There are many last names in the modern NFL coaching world that fans will easily recognize.<\/p>\n
Harbaugh. Shanahan. Schottenheimer. Family ties run rampant when it comes to coaching in the NFL, as having a head coach for a father or brother can help boost a coach’s outlook a bit.<\/p>\n
When it comes to Matt LaFleur, he’s a well-known commodity to NFL fans. The offensive coordinator-turned Green Bay Packers<\/a> head coach has become one of the most recognizable figures in the league for an iconic franchise. So, when fans then see an offensive coordinator for the Los Angeles Rams<\/a> with the last name “LaFleur,” it’s easy to make the connection.<\/p>\n Are Matt and Mike LaFleur related? Here’s what to know about the two coaches’ ties.<\/p>\n MORE: Inside Washington’s loaded 2013 coaching staff<\/p>\n Is Matt LaFleur related to Mike LaFleur?<\/p>\n Yes, Matt LaFleur and Mike LaFleur are related. Mike is Matt’s younger brother.\u00a0<\/p>\n Both Matt and Mike are quarterbacks-turned offensive coaches. Matt played quarterback at Western Michigan from 1998-99, then Saginaw Valley State from 2000-02. He also briefly played in the National Indoor Football League.\u00a0<\/p>\n As for Mike, he played quarterback at Elmhurst University\u00a0from 2006-07, also playing safety at the school. Their brothers’ father, Denny\u00a0LaFleur, had played linebacker at Central Michigan,\u00a0winning a national championship in 1974.<\/p>\n Both Matt, 46 years old as of January 2026, and Mike, 38 years old, then went on to rise in the NFL coaching ranks.<\/p>\n MORE: Breaking down the history of the Packers-Bears rivalry<\/a><\/p>\n Matt LaFleur family<\/p>\n Matt LaFleur’s parents are Denny and\u00a0Kristi LaFleur. Denny played football at Central Michigan in the 1970s, at one point holding the school record for career tackles, before\u00a0becoming a long-time assistant football coach for the team.<\/p>\n \u201cHe was always with me on the sidelines,\u201d Denny said of Matt in a\u00a02009 interview with MLive<\/a>. \u201cHe got that college experience from an early age. He was there for all of the home games, the away games. Even for bowl games, he was right there with me.\u201d<\/p>\n Kristi, on the other hand,\u00a0was a phys-ed and health teacher who coached track and cheerleading.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019ve learned so much from my mom, watching her with her teams and how positive she was with those kids, and just how powerful that is,\u201d Matt previously told\u00a0The Tennessean. \u201cIf people know you believe in them, it raises their play and their confidence in what they can do.<\/p>\n Matt and Mike grew up around football with their dad coaching at Central Michigan, but Matt ultimately decided to play for\u00a0rival\u00a0Western Michigan in college after Central Michigan fired Denny in 1997. Their grandfather, Bob Barringer, also coached football for nine years at Loy Norrix High School in Kalamazoo, Michigan.<\/p>\n As for Matt’s own family, he is married to BreAnne LaFleur, and the couple shares two sons together named Luke and Ty. In 2010, BreAnne told MLive<\/a>\u00a0that she had a career as a pharmaceutical representative.<\/p>\n \u201cThere\u2019s a lot of work to do,\u201d she told MLive. \u201cI have a career (as a pharmaceutical representative), where there aren\u2019t a ton of jobs available. Hopefully I can find a position where I can transfer. Then we have to get a moving company\u2026 It\u2019ll be one of the easier moves we\u2019ve made since I won\u2019t have to do everything.\u201d<\/p>\n Matt and BreAnne met\u00a0when he was an offensive assistant at Central Michigan University, as BreAnnewas working as a student trainer there.<\/p>\n \u201cIronically enough, we met on a football field,\u201d Matt told\u00a0The Athletic<\/a>. \u201cI saw her just around town one day and we struck up a conversation. We\u2019ve been together ever since.\u201d<\/p>\n MORE:\u00a0Ranking the 17 greatest Packers of all time<\/a><\/p>\n Mike LaFleur family<\/p>\n The brother of Matt and the other son of Denny and Kristi, Mike LaFleur also has a family of his own.<\/p>\n Mike’s wife’s name is Lauren LaFleur, per EssentiallySports<\/a>, and the two also have two children together. Mike and Lauren were married in July of 2010, per Mike’s Davidson coaching page.