GREEN BAY, Delete. – The Green Bay Packers plan to hire Joe Barry as defensive coordinator, a source told ESPN Saturday.
Coach Matt LaFleur had narrowed down his list of finalists with Barry and University of Wisconsin defense coordinator Jim Leonhard. Barry was hired shortly after Leonhard turned down the job, a source said, but it was possible others might have made it to the final cut.
The team has not made a formal announcement because the deal has not yet been signed, a source said. The deal is expected to close this weekend.
Barry, 50, will replace Mike Pettine, who was not detained after his contract expired after this season.
Barry and LaFleur teamed up during their overlapping time with the Los Angeles Rams, where LaFleur coached quarterbacks in 2017 and Barry was the assistant head coach / linebackers coach from 2017-2020.
Barry had recently joined the Los Angeles Chargers as linebackers coach and defensive game coordinator under new Chargers coach Brandon Staley, who was the Rams’ defensive coordinator for the past season.
This will be Barry’s third turn as the NFL’s defensive coordinator, having held that position in Detroit (2007-08) and Washington (2015-16). The energetic Barry is known for preferring an aggressive style of defense, although he didn’t always have the staff to do that in Detroit or Washington, where those defenses were between 28th and 32nd in the league based on the number of yards that during his tenure. Washington placed 17th and 18th in points allowed under Barry as coordinator.
He will have more talent to work with in Green Bay, where defense includes two second-team All-Pros in cornerback Jaire Alexander and outside linebacker Za’Darius Smith, plus one of the league’s best defensive tackles in Kenny. Clark.
Pettine brought the Packers back into the top 10 in overall defense; they were in ninth place during the 2020 season, but the season ended in part due to a defensive slump that allowed the Tampa Bay Buccaneers to score a last-second touchdown at the end of the first half.
LaFleur questioned the post-game play call, saying the coverage from the man they played was “by no means the right call for the situation.” LaFleur later called it a “downright miscommunication and eventually, every time something like this happens, it falls 100 percent squarely on my shoulders.”
Pettine, 54, never signed a contract extension offered to him after last season, meaning he was in the last year of his deal, a source told ESPN, making it a cleaner split.
LaFleur interviewed at least nine candidates to replace Pettine. According to sources, he interviewed Barry, Leonhard, Jerry Gray (Packers defender coach), Chris Kiffin (Browns defensive line coach), Ryan Nielson (Saints defensive line coach / assistant head coach), Matt Burke ( Eagles / running race) coordinator), Chris Harris (Washington defensive backs coach), Ejiro Evero (Rams safety coach) and Bob Sutton (Falcons senior assistant).
The Packers will get two new coordinators next season. In addition to the new defensive coordinator, LaFleur promoted Maurice Drayton to lead the special teams after firing Shawn Mennenga.