UPDATE: Thursday, 2:06 p.m.
From ESPN’s Rob Demovsky:
The Packers have hired Vanderbilt’s Shawn Mennenga as special teams coach, a source said. It’s a big hire for new Packers coach Matt LaFleur because the Packers ranked last in the NFL in special teams, according to Rick Gosselin’s annual rankings. More on the hire to come on ESPN
— Rob Demovsky (@RobDemovsky) January 31, 2019
Additionally, the Packers confirmed the re-hirings of Jerry Montgomery as defensive line coach, Ben Sirmans as running backs coach, and the promotion fo Jason Simmons as defensive backs coach and Ryan Downard as assistant defensive backs coach.
Original story
Could a former assistant special teams coordinator with the Cleveland Browns take over the chief special teams role in Green Bay?
The Journal Sentinel says that Shawn Mennenga is emerging as the leading candidate for that role on the staff of new coach Matt LaFleur. Mennenga ran the special teams at Vanderbilt.
Mennenga spent seven years with the Browns, from 2011-17. He worked in that time with former Browns head coach and current Packers defensive coach Mike Pettine.
Football Outsiders has ranked the NFL special teams units in recent years. They gave the Browns these rankings in Mennenga’s tenure there:
– 2011: 10th (Coach: Pat Shurmur)
– 2012: 2nd (Coach: Pat Shurmur)
– 2013: 14th (Coach: Mike Chudzinski)
– 2014: 14th (Coach: Mike Pettine)
– 2015: 15th (Coach: Mike Pettine)
– 2016: 26th (Coach: Hue Jackson)
– 2017: 27th (Coach: Hue Jackson)
The Packers under Ron Zook finished 28th in 2018 in special teams, and made numerous mistakes that cost the Packers games.