Packers Weren’t Tackling Dummies in 2024

Philadelphia Eagles tight end Dallas Goedert (88) is tackled by Green Bay Packers safety Xavier McKinney and others. / Bill Streicher-Imagn ImagesGREEN BAY, Wis. – The world’s best defensive scheme means nothing if the ball-carrier breaks a tackle to turn a run for no gain into a touchdown.

One reason why the Green Bay Packers’ defense played so well in Year 1 under coordinator Jeff Hafley is because of how they tackled.

This year, Next Gen Stats helped create a new model called tackle probability. (You can read about its genesis here.) The Packers finished seventh; the top nine teams all reached the playoffs. The bottom 11 teams did not.

Hafley preached getting as many defenders as possible…