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When Matt LaFleur arrived in Green Bay, the assumption was simple, he was bringing the modern Shanahan rooted wide zone system to Lambeau Field. What people did not fully grasp at the time was how disciplined the structure would be, how detailed the sequencing would become, and how quarterback friendly the framework could be without ever dumbing anything down.
Philosophically, LaFleur’s offense is built on three pillars, wide zone as the foundation, condensed formations to manipulate leverage, and play action that mirrors the run with ruthless consistency. It is not about trick plays, it is about forcing a defense to honor rules, then breaking thos
Since LaFleur became head coach in 2019, the Packers have consistently fielded one of the league’s most efficient offenses. From 2019 through 2021, Green Bay finished top ten in scoring offense each season, including back to back number one finishes in 2020 and 2021. In 2020, they led the NFL at 31.8 points per game. In 2021, they were top five again at 26.5 points per game. During that stretch, Aaron Rodgers won two league MVP awards, operating within LaFleur’s system, not outside of it.
Rodgers’ MVP seasons in 2020 and 2021 were clinic level demonstrations of how this offense can elevate quarterback play. In 2020, he threw 48 touchdowns to just 5 interceptions, with a passer rating over 120. The efficiency numbers were absurd, top tier EPA per dropback, elite red zone production, and one of the lowest turnover worthy play rates in football. The structure gave him defined reads, layered play action concepts, and answers versus every coverage shell.
Fast forward to the Jordan Love era.
After a developmental year behind Rodgers and an uneven start to his first full season as starter, Love ascended rapidly. Over the second half of the season, he was among the league leaders in touchdown passes, explosive play rate, and EPA per play. By season’s end, he had vaulted into the top five conversation at the position, not because the scheme carried him, but because he mastered it. The timing, the anticipation, the willingness to throw into defined windows, that is growth inside structure.
LaFleur’s system does not create hollow stats. It builds sustainable offense.
Personnel Groupings and Why They Matter
LaFleur is multiple without being chaotic. He lives primarily in 11 and 12 personnel, but the way he deploys those groupings forces defensive stress.
11 Personnel, 1 RB, 1 TE, 3 WR
Out of 11, the Packers can spread you horizontally and vertically. Jayden Reed can motion across the formation, forcing coverage declarations. Christian Watson aligns wide to demand safety depth. Matthew Golden and Dontayvion Wicks rotate across the Z and slot spots, attacking leverage.
From this grouping, you will see wide zone from the gun, RPO glance concepts, quick game slants and spacing, and vertical shots off hard play action. The box count dictates the decision. Six in the box versus two high, run it. Apex defender triggering downhill, replace him with a glance or stick route.
12 Personnel, 1 RB, 2 TE, 2 WR
This is where the chess match becomes unfair.
With Tucker Kraft and Luke Musgrave on the field together, defenses are forced to decide, stay in base and risk being spread out, or play nickel and risk being bullied in the run game. Kraft, in particular, changes the geometry. He can align attached as a Y, flex into the slot, line up as a sniffer in split zone, or motion across the formation as an H back.
Out of 12, LaFleur marries wide zone and boot at a high rate. Show stretch left, boot right, three level flood concept. The corner has to respect the flat, the safety has to honor the deep over, and the intermediate defender is stuck in conflict.
Kraft’s ability after the catch makes intermediate throws turn into explosives. Against Dallas in the playoffs a couple of seasons ago, Green Bay repeatedly used split flow action to get linebackers flowing one direction, only to leak the tight end into space the next series. That is sequencing.
e rules with timing and precision. Every motion has a purpose, every split tells a story, every run look carries a complementary pass that punishes overreaction.
On 1st and 10, LaFleur wants balance with purpose. The Packers have consistently been one of the more efficient early down offenses when staying ahead of the chains. Wide zone and split zone test the edges. RPO glances punish aggressive nickel defenders. The goal is 2nd and 5 or better.
On 2nd and medium, this is shot territory. Yankee concept, post over combinations, deep crossers off play action. The run action holds the linebackers, the post safety is manipulated by Love’s eyes. If the safety drives the crosser, the post is one on one. If he stays deep, the over slices across the field.
On 3rd and short, LaFleur will run the ball. Duo, inside zone, quick toss, even jet sweep action with Reed orbiting behind the formation. The confidence to stay balanced keeps defenses honest.
