Pro Bowl Coaches

Mike Vrabel vs Matt LaFleur

Mike Vrabel, Tennessee Titans

Mike Vrabel will be coaching the AFC team at this year’s Pro Bowl after his Tennessee Titans were knocked out of the Divisional Round by the AFC Champion, the Cincinnati Bengals. Vrabel has been one of the more consistent coaches in the NFL in recent years, as his Titans always seem to be underrated by both sportsbooks and other NFL franchises. Tennessee is Vrbael’s first NFL head coaching job, after being the defensive coordinator for the Houston Texans and the linebackers and defensive line coach at Ohio State before that.

Vrabel had a great career in the NFL as an all-pro linebacker that was drafted by the Pittsburgh Steelers. He went on to join the New England Patriots in free agency in 2001, which led to a seven year stretch where he was named a FIrst Team All-Pro and won three Super Bowls. Vrabel played one season with Kansas City after his run with New England, and then retired in 2010 to focus on coaching.

Vrabel will have a star-studded AFC squad led by Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes and Los Angeles Chargers quarterback Justin Herbert. In a testament to his Titans defense, three members will be on his team at the Pro Bowl in Harold Landry, Kevin Byard, and Jeffery Simmons. No players from the Tennessee offense made the Pro Bowl this year. Vrabel has led the Titans to two straight AFC South division titles, and is building one of the stronger organizations in the conference.

Matt LaFleur, Green Bay Packers

It’s going to be an interesting offseason in Green Bay after the Packers were eliminated by the San Francisco 49ers in the Divisional Round of the NFC playoffs. Since LaFleur took over the coaching job in Green Bay, the Packers have won three straight NFC North division titles, winning 13 games in each of the three seasons. Regular season success has come easily but unfortunately playoff success hasn’t.

The Green Bay Packers team could look a lot different next season if quarterback Aaron Rodgers follows through on his word to leave the team. It might just be fitting that Rodgers and star receiver Davante Adams are not playing in the Pro Bowl this year due to injuries, as did nose tackle Kenny Clark.

LaFleur has a long history of working with the Shanahan coaching tree, as he worked as a quarterbacks coach in Washington where he met Kyle Shanahan. The two would reunite in Atlanta where Kyle was the offensive coordinator, and LaFleur was the quarterbacks coach. Shanahan, now the head coach of the 49ers, and Lafleur have met twice in the playoffs with Shanahan winning both times.

Lafleur will be making his Pro Bowl coaching debut this week, and while he will no doubt enjoy the moment, he will likely have the upcoming turbulent offseason on his mind. The Packers and Lafleur would have a tough time replicating their recent success without quarterback Aaron Rodgers on the roster.

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