GREEN BAY, Wis. — Tom Clements has announced his retirement from his position as the quarterbacks’ coach for the Green Bay Packers, concluding an impressive 25-year career in the NFL. Throughout his tenure, he played a pivotal role in the development of notable quarterbacks, including Hall of Famer Brett Favre and four-time MVP Aaron Rodgers. Packers head coach Matt LaFleur confirmed Clements’ retirement during a press conference, expressing his admiration for Clements’ contributions to the organization and highlighting the value of his coaching experience.
LaFleur reflected on the past three years working with Clements, stating, “It’s been a cool ride with him. He’s incredibly consistent. What a great man, a great mind. Obviously, he coached some of the best, including Favre, Rodgers, and the development of Jordan Love. He has made significant contributions to this organization, and his presence will be missed.”
Clements embarked on his coaching career after leading Notre Dame’s football team to a national championship in 1973 and playing 12 seasons in the Canadian Football League (CFL). During his time in the CFL, he was honored as the league’s most valuable player in 1987 and celebrated Grey Cup victories with the Ottawa Rough Riders in 1976 and the Winnipeg Blue Bombers in 1984.
After contributing as a Notre Dame assistant for four years, Clements served as the quarterbacks coach for the New Orleans Saints from 1997 to 1999. He also coached quarterbacks for the Kansas City Chiefs in 2000, then for the Pittsburgh Steelers from 2001 to 2003, and later was the Buffalo Bills’ offensive coordinator from 2004 to 2005, before his initial arrival in Green Bay in 2006.
During his first stint with the Packers, Clements was part of Favre’s last two seasons and helped in the emergence of Rodgers as one of the league’s elite quarterbacks. Under Clements’ guidance, Rodgers secured his first two MVP awards and led the team to victory in the 2010 Super Bowl, marking the franchise’s most recent championship title. Clements served as Green Bay’s quarterbacks coach from 2006 to 2011 and as the offensive coordinator from 2012 to 2014.
Following his time in Green Bay, Clements worked with quarterback Kyler Murray as the passing game coordinator and quarterbacks coach for the Arizona Cardinals from 2019 to 2020. After a year away from coaching, he returned to the Packers in 2022 to assist Rodgers in what would turn out to be his final season with the team. Even after Rodgers’ trade to the New York Jets, Clements stayed to support Jordan Love through his first two seasons as the starting quarterback.
LaFleur announced Clements’ retirement during a season-ending news conference just after the Packers suffered a 22-10 defeat to the Philadelphia Eagles in the wild-card round of the NFC playoffs. This loss marked the end of the season for the Packers, who concluded with a near-fatal series of four turnovers, failing to reclaim any against a strong Eagles team. LaFleur remarked on the disappointment the team felt, stating, “Everyone’s kind of gutted. You can’t have four turnovers in the game and expect to win.”
Questions regarding Love received special attention during the press conference, particularly concerning his performance against the Eagles, where he threw three interceptions without scoring a touchdown. Prior to this game, Love had gone seven consecutive appearances without an interception. He completed 63.1% of his passes throughout the season—slightly down from 64.2% in the previous year—and registered 25 touchdown passes alongside 11 interceptions after achieving a notable 32-11 touchdown-to-interception ratio in 2023.
LaFleur praised Love’s aptitude for minimizing sacks and pointed out that dropped passes contributed to difficulties in the Packers’ aerial offense. He emphasized that Love’s next developmental phase would involve becoming a stronger vocal leader. “He is an ascending player that is going to get better and better,” LaFleur stated. “He approaches the game the right way.”
Additionally, LaFleur commented on cornerback Keisean Nixon’s recent statements expressing a desire to step away from return duties to concentrate more on his defensive responsibilities, despite Nixon being recognized as an All-Pro kickoff returner in the past two seasons. “I love Kei,” LaFleur expressed. “I do. I love how he competes. I love how he prepares. Not sure why he said what he said.”