On 3rd and long, the offense shifts into bunch, stack, and empty sets. These formations create natural rubs versus man coverage and widen underneath defenders versus zone. Love’s job is clear, identify shell, confirm post snap rotation, and attack leverage.
Red Zone Precision
Inside the 20, space shrinks,
and windows tighten. This is where condensed splits and tight end versatility shine.
Reduced splits create natural traffic. Receivers aligned tight to the formation force defenders to navigate through bodies. Sprint out play action with layered reads, front pylon fade, intermediate out, flat control route, gives Love a high to low progression with clear answers.
Tight end leak concepts off split zone are staples. Show run, sell the down blocks, then release Kraft behind second level defenders who stepped forward. These are not gimmicks, they are rule breakers built off earlier run looks.
The Packers have consistently ranked near the top of the league in red zone efficiency during LaFleur’s tenure, particularly during the Rodgers MVP years. That efficiency is born from play design and disciplined execution.
The Absence of a True Number One Receiver
Not having a single dominant 150 target receiver is not a weakness here, it is camouflage.
Defenses cannot bracket one player and tilt coverage. If you double Watson vertically, Reed works the middle. If you clamp down on Reed in the slot, Golden/Wicks wins outside on isolation routes. If safeties stay deep, the run game eats light boxes.
Love distributes based on coverage, not reputation. That makes weekly game planning difficult. There is no single head of the snake to cut off.
How Jordan Love Becomes Top Two
The physical tools are already there. He can drive the deep out from the far hash. He can layer throws between linebackers and safeties. He can create off platform when protection breaks down.
The next step is total command versus disguise.
Defenses will show two high and spin to single high robber. They will simulate pressure, drop a defensive end into the hook, bring a nickel late. Love must confirm the shell post snap, hold the robber with his eyes, and trust the backside dig. Footwork under pressure must stay married to timing. No drifting, no fading off throws unnecessarily.
If he continues the trajectory he showed in the second half of the season, processing faster, throwing with anticipation, protecting the football, this structure supports a top two quarterback ceiling. The run game keeps him out of obvious passing situations. The motion identifies coverage. The personnel versatility creates matchup advantages.
LaFleur’s offense is not smoke and mirrors.
It is wide zone geometry, play action violence, and sequencing that forces defenses into impossible choices. It won Aaron Rodgers two MVP awards. It has developed Jordan Love into one of the league’s elite young quarterbacks. And with the emergence of Tucker Kraft and a balanced receiving corps that refuses to be defined by a single star, it remains one of the most structurally sound and difficult offenses to defend in the NFL.
Jordan Love’s Ceiling, And Why The Structure Around Him Matters
If Jordan Love is going to climb from top five into that top two stratosphere, it will not be because he suddenly starts freelancing. It will be because he fully owns the structure. The late season stretch showed what it looks like when timing, anticipation, and trust in the concept all sync up. The ball came out on rhythm. He manipulated safeties with his eyes. He threw receivers open instead of waiting for them to uncover.
The next layer is command versus disguise on money downs. Defensive coordinators are going to test him with simulated pressures, mugged up linebackers that bail at the snap, late safety rotation into robber looks. His job is to confirm the shell post snap, identify the weak hook defender, and attack the void. The arm talent already plays at an elite level. The difference between top five and top two is mastery against chaos.
And that is where Tucker Kraft becomes vital.
Why Tucker Kraft Is The Stress Multiplier
Kraft is not just a tight end in this offense, he is a structural piece.
LaFleur’s system is built on forcing second level defenders into conflict. Kraft lives in that conflict zone. He can align attached to the formation and sell split zone across the quarterback’s face, then leak into the flat the next series off the exact same action. He can stem vertically against Cover 3 and bend between the curl flat defender and the middle third safety. Against quarters, he can push inside leverage and snap off a sit route between linebackers who are pattern matching vertical threats outside.
The value is not just in catches, it is in forcing base personnel to stay on the field. When Green Bay lines up in 12 personnel with Kraft and Musgrave, defensive coordinators hesitate. If they match with base, Kraft flexes out and now a linebacker is in space. If they stay in nickel, the run game has angles and double teams against lighter boxes.
Statistically, the Packers were more efficient per play out of 12 personnel than most people realize, especially in play action. The run action draws up the linebackers, the deep over behind them opens, and Kraft’s ability to break tackles turns intermediate gains into explosives. He is a middle of the field presence who keeps safeties honest.
He is the glue between run and pass.
