Nathaniel Hackett returns to Packers as defensive analyst
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Nathaniel Hackett returns to Packers as defensive analyst
Nathaniel Hackett will serve as a defensive analyst for the Packers. It’s a similar role to what Robert Saleh played for the offense when he joined the staff last year after being fired as Jets head coach. He was the Packers’ offensive coordinator under LaFleur from 2019-2021. Hackett was then hired as Broncos head coach in 2022 and was fired after a 51-14 loss to the Rams.
Former Broncos head coach and Jets offensive coordinator Nathaniel Hackett is now back on staff with the Packers, head coach Matt LaFleur confirmed in his Thursday press conference.
Hackett will serve as a defensive analyst for the club, helping give coordinator Jeff Hafley a fresh perspective.
It’s a similar role to what Robert Saleh played for the offense when he joined the staff last year after being fired as Jets head coach. Luke Getsy also served as a defensive analyst last year after he’d been fired from his role as Raiders offensive coordinator. Getsy is now still on staff as a senior assistant.
“He’s a guy I really respect and we’ve had a lot of great times together,” LaFleur said Thursday, via Zach Kruse of USA Today.
“It’s a fresh perspective. It gives you a little different lens to see it through, talk it through,” LaFleur added. “He’s sitting in with our defensive staff. He’s been in our linebacker room going through the film, giving them a good offensive perspective.”
Hackett was the Packers’ offensive coordinator under LaFleur from 2019-2021. He was then hired as Broncos head coach in 2022 and was fired after a 51-14 loss to the Rams on Christmas Day with two games remaining in the season. He then served as Jets offensive coordinator in 2023, reuniting with Aaron Rodgers. He lost play-calling duties after Saleh was fired as Jets head coach midway through the 2024 season.
Nathaniel Hackett rejoins Packers, this time to help on defense
Nathaniel Hackett has been rehired by the Packers as a consultant/analyst. Coach Matt LaFleur said Hackett will work with the defense but will bring an offensive perspective to the other side of the ball. It’s similar to what former New York Jets head coach Robert Saleh did for the Packers late last season when he worked with the offense but brought a defensive coach’s perspective. The Broncos fired Hackett after 15 games and a 4-11 record in 2022.
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GREEN BAY, Wis. — There’s another new-old coach on the Green Bay Packers’ staff.
Nathaniel Hackett, who spent three seasons (2019-21) as the team’s offensive coordinator before he became the Denver Broncos’ coach for one year and New York Jets offensive coordinator tor the previous two seasons, has been rehired by the Packers as a consultant/analyst.
Coach Matt LaFleur said Hackett will work with the defense but will bring an offensive perspective to the other side of the ball.
It’s similar to what former New York Jets head coach Robert Saleh did for the Packers late last season when he worked with the offense but brought a defensive coach’s perspective. Saleh worked for the Packers part time after he was fired by the Jets.
“We’ve got kind of a history of this with guys that are kind out there and certainly, he’s a guy that I really respect, and we’ve had a lot of great times together,” LaFleur said Thursday. “And he’s kind of coming in and doing an analyst role for our defense.”
LaFleur said Hackett has been spending time with the linebackers early on.
“I just think it’s a fresh perspective,” LaFleur said. “You kind of, especially when you take a defensive guy and put them on offense and vice versa, and offensive guy and defense, it gives you a little different lens to see it through and talk through. And so, he’s sitting in with all our, with our defensive staff, and he’s been in the linebacker room and kind of just going through the film and, you know, gives them a good offensive perspective.”
It has been a rocky couple of seasons for Hackett.
Last season after Saleh was fired, Hackett was demoted by interim coach Jeff Ulbrich when New York dipped to 27th in total offense (286.6 yards per game) and 25th in scoring (18.6 points). Todd Downing took over as the playcaller at that time. The Broncos fired Hackett after 15 games and a 4-11 record in 2022.
Packers flip script, give former OC Nathaniel Hackett shot on defense
Nathaniel Hackett returns to the Green Bay Packers as an assistant coach. He was the offensive coordinator for the New York Jets from 2003-04. The Broncos fired Hackett after 15 games and a 4-11 record in 2012. The team is now coached by Gary Kubiak, who replaced Hackett as head coach.
July 24 – Former New York Jets offensive coordinator and Denver Broncos head coach Nathaniel Hackett returned to his roots with the Green Bay Packers, but there’s a new script in place.
Hackett, offensive coordinator of the Packers from 2019-21 before he was hired as the head coach in Denver, signed on to return to Matt LaFleur’s coaching staff as a defensive analyst.
Hackett worked with the Jets in 2024 but was demoted a month into the season by interim coach Jeff Ulbrich when New York dipped to 27th in total offense (286.6 yards per game) and 25th in scoring (18.6 points). Todd Downing took over as the playcaller at that time.
The Broncos fired Hackett after 15 games and a 4-11 record in 2022.
Hackett has never officially worked on the defensive side of the ball in the NFL. He was an assistant at Stanford, working with the team’s offensive and defensive coordinators, in 2003-04.
Green Bay’s coaching staff also lists former Chicago Bears and Las Vegas Raiders offensive coordinator Luke Getsy as a senior assistant for the Packers.
–Field Level Media
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Nathaniel Hackett lands unexpected new coaching job
Nathaniel Hackett has rejoined the Green Bay Packers as a defensive analyst. Hackett was previously the offensive coordinator under Matt LaFleur in Green Bay from 2019-2021. He left Green Bay in 2022 to become the head coach of the Broncos but was fired in his first season.
Green Bay Packers head coach Matt LaFleur confirmed on Thursday that Hackett has rejoined LaFleur’s staff as a defensive analyst. LaFleur said Hackett has worked with the linebackers thus far.
Hackett has coached at both the collegiate and pro levels over the past two decades, and all of his roles prior to this point had been on the offensive side of the ball. He was previously the offensive coordinator under LaFleur in Green Bay from 2019-2021.
Hackett left Green Bay in 2022 to become the head coach of the Broncos but was fired in his first season after going 4-11. He then reunited with Aaron Rodgers by becoming the offensive coordinator of the New York Jets.
LaFleur feels Hackett can provide value by giving Green Bay’s defense an offensive-minded perspective.
Bill Belichick was criticized toward the end of his tenure with the New England Patriots for hiring assistants in roles with which they had no prior experience. That practice has become more common in recent years, however, and LaFleur is giving it a shot with Hackett.