GREEN BAY, Wis. – In the 2019 season opener, after the Green Bay Packers defeated the Chicago Bears 10-7, Aaron Rodgers proclaimed, “We have a defense.”

This year's Packers have more than just defense. They have a defensive coordinator who makes a difference.

Jeff Hafley received a game ball after Green Bay's 24-22 win over the Houston Texans on Sunday. Hafley, who has been the head coach at Boston College for the past four years but has never been an NFL coordinator, called it a masterful game against Houston.

“I just thought he did a great job, I really do,” coach Matt LaFleur said Monday. “I think it’s not just him, it’s everyone’s fault – our entire defensive staff – but at the end of the day, someone has to come up with the plan and execute it.”

CJ Stroud, last year's NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year, had one of the worst games of his young career. In his 24th career start (including playoffs), Stroud threw for a career-low 86 yards. His 47.6 percent completion rate, 4.10 yards per attempt and a 58.8 passer rating were the second-worst marks of his career.

With four sacks, the Packers limited the Texans to 55 net passing yards. It was the second-best performance by any defenseman this season and the team's fifth-best since 2000.

Yes, the Texans played without their best receiver, Nico Collins. But it was all about dominance against a top-notch quarterback and opponent.

While running back Joe Mixon struggled in the first half, Hafley won on third down when the Packers won first or second down.

According to the 33rd teamthe Packers didn't blitz on either first or second down, but did get at least five rushers on 41.7 percent of third downs.

According to Pro Football FocusStroud was 3 of 10 passing for 14 yards when pressured. When blitzed, he was 1 of 5 for 11 yards.

The Texans scored 22 points, but only had one half-length scoring drive (55 yards after a long kickoff return). Two turnovers put the Texans at Green Bay's 11. With Jordan Love unable to drive the offense with any consistency, the Packers would have had no chance of scoring a game-winning field goal had Hafley's unit not forced four consecutive punts to start the second half.

“I thought, considering all the circumstances — a really explosive offense, a lot of short fields — to be able to hold someone to 22 points under all those circumstances, I thought he deserved the game ball,” LaFleur said.

Green Bay's touted pass rush was largely disappointing early in the season, in part because it faced three athletic quarterbacks in its first six games.

However, Hafley wreaked havoc against the less mobile Stroud. Sometimes he flashed. Another time he sent four rushers – just not the four traditional rushers.

“A lot of what we call backup fire zones,” LaFleur said of these non-traditional rushes. “He did a good job of mixing up coverage behind that pressure and, as I said, we had open runners at quarterback several times.”

Everything seemed to be working. Linebacker Eric Wilson had two sacks and safety Xavier McKinney had one. Rashan Gary's second sack of the season was very similar to the first – a freebie where he wasn't touched by the right tackle – but he was a threat. After going without pressure against the Vikings and Rams, Gary had three against the Cardinals and a season-high six against the Texans.

Getting Gary going would be the next step for a rising defense. According to PFFGary was chipped on 21.5 percent of his rushes, the third-highest in the league among fullbacks. So, Hafley placed Gary in the middle of the defense in the style of Za'Darius Smitha few times and let him work.

“I think it was a creative way to isolate him from the person we wanted to isolate him from,” LaFleur said.

What challenges does this present from the perspective of an offensive game planner and play caller like LaFleur?

“It presents a lot of challenges in terms of who you do to him and how you block him?” LaFleur responded. “When someone's hanging around in there, there's usually some sort of pick game or something like that. Usually it won’t be just a direct rush, so it just depends on what people do in those situations.”

Green Bay emerged from Week 7 ranked 10th in points allowed, 15th in yards allowed per game, eighth in yards allowed per game and ninth in opponent passing rating. Takeaways saved the day, but not against the Texans. Instead, they won through excellent defense.

The defense seems to be getting better with every game. Just look at the last three games. The Texans scored 1.6 points less than their season average despite gaining 244 yards on field position, the Cardinals scored 9.2 points less than their average and the Rams needed a late touchdown to reach their average.

“It shows that we're going to play against other good teams with our best ball, and I think we showed that today,” McKinney said. “It’s another step forward. I try not to put any team on a pedestal because as you all know, anything can happen in the NFL. That's why I never try to put a team on a pedestal.

“There are a lot of good teams out there and we have a really good team too. We came to play today. I think that's what it says about us as a team: when we play against another good team, we have to know that they're going to play against a good team too. That's good. It’s a stepping stone for us, but we have to keep going.”

Don't expect Hafley to take any victory laps. After dominating Stroud, the next quarterbacks on the schedule are Trevor Lawrence of the Jaguars, Jared Goff of the Lions, Caleb Williams of the Bears, Brock Purdy of the 49ers, Tua Tagovailoa of the Dolphins and Goff again.

“I don’t think we’re there yet,” Hafley said last week. “I