The Offensive Line, Elite In Protection, Searching For Edge In The Run Game
In pass protection, the Packers’ offensive line has been among the better units in football. Pressure rates allowed have consistently ranked in the top third of the league during LaFleur’s tenure. Even through injuries and reshuffling, the structure, slide protections, half man rules, and communication up front have protected the quarterback at a high level.
But the run game has not consistently imposed its will the way it did during the peak years of the system.
A couple of seasons ago, this offense was living in efficient early down runs, creating 2nd and 4 instead of 2nd and 9. Last season, too often, runs were stalemated at the line of scrimmage. Part of that is personnel evolution.
When LaFleur first took over, the line featured more compact, lateral movers built specifically for wide zone reach blocks. The current unit is bigger, longer, heavier. On average, the projected starting five now carries more height and weight across the board than the 2019 group. Taller tackles, heavier interior bodies. That helps in pass protection, it widens the pocket, it absorbs bull rush. But wide zone demands displacement at angles and a certain nastiness finishing blocks.
The line needs more edge in the run game. More strain on double teams. More vertical movement on duo and inside zone. Wide zone is not just about sealing, it is about running your feet and creating cutback lanes with violence. The pass sets have been clean. The run fits need more push.
And it has to show up on film in December, not just September.
Christian Watson, The Vertical Stressor
Christian Watson is a difference maker because he bends coverage before the snap and stretches it after.
Even when he does not touch the football, safeties honor his speed. Corners play with cushion. Two high shells stay deeper. That changes the math for everyone else. When Watson aligns to the boundary and runs a vertical stem, the backside safety cannot cheat into the box. That lightens run fits. That opens intermediate dig windows for the other Packers wide receivers.
In this offense, vertical speed is not about go balls alone. It is about clearing space for deep overs and crossing routes off play action. When Watson runs the post in Yankee, the safety has to respect it. If that safety drives the crosser instead, Love has the one on one outside.
Availability has been the variable. When Watson is healthy, the offense tilts differently. The explosive play rate jumps. The field feels wider.
Matthew Golden, The Complement And The Next Step
Matthew Golden fits perfectly opposite Watson because his game is layered differently. Where Watson threatens vertically with pure speed, Golden wins with pacing, detail, and separation at the top of routes.
His rookie season did not explode statistically, but the flashes were there. Subtle head fakes at the top of comebacks. Sudden breaks on deep outs. An understanding of spacing versus zone that should grow with more reps inside this system.
Year two in this offense is when receivers typically settle in. The route conversions versus coverage become instinctual. The splits, the motions, the condensed alignments, all of it starts to feel natural instead of scripted. Golden’s ability to win on intermediate digs and deep outs complements Watson’s vertical gravity. One stretches you vertically, the other punishes you at 15 to 18 yards.
In a system built on distribution, that balance matters.
Josh Jacobs, The Run Game, And The Missing Home Run Element
Josh Jacobs battled through injury for much of last season. He fought for yards. He played through contact. But the explosion was not consistently there, and the run game as a whole did not hit the same efficiency benchmarks it had in prior years.
When this offense was humming a couple of seasons ago, the run game produced not just four yard gains, but 20 yarders off cutbacks. Wide zone would stretch, the backside lane would open, and the back would hit it decisively. Last season, too many of those creases closed before they could be exploited.
Jacobs’ physicality fits the system, especially on duo and inside zone. But he needs to be healthy. And the offense needs a true home run complement behind him. Without that change of pace speed threat to punish over pursuit, defenses can compress their fits. They do not fear getting outrun to the edge in the same way.
Jacobs is looking toward 2026 as a bounce back year, healthier, more explosive, operating behind a line that must rediscover its edge in the run game. If the line regains that mean streak and the backfield adds a true explosive element to complement Jacobs’ power, the entire structure of LaFleur’s offense becomes more dangerous.
Because everything comes back to this.
When the run game forces you to commit numbers, the play action becomes lethal. When the vertical threats hold safeties, the intermediate windows open. When the quarterback trusts his reads and the protection holds, the ball comes out on time.
How This Offense Takes The Next Step Forward
The foundation is already strong. Since 2019, Green Bay has lived in the top tier of offensive efficiency more often than not. Multiple top ten finishes in scoring. Back to back number one finishes in points per game during the Rodgers MVP seasons. A late season surge with Jordan Love that ranked among the league leaders in touchdown passes and EPA per dropback over the final two months.
