He’s a coach that I have a lot of respect for.”

Babich and Bullocks replace Derrick Ansley, who was not retained by LaFleur and landed in Dallas, and Ryan Downard, who followed Hafley to Miami.

DeMarcus Covington: OLBs/Run Game Coordinator/Assistant Head Coach - Defense

Jamael Lett: Defensive Quality Control

Vince Oghobaase: Defensive Line

Sam Siefkes: Linebackers

Siefkes, 34, is a native of Oconomowoc, Wis., who played college football at the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse. In 2023 and 2024, he was the linebackers coach for the Arizona Cardinals, who were coached by Gannon, and he was the defensive coordinator last year at Virginia Tech.

“Sam Siefkes is a terrific coach,” former Vikings coach Mike Zimmer said. “I relied on him a ton when I was the head coach in Minnesota. He’s a great person with a great family, extremely knowledgeable in all aspects of football. Sam is an incredible teacher who gets the best out of his players.”

He replaces Sean Duggan, who followed Hafley to Miami.

Will Smart: Defensive Quality Control

Scott Fuchs: Defensive Analyst

Special Teams Coaching Staff

Cam Achord: Special Teams Coordinator

Achord led the New England Patriots’ special teams from 2020 through 2023. The Patriots finished No. 1 in the NFL in 2020 but fell off. He’ll have the monumental task of fixing the special teams that Rich Bisaccia failed to fix.

“He is a bright young coach who really relates well to the players but has the players’ respect,” longtime Patriots special teams star Matthew Slater told The Athletic. “Conceptually, he understands how the team wants to play. He understands the skill sets the players have and putting them in position to have success.”

Cory Harkey: Assistant Special Teams

Jeff Koonz: Assistant Special Teams

Harkey was a quality-control coach on special teams last year and Koonz was a defensive assistant, so both are getting promotions.

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