<\/a><\/p>\n MORE: Inside Sean McVay’s career playoff record<\/a><\/p>\n Coaching history<\/p>\n Here’s a breakdown of how both LaFleur brothers have broken through in the NFL coaching world.<\/p>\n Sean McVay coaching tree<\/p>\n Once an up-and-coming young coach for the Rams, Sean McVay has now built an extensive coaching tree, and both LaFleur brothers can be considered a part of it.<\/p>\n In terms of future head coaches who have worked under McVay at some point, Matt LaFleur is joined on a list including Kevin O’Connell, Zac Taylor and Liam Coen. LaFleur and McVay worked with each other in Washington in the early 2010s under Mike Shanahan, and in 2017, they reunited in Los Angeles when LaFleur became as McVay’s offensive coordinator for a season.<\/p>\n LaFleur went on to become the head coach of the Packers, helping build out what’s becoming an iconic McVay coaching tree.<\/p>\n As for Mike LaFleur, he hasn’t yet taken on a head coaching role in the NFL, so he’s not officially part of what’s referred to as a “coaching tree” for McVay \u2014 but he has become a top assistant to the Rams head coach.\u00a0<\/p>\n Since 2023, Mike has been McVay’s offensive coordinator. Under his guidance, the Rams have remained an offensive power in the NFL, so it certainly isn’t out of the realm out possibility that another LaFleur could get head coaching looks in the future.<\/p>\n Matt LaFleur coaching timeline<\/p>\n Long before he became the Packers’ head coach, Matt LaFleur had a lot of work to do to even reach the NFL. From 2003-07, he served as an assistant at some smaller and Division II schools, even being a substitute teacher for some time.<\/p>\n After stints at\u00a0Saginaw Valley State,\u00a0Central Michigan,\u00a0Northern Michigan\u00a0and\u00a0Ashland, LaFleur broke through to the NFL in 2008 as an offensive assistant for the Texans<\/a>. It was there that he developed a relationship with\u00a0Kyle Shanahan \u2014 and when Kyle’s father, Mike, was hired by Washington, Kyle brought LaFleur with him as a quarterbacks coach in 2010.<\/p>\n LaFleur returned to college in 2014 to be the quarterbacks coach for Notre Dame, but his time there was short-lived. In 2015, he was back in the NFL as the Atlanta Falcons<\/a>‘ quarterbacks coach, once again under Kyle Shanahan, the team’s offensive coordinator.\u00a0<\/p>\n In 2017, LaFleur became the Rams’ offensive coordinator under McVay. He helped lead the team to an 11-5 record as the league’s top scoring offense, using that success to then take the same role with the Tennessee Titans<\/a> in 2018.<\/p>\n After all of that success and growth, LaFleur was hired by the Packers as head coach in January 2019. He’s since led Green Bay to three NFC North titles and three playoff wins.<\/p>\n Here’s a look at each of Matt LaFleur’s coaching stops.<\/p>\n Saginaw Valley State,\u00a0Offensive assistant, 2003Central Michigan,\u00a0Graduate assistant, 2004-05Northern Michigan,\u00a0Quarterbacks coach,\u00a02006Ashland, Offensive coordinator, 2007Houston Texans,\u00a0Offensive assistant,\u00a02008-09Washington Redskins,\u00a0Quarterbacks coach, 2010-13Notre Dame,\u00a0Quarterbacks coach, 2014Atlanta Falcons,\u00a0Quarterbacks coach, 2015-16Los Angeles Rams,\u00a0Offensive coordinator, 2017Tennessee Titans,\u00a0Offensive coordinator, 2018Green Bay Packers, Head coach, 2019\u2013presentMike LaFleur coaching timeline<\/p>\n Mike LaFleur’s coaching career began similarly to Matt’s, as he remained an offensive assistant for his alma mater, Elmhurst, in 2009 after playing there. He went to St. Joseph’s (IN) from 2010-12 as a quarterbacks coach, then offensive coordinator.<\/p>\n In 2013, Mike LaFleur was Davidson’s offensive coordinator, quarterbacks coach and wide receivers coach. He made the leap to the NFL in 2014, joining the Brown as an offensive intern, then joining the Falcons for the 2015 and 2016 seasons as\u00a0an offensive assistant under Kyle Shanahan, spending time with Matt.<\/p>\n After Shanahan became the head coach of the 49ers<\/a>, Mike LaFleur followed him as the team’s passing game coordinator and wide receivers coach, holding the former role from 2017-20.<\/p>\n