Taking a Look at the 2009 Green Bay Packers Coaching Staff

The Green Bay Packers have a good blend of former players and knowledgeable football men on their coaching staff which is an ideal environment to produce a very good football team.

The Packers are coached by Mike McCarthy, who is entering his fourth year as head coach. He has a record of 27-21, including one division title and playoff appearance in the 2007 season.

McCarthy began his pro career as the offensive quality control coordinator with the Kansas City Chiefs in 1993. He stayed with the Chiefs through the 1998 season, serving as quarterbacks coach for three years.

He moved on to the same position with the Packers for the 1999 season before becoming the New Orleans Saints offensive coordinator for five seasons. He took over the same duties with the San Francisco 49ers in 2005 before taking over as the Packers 15th head coach.

There are five coaches on McCarthy's staff that I think are very integral to the success of the Packers in 2009.

Edgar Bennett is a former running back for the Packers and now serves as a coach at the position. He has been on the coaching staff since the 2005 season.

Bennett never wowed anyone with his speed as a player, but he was always smarter than his opponents. He was also arguably one of the best bad-weather running backs in the history of the game.

Bennett needs to not only teach Ryan Grant to use his blocks better but also serve as a mentor to become a more all-around player. One of Bennett's best assets was his ability to catch the ball out of the backfield. Grant needs to incorporate that into his game if he wants to be viewed as an elite-level back.

James Campen is entering his sixth season as a coach for the Packers. He has been the offensive line coach since 2007 and this will prove to be the most challenging season in his coaching career.

The Packers have a lot of talent on their line but most of it is young and inexperienced. Chad Clifton is on the last legs of his career and Mark Tauscher may not even be able to play for the team this year.

Campen will have to call on his experience as a former lineman to teach the young players new positions and continue to learn the zone-blocking scheme that McCarthy likes to use for his running game.

The Packers biggest change this season will see their defense go from a 4-3 to a 3-4 scheme. Dom Capers was hired in January to take over the defense. Capers is one of the true geniuses when it comes to working with the 3-4.

Capers has been in the NFL since 1986 in various roles. He was the architect of the Steelers 3-4 defense in the early 90's that saw Kevin Greene and Greg Lloyd become household names.

He has been head coach of both the Carolina Panthers and Houston Texans. He was never able to find his niche as a head coach, although he has always had great success as a defensive coordinator.

The Packers defense is filled with potential playmakers. It will be Caper's job to best utilize their talents and bring together a defense that gave up several leads late in ball games all season long in 2008.

If Dom Capers is the General of the Packers defense, then Kevin Greene and Winston Moss will be his two top Colonels.

Greene and Moss will serve a role as dual linebackers coach. Greene will coach the outside backers while Moss will take leadership of the inside positions. Moss will also serve as assistant head coach to McCarthy.

Greene is entering the coaching ranks for the first time in his life. He was an outstanding player in the NFL throughout his 15-year career.

However, being a great player does not always translate into being a great coach. Greene should succeed where others have failed due to his knowledge and passion for football.

Greene has a lot of talent to work with. Aaron Kampman and rookie Clay Matthews both possess the speed and strength that Greene did as a player. He should have an easy time teaching the two the fine points of being a blitzing linebacker. That should translate into big seasons for both players and many headaches for quarterbacks around the league.

Although Moss was passed over for the defensive coordinator job with the Packers, he stayed on the staff and could have his biggest impact ever as a coach this year.

Moss has been a coach in the league since 1998 and with the Packers since the 2006 season.

AJ Hawk and Nick Barnett should be able to flourish in the next 3-4 system. Moss will work with the two on better anticipating plays and how to work off of the defensive line, particularly BJ Raji.

Raji's ability to take up more than one blocker will be important to Hawk and Barnett being able to roam the field and make plays from sideline to sideline. Should Moss succeed in this, he will likely be up for a head coaching role in 2010.

The Packers are a very talented team both on the field and in the coaching area. This mix of great athletic bodies and talented football minds should translate into great success for the Packers and provide many memorable moments for their fans in 2009.