Rodgers: Compromise on audibles is 'a conversation in progress' with LaFleur

The Green Bay Packers' season likely depends on how quickly the marriage between Aaron Rodgers and new head coach Matt LaFleur can blossom.

The installation of LaFleur's offensive system is the first major schematic change the star quarterback has experienced in the NFL after spending 14 seasons under the guidance of Mike McCarthy.

The Packers will attempt to replicate the offensive philosophy of Kyle Shanahan and Sean McVay, which has been hugely productive in recent years. However, the system limits the quarterback's ability to audible at the line of scrimmage. LaFleur revealed the Packers are still working out that issue with their veteran quarterback, who's made a career out of improvising plays outside the structure of his scheme.

"Aaron and I have had some good talks, and we're going to have to talk a lot more - and one thing we have to work through is the audible thing," LaFleur told Mike Silver of NFL Network last week. "We're running a system I first picked up while working with Kyle (Shanahan) in Houston a decade ago, and we've never really had a quarterback who's had complete freedom to change plays at the line because that's not really the way the offense is set up. But, I mean, this is Aaron Rodgers. He's had a lot of freedom to make those calls, and deservedly so. Now, how do we reconcile that, and get to a place where we put him in the best position to succeed?"

LaFleur's system is designed to have a built-in "answer" to whatever look the defense gives, and because of the amount of pre-snap movement, the coach is concerned that too much freedom under center could "slow our guys down."

But LaFleur knows he has a "special talent" in Rodgers, who said the Packers need to find a way to use that rare element of his skill set.

"It's a conversation in progress," Rodgers said. "I don't think you want to ask me to turn off 11 years (of recognizing defenses). We have a number of check-with-mes and line-of-scrimmage stuff. It's just the other stuff that really not many people in this league can do.

"That's not like a humblebrag or anything; that's just a fact. There aren't many people that can do at the line of scrimmage what I've done over the years. I mean, obviously, Tommy (Brady) can do it, no doubt. Peyton (Manning) could do it. Drew (Brees) can do it. (Patrick) Mahomes will be able to do it. Ben (Roethlisberger) has called the two-minute for years. ... It's kind of second nature. And that's just the icing on the cake for what I can do in this offense."

McCarthy was widely criticized for allowing Green Bay's offense to stagnate. At 35 years old, Rodgers' future success could be determined by how much he's willing to cede to a new coach who's just four years his senior.