Five Packers to watch vs. 49ers in Week 12 matchup

1. Matt LaFleur

The head coach is always important, I get that. They are the ones who construct the game plan, ready the team and make all the calls. The reason LaFleur makes this list is because we do not know what to expect this week.

Prior to the bye, Coach LaFleur looked like he was finding his groove as play-caller and the use of his weapons. The bye has given him time to reflect, figure out what worked, what didn’t and add a few things teams haven’t seen yet.

That is no different from any coach. But, LaFleur is a rookie coach, so some of the things he could add could completely shock a team. The key will be finding the balance of what worked and new looks. Some coaches might get a little too cute with that much time on their hands and completely disrupt the rhythm they have built.

This will also be a good game to gauge how well he learned his lesson from one of the few mistakes he has made this year. The last time the team headed to the west coast, the Packers put up their worst showing of the year. They came out flat and allowed the Chargers’ dynamic sack duo to dominate and got nothing going on offense. LaFleur may have overthought his last trip, bringing the team out a day early. There were suggestions this led to players losing focus.

Whatever the reason, Coach LaFleur has a chance to prove he has learned and take control of the NFC. This is the biggest game in his young coaching career. He needs to not let the moment overtake him and continue to build on what he has accomplished in the first 10 games.