You were gravely mistaken to think that Matt LaFleur, the head coach of the Green Bay Packers, would put off finding a new defensive coordinator. Following the decision to remove defensive coordinator Joe Barry on Wednesday, Green Bay has formally linked itself to four candidates to succeed him.
The first known applicant to interview for the position of defensive coordinator for the Packers was Brandon Staley, a former head coach of the Los Angeles Chargers and current defensive coordinator of the Los Angeles Rams. In 2020, while both were with the Rams, Staley collaborated with Barry before. He would play defense in a manner akin to what Barry played for the last three seasons in Green Bay if hired.
On Friday, word leaked out that the Packers wanted to interview two other prospects in addition to Staley. The first is Buffalo Bills linebackers coach Bobby Babich. Babich joined Buffalo in 2017 and succeeded his father, Bob Babich, as linebackers coach in 2021. Babich has already been interviewed by the New York Giants for the position of defensive coordinator.
Related: NFL Insider Uncovers Another Interesting Name on the Green Bay Packers’ Shortlist for Defensive Coordinator Prospects
According to reports, the Packers have asked permission to interview Aden Durde, the defensive line coach for the Dallas Cowboys, as their second coach. Durde, who was born in Middlesex, England, played professionally in Europe before coming on board with Dan Quinn as the Atlanta Falcons head coach. Three teams have asked to speak with Durde, and Green Bay is one of them.
Christian Parker, the coach of the Denver Broncos cornerbacks, was interviewed by the Green Bay Packers.
Ian Rapoport, who revealed on X that Green Bay had spoken with Christian Parker, the defensive backs coach of the Denver Broncos, provided the last word on the Packers’ intention to interview (or interview) possible defensive coordinators on Friday.
Parker was a defensive quality control coach for the Packers from 2019 to 2020. Vic Fangio, the previous head coach of the Broncos, convinced him to join the team in Denver, despite Green Bay’s strong desire to keep him on staff.
If hired, Parker would be the NFL’s youngest coordinator at age 32.
