GREEN BAY, Wis. -- It took Matt LaFleur only a week to make two of his most important hires as the Packers' new head coach.
The first one he made upon taking the job, when he retained defensive coordinator Mike Pettine from the previous Green Bay staff.
The second one came Monday, when he wrapped up a deal with former Jacksonville Jaguars offensive coordinator Nathaniel Hackett to hold the same position with the Packers. A source confirmed that Hackett and LaFleur had reached agreement, as NFL Network first reported.
The only major coordinator position that remains open is special teams. LaFleur did not retain Ron Zook, who ran that unit under former head coach Mike McCarthy for the last four seasons. Multiple reports have tied the Packers to Dolphins special-teams coach Darren Rizzi, who is in limbo while Miami waits to introduce New England Patriots defensive coordinator Brian Flores as its new coach.
Hackett has deep ties to the West Coast offense. He's the son of former University of Pittsburgh coach Paul Hackett, who gave McCarthy his start in coaching. The elder Hackett has ties to the early days of Bill Walsh's offense in San Francisco. LaFleur comes from the Mike Shanahan branch of the West Coast system.
One source described the younger Hackett as "an outgoing personality who will complement LaFleur and work well with [quarterback Aaron] Rodgers."
LaFleur said in his introductory press conference last Tuesday that he will call the offensive plays. McCarthy also called plays but relied heavily on his offensive coordinator to work closely with Rodgers.
Hackett, like LaFleur, is 39 years old and has experience both in the NFL and college. Hackett is perhaps best known for getting the most out of the Jaguars' offense during their 2017 playoff run. They ranked fifth in the NFL in scoring with Blake Bortles at quarterback and had the NFL's top-ranked rushing offense on their way to the AFC Championship Game. But Hackett was fired in November by his longtime boss, head coach Doug Marrone (who also employed Hackett both with the Buffalo Bills and at Syracuse University), after the Jaguars' offense struggled to 21st in the NFL and 28th in points at the time of the move.
Hackett was one of two offensive coordinator candidates LaFleur had eyed. The other was former Tampa Bay Buccaneers offensive coordinator Todd Monken, who interviewed for the Packers' head-coaching job. Monken was hired over the weekend as the Cleveland Browns offensive coordinator. LaFleur was unable to get permission to interview his younger brother, Mike, or fellow 49ers assistant coach Mike McDaniel for the job. Mike LaFleur serves as head coach Kyle Shanahan's passing game coordinator, while McDaniel is in charge of San Francisco's run game.
In addition to Pettine, LaFleur also will retain defensive line coach Jerry Montgomery and tight ends coach Brian Angelichio from McCarthy's staff. It's unclear exactly what their titles will be.
Zook isn't the only former Packers assistant who already is out. Receivers coach David Raih left for the same position with the Arizona Cardinals. The team also parted ways with defensive passing-game coordinator Joe Whitt.
Longtime offensive line coach/run-game coordinator James Campen also was allowed to leave for the Browns, where he became associate head coach and will run the offensive line for new head coach Freddie Kitchens. No assistant coach in Packers history had more time with the team than Campen's 15 seasons, dating to 2004.
Packers defensive run-game coordinator/linebackers coach Patrick Graham also might not return. A source said the Packers will allow him to join Flores' staff in Miami, potentially as the defensive coordinator.
Meanwhile, former Green Bay offensive coordinator Joe Philbin, who served as the interim head coach for the final four games this past season, has interviewed with at least three teams -- the Bills, Browns and Minnesota Vikings -- according to multiple league sources.