Just when it looked like Jeff Hafley was finished stealing Matt LaFleur's assistant coaches, in come the Philadelphia Eagles to deliver the knockout blow.
The Green Bay Packers hoped they could retain quarterbacks coach Sean Mannion, who is considered a rising star and a future NFL head coach, but he has become the latest assistant to depart from 1265 Lombardi Ave.
According to ESPN's Adam Schefter, the Eagles are hiring Mannion to become their new offensive coordinator. It continues Mannion's meteoric rise through the coaching ranks but leaves the Packers without a key voice in the building.
Why Sean Mannion's departure is bad news for Jordan Love and the Packers
Many predicted Mannion would follow Hafley to Miami, but instead, it's one of Green Bay's NFC rivals making the bold move. It's a rapid rise for Mannion, who retired from playing in the NFL only two years ago. He spent one season as a coaching assistant in Green Bay, another as Love's quarterback coach, and now he will call plays for Jalen Hurts and Philadelphia's offense.
It's a high-risk move for the Eagles, but a painful loss for the Packers.
LaFleur raves about Mannion. He rushed to hire him ahead of the Chicago Bears two years ago, and was so impressed that he promoted him to replace the retiring Tom Clements as Love's QB coach.
Mannion prioritized helping Love develop his fundamentals and footwork, which in turn would improve his accuracy. It's no surprise that Love elevated his game to new heights in 2025, throwing 23 touchdown passes to just six interceptions for a career-best passer rating of 101.2. Before Love missed two games with a concussion, he had risen to as high as third in the NFL MVP odds.
LaFleur must find a replacement for Mannion, who was already following a beloved coach in Clements.
Perhaps LaFleur can convince Clements to come out of retirement again, but that's a long shot. He may turn to Luke Getsy, who served as Aaron Rodgers' QB coach from 2020 to 2021, his most recent MVP seasons. It helped Getsy land the offensive coordinator job in Chicago.
He returned to Green Bay as a consultant in 2024 and then became a senior offensive assistant this season.
Maybe LaFleur will shock us all by going for an outside hire — former NFL quarterback-turned-ESPN analyst Dan Orlovsky threw his name into the mix after Clements retired last year.
Whoever the Packers choose, they will have big shoes to fill. Mannion is a rising star and won't be easy to replace.