Less than a week after the Green Bay Packers' woeful postseason performance against the eventual Super Bowl champion Philadelphia Eagles, the organization opted to part ways with defensive line coach Jason Rebrovich, who spent three years with the franchise.
A holdover from former defensive coordinator Joe Barry's staff, Rebrovich was kept on under new DC Jeff Hafley, but as the Packers' pass rush unquestionably regressed as a whole with the defense switching from a 3-4 to a 4-3, a change was clearly needed.
That change came in the way of DeMarcus Covington, who spent the last eight seasons with the New England Patriots in various roles, first as a general assistant, then as a linebackers coach, then as a defensive line coach, and then as defensive coordinator.
And it appears that general manager Brian Gutekunst and head coach Matt LaFleur couldn't be happier with what Covington's done thus far during training camp.
Several times this camp, Matt LaFleur and Brian Gutekunst have mentioned the impact of new DL coach DeMarcus Covington. Brian did it again this morning talking about Lukas Van Ness. Seems that change is paying off. We'll see when real games start.
— Zach Kruse (@zachkruse2) August 12, 2025
Packers' new defensive line coach DeMarcus Covington is making an instant impact
The Packers took a ton of heat this offseason for not doing much of anything to fix the pass-rush problem as far as players are concerned, outside of taking defensive end Barryn Sorrell in the fourth round of April's draft.
But Covington has come in and lit the proverbial fire under some players who haven't made much of an impact over the last couple of years.
As the post above mentioned Lukas Van Ness, we'll start there. Van Ness was taken with the 13th overall pick in 2023 but has come nowhere close to living up to his draft status. He showed some flashes as a rookie but took a big step in the wrong direction a season ago, notching just three sacks and only six quarterback hits.
Under Covington's guidance, however, the Iowa alum has looked like a completely different player and seems to be a lock for the starting lineup for the first time in his career. Here's the statement referenced above that Gutekunst made about both Van Ness and Covington.
"He continues to stack days, and he's productive and he's been really, really consistent," Gutekunst said on Tuesday morning. "I'm excited for what he's going to bring to us this year. I think it's just a natural growth from him. You guys have all followed, the amount of reps he had in college coming into this league. I just think DeMarcus (Covington) has done a fabulous job with that entire group, and I like the way they are playing. Excited for what he's going to do for us this year."
Another example is third-year defensive end Brenton Cox Jr., who joined the Packers as an undrafted free agent in 2023. Like Van Ness, Cox has been turning heads left and right during training camp, both as a pass rusher and a run defender.
The Florida alum was a healthy scratch for much of last season, but came on strong once Preston Smith was traded, registering 4.0 sacks and 17 pressures in just seven games. Covington seems to have all the confidence in the world in Cox, and that confidence has Cox looking like he's ready for a breakout season.
Aforementioned rookie Barryn Sorrell is clearly learning a lot from Covington as well, as the former Texas Longhorn was one of the few bright spots during the Packers' 30-10 loss to the New York Jets in their preseason opener this past Saturday night, logging a team-high two quarterback hits and a pair of pressures as well.
Trust me; I could keep going. And these examples aren't even the top guys on the Green Bay defensive line. Just imagine what Covington can get out of the likes of Rashan Gary, Kenny Clark, and Devonte Wyatt when he really gets comfortable.