But good is not the goal anymore.
The next step is sustained dominance across an entire season, not just stretches. And that requires tightening the areas where the numbers dipped.
First, early down efficiency must climb back into elite territory.
During the peak seasons of this system, the Packers consistently ranked near the top of the league in success rate on 1st and 2nd down. That meant more 2nd and 4, more 3rd and 2, fewer predictable passing downs. Last season, that number flattened. Too many 2nd and 8 situations forced obvious dropback passing, which allowed defensive coordinators to unleash simulated pressures and exotic third down packages.
The fix is not complicated in theory. The run game must regain its teeth. When Green Bay averaged over 4.5 yards per carry during their most efficient seasons, play action EPA skyrocketed. Linebackers stepped downhill. Safeties cheated. The explosive pass rate climbed.
Last season, when the yards per carry dipped closer to the low fours and the explosive run rate declined, defenses stayed patient in two high shells. The offense still moved the ball, but the stress was reduced.
If the offensive line generates more vertical movement on duo and more displacement on wide zone, and if a healthy Josh Jacobs paired with a true change of pace threat forces defenses to honor the perimeter, early down success rate will rise. And when early down success rate climbs, everything else opens.
Second, explosive plays must become consistent, not situational.
In the modern NFL, you cannot live solely on 10-play drives. The Packers were efficient, but the elite offenses separate themselves with explosives. During the 2020 MVP season, Green Bay finished near the top of the league in explosive pass rate. Play action shots off Yankee, deep overs against quarters, slot fades against Cover 2, those were weekly staples.
Last season, the explosive flashes came in waves. When Christian Watson was healthy, the vertical element stretched coverage. When he was out, defenses compressed. The offense needs Watson on the field, and it needs Matthew Golden to become a reliable intermediate separator so safeties cannot tilt coverage to one side.
The data backs this up. When the Packers generated multiple explosive plays in a game, their win percentage soared. When they were held under a certain explosive threshold, drives became longer, margins thinner. Explosives are not luxury items in this system, they are oxygen.
Third, red zone efficiency must remain elite.
During the Rodgers MVP years, Green Bay’s red zone touchdown percentage sat near the top of the league. Touchdowns, not field goals. That is the difference between 24 points and 34. Even last season, when consistency wavered at times, the structure inside the 20 remained one of the strengths of the offense.
To take the next step, the red zone must be ruthless again. More layered play action. More tight end isolation against safeties. More quarterback movement to change launch points. When Tucker Kraft commands attention on seams and leak routes, and when receivers win quickly off condensed splits, the red zone becomes a matchup advantage instead of a tight space gamble.
Fourth, third down must tilt back in the offense’s favor.
The difference between very good and elite often shows up on 3rd and 7. The Packers have had stretches of strong third down conversion rates under LaFleur, particularly when early down efficiency kept distances manageable. But in longer yardage, protection and post snap recognition become critical.
This is where Jordan Love’s growth becomes central.
If Love continues improving versus post snap rotation, identifying robber looks, punishing blitz with quick answers, third down EPA will rise. The scheme already provides answers, bunch stacks versus man, flood versus zone, option routes from the slot. The execution must sharpen.
And then there is toughness.
Statistically, the pass protection numbers have been strong. Pressure rates allowed have remained competitive league wide. But run blocking grades and short yardage success need a lift. Converting 3rd and 1 at a higher clip. Finishing drives with physicality in four minute offense. Imposing will late in games instead of relying solely on spacing and timing.
That is not just scheme. That is identity.
Finally, health and continuity matter more than people admit.
When this offense has had continuity along the offensive line and at skill positions, the efficiency numbers climb. Communication improves. Timing sharpens. The difference between a dig thrown a beat early and a dig thrown a beat late is often the difference between a 22 yard gain and a contested incompletion.
The blueprint is already proven. It won two MVP awards. It produced top of the league scoring outputs. It helped develop Jordan Love into a top five quarterback.
The next step is about stacking it for 17 games.
Top five in early down success rate. Top five in explosive pass rate. Top tier red zone touchdown percentage. Improved short yardage conversion. A healthy vertical threat. A sharper run game.
If those boxes are checked, this offense does not just remain efficient.
It becomes the unit that dictates terms every Sunday, forces defenses out of their comfort shells, and turns Matt LaFleur’s structured, wide zone based philosophy into the most complete version of itself.
