Turns out Green Bay Packers president Ed Policy was "shocked" that people believed he should've fired Matt LaFleur at the end of the season.
"All of the stories about coaching for his career, coaching for his life," Policy said, via Ryan Wood of the Green Bay Press-Gazette, "there was no accuracy to that whatsoever. Certainly knew it well before that Chicago playoff game."
Policy seemed baffled by the very idea of firing LaFleur, but what's even more baffling is how he never did anything to stop the rumors and relentless pressure on his coach. Policy could've thrown a bucket of ice water on the fire, but instead, he hung his head coach out to dry.
He let LaFleur face a barrage of questions about his job security, both in-season and after the Packers' playoff exit. That couldn't have done LaFleur or his team any favors.
Ed Policy was 'shocked' at the idea of firing Matt LaFleur, but he inadvertently created the drama
"I'm not in the mood for drama tonight, Jason."
Those were the words Mike McCarthy famously said to beat reporter Jason Wilde after the Packers' heartbreaking Fail Mary defeat in 2012. Somebody could've taught Policy about that, because he seemingly was in the mood for drama throughout the LaFleur contract fiasco.
It started last summer when Policy opted not to renew LaFleur's contract while noting that he didn't believe in coaches entering lame-duck years. In other words, he strongly hinted that he would decide LaFleur's fate after the season had concluded.
That's why there was so much speculation and rumors. LaFleur first faced a question about his job security all the way back in Week 10 after a home loss to the Philadelphia Eagles. The uncertainty continued throughout the team's five-game losing run to end the season, and days went by after the season with zero clarity on LaFleur's future.
We even had Adam Schefter dropping cryptic hints on air, saying, "There's something going on in Green Bay" in regards to the LaFleur situation. Schefter later added, "They still might work it out. They still might figure it out. But they haven't yet."
For a while, it genuinely felt like there was real uncertainty over the Packers' decision.
Apparently not. Apparently it never even crossed Policy's mind to move on, and now he is "shocked" that he was asked about it. You know who could've prevented the relentless rumors and speculation?! You, Ed Policy! All it would've taken is one public statement to end the conversation.
Policy did praise the team for overcoming adversity in his monthly column on January 3, but 1. He didn't mention LaFleur specifically, and 2. It was before the playoff meltdown in Chicago.
The words in this article are largely tongue-in-cheek, and Policy ended up making the right call to extend LaFleur's deal. That's what ultimately matters. But it's still hilarious how Policy's actions created all the drama, only for him to then act surprised when his actions... led to said drama.
LaFleur is back on a new deal. The Packers got there in the end, even if there was no need for all the drama that came with it.
We can only hope Ed changes his Policy next time around.