Now that Matt LaFleur is officially the head coach of the Green Bay Packers, he's happy to discuss some of the techniques he plans to deploy for the team.
According to the Journal Sentinel, LaFleur said that while he does plan to use stats and analytics this season with the Packers — and in every season thereafter — he doesn't think the numbers tell the whole story.
“Numbers are great but they don’t tell the whole story. That’s why I think you need (video) to go along with the story. You can’t just blanket-statement stuff. … Going back to (an end-of-half) example, who’s the quarterback? How’s our defense playing? There are so many variables you have to take into account. Sometimes you have to trust your gut.”
Matt LaFleur went on to say that, unlike some other first-year coaches, he didn't hire a game management coach because he felt that an analytics person was a better investment.
LaFleur said he didn’t hire a game-management coach because he has retained former coach Mike McCarthy’s football analytics staff to help with in-game decisions: Mike Halbach, the team’s director of football technology, and analysts Ryan Feder, Connor Lewis and Jack Prominski.
“When you make a mistake at the end of the half, end of the game, that’s a big deal,” LaFleur said. “Was it (Bill) Belichick who said more games are lost than won in this league? I know I’ll have to lean on guys within our staff on that.”
It remains to be seen if, in fact, LaFleur's decision to hire an analytics coach over a game management coach was a wise one.
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