Packers head coach Matt LaFleur
The Green Bay Packers missed a total of 24 tackles in their preseason opener against the Houston Texans last week. Those 24 misses cost the defense an extra 164 yards and that had head coach Matt LaFleur unhappy about his teams performance.
Throw in 12 penalties for 102 yards and the coach knows there’s plenty of room for improvement when the Packers face the Baltimore Ravens in preseason game number-two on Thursday night.
A reporter this week asked LaFleur if the misses tackles are understandable, given the fact that the team doesn’t bring anybody to the ground during training camp practice.
“The expectation is you always bring the guys to the ground,” LaFleur said. “The standard is never going to change, and it’s never an excuse, but I do think you get some younger guys in there that maybe aren’t quite accustomed to this level of play yet. It might take a minute for them to figure it out, but certainly that’s never an excuse.”
Certainly the lack of work on tackling during training camp keeps teams healthier going into the regular season. The trade off is always sloppy tackling in the preseason and even early into the regular season. But the Packers coaching staff would certainly welcome continued improvement as they move towards the season opener against the Bears on September 5th.