GREEN BAY, Wis.— The Packers are hoping for better special teams play in 2021. Maurice Drayton was the Packers' special teams assistant coach under Shawn Mennenga. When Mennenga was fired after the Packers' special teams underperformed, Drayton was promoted.
Drayton relishes the challenge.
“I am very excited for the opportunity. Even before I got the opportunity, there would be some days I would be standing on that practice field and I look over to the stadium and I would say, 'Wow I am truly blessed,'" Drayton says. "So I do understand that, but at the end of the day, we cannot be mesmerized by it. It’s time to roll up our sleeves and put the work in.”
Packers' head coach Matt LaFleur believes in Drayton.
“I’ve had the chance to witness him for the last two years and I tell you what… He is a teacher. He is an excellent communicator. Brings great energy to that room and that’s really what I thought was needed is just his voice… Leading that room," LaFleur says.
There were simply too many glaring errors by the Packers' special teams last season to justify staying in the same routine.
Drayton considers himself a teacher and views the players as students.
“We're very detail-oriented, but at the same time, we are very excited about ball, and coaching, and teaching. Learners learn many different ways, and we teach to the learner, not to the group. So we are very specific in that manner," Drayton says.
The Packers’ special teams were ranked near the bottom of the NFL last season. It’s Drayton’s job to help change that. Drayton has been coaching for over 20 years and he brings passion and enthusiasm to the task.
“It's real energy and guys can feed off of real energy once you invest in them. Yes, this is big-time business, but this is still a relationship business. So if those guys understand where I am coming from, if they understand that I understand their why and I am going to help them achieve their why… They are going to be excited about it because we are helping them reach their goals," he says.