Vrabel wanted to bring in his own guys, which is to be expected, but that left Covington looking for a job. The Packers, who recently fired defensive line coach Jason Rebrovich, were happy to jump on Covington’s bad luck and turn it into good news for both them and his employment status.
As such, it’s being reported by Rob Demovsky of ESPN that the Packers are intending to hire Covington to replace Rebrovich.
This is great news for the Packers, who desperately need someone to help a defensive line that was underwhelming in 2025. Sure, the Packers finished with a Top 15 defense and had games in which they looked elite. There were some very specific holes that first-year defensive coordinator Jeff Hafley wasn’t able to fill, though, and the biggest weakness on the team was undoubtedly the pass rush.
In Covington, the Packers are getting a coach who values aggressiveness but also discipline. The Packers had a tough time having both at the same time in 2024, so he could be the perfect coach for them in that regard.
“When you turn on the tape, what we want to see is a physical team, a team that plays with good discipline and fundamentals, and a team that attacks the football and takes it away from the opponent,” Covington had said, via Evan Lazar of the Patriots’ website, when he was promoted from defensive line coach to defensive coordinator in New England. “That’s what we are looking for from our defense and a team that goes out there and plays together and for one another. That type of togetherness is what we are really looking for.”
That mentality is exactly what the Packers need for Covington to instill in his defensive line, and the following three players could really benefit from his coaching.
Rashan Gary
It’s time to be honest about who Rashan Gary is for the Packers. They selected him with the No. 12 pick out of Michigan in the 2019 NFL Draft with the hopes that they could develop him into a superstar pass-rusher. He was raw at Michigan but extremely athletic and talented. Now, heading into his seventh NFL season, you could still say that Gary is raw but extremely athletic and talented.
He’s a true hustle pass-rusher who uses his athleticism to his advantage, but he’s never developed the tool-set to become elite. Right now, he’s a great No. 2 pass-rusher on a Super Bowl team, but the Packers are paying him like he’s a superstar.
Superstars get upwards of 15 sacks in a season. Gary’s highest sack total was 9.5 in 2021 and he had nine in 2023. Last season, he notched just 7.5 sacks. That’s not good enough, but perhaps Covington can help Gary unlock those few other pass-rush skills that can help him take the next step.
Kenny Clark
Kenny Clark has been around for a while now, so it’s easy to forget that he was a first round pick for the Packers back in 2016. He’s always been consistently good, and he has three Pro Bowl seasons to his name, but the 2024 season was a down year for him.
He notched just 37 tackles and one sack. Compare that to 2023, when he notched 44 tackles and 7.5 sacks.
Clark is heading into his age 30 season but he absolutely still has something left in the tank, and there’s really no world that should see him with less than four sacks in a season. Taking out his rookie season and 2024, he averaged 4.9 sacks a season.
The Packers still have Clark under contract through 2027, so perhaps Covington can help him turn back time a bit and once again become a star.
Lukas Van Ness
Is Lukas Van Ness going to be a draft bust, or will he finally find the potential the Packers saw in him when they selected him with the No. 13 pick in the 2023 NFL Draft.
Van Ness is 6-foot-5, 272 pounds and he looks like he should be a superstar. In fact, he was nicknamed “Hercules” at Iowa.
The problem for Van Ness so far is that the only thing he seems good at doing is getting in the way. He notched four sacks in his rookie season in 2023 and flashed some potential, but he was given a bigger role in 2024 and expected a lot out of him. He finished the season with three sacks and was on a milk carton for many games.
It’s now or never for Van Ness, so let’s see what Covington can do with him.