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The Green Bay Packers have a 5-2-1 record heading into their Week 10 game against the Philadelphia Eagles on Monday, and part of their success has to do with strong play from their defense. According to Fox Sports' NFL defense research, the Packers have the No. 5 defense in the NFL, putting them in an elite class. Packers defensive coordinator Jeff Hafley is at the helm of the unit, and in his first season with the team, he's led Green Bay to top-10 rankings in total defense (No. 5, 314.5 yards allowed per game), run defense (No. 7, 99.4 yards allowed per game), and scoring defense (No. 6, 19.9 points allowed per game). Before joining the Packers, Hafley was in the college world. He served as the head coach at Boston College for four seasons from 2020-23, and he led the team to bowl eligibility in three of those four years. He also spent one season as co-defensive coordinator and secondary coach at Ohio State in 2019. While with the Buckeyes, he helped lead the team to a Big Ten title and a place in the College Football Playoff with a No. 1-ranked defense in yards per play (4.13), total defense (259.7 yards per game), passing defense (156.0 yards per game) and sacks (54). Read more: Packers Coach Has Blunt Message After Failing to Ban Eagles’ Tush Push But now Hafley is being talked about regarding a potential head-coaching position that could emerge at Michigan State. The Spartans are on a bye week, and so far, they haven't let their head coach Jonathan Smith walk. But Smith and the Spartans have lost six games in a row, and he's widely expected to get the boot before the 2026 season. Cory Lisner of Spartans Wire recently named Hafley as a candidate to watch who could possibly succeed Smith. "A man whose name is floated around for collegiate jobs, Hafley has done a good job as the Green Bay Packers defensive coordinator, a role he has held since 2024," he said. "... He would be familiar with the current landscape of college football, and would have some familiarity with the Big Ten, having served as Ohio State's defensive coordinator in 2019. A college job is definitely a possibility for the 46-year-old Hafley in the future." Michigan State's next game is at home against the Penn State Nittany Lions. The Spartans are at the bottom of the Big Ten rankings at 0-6, but Penn State, which currently has a head-coach opening after firing James Franklin, isn't far behind at 0-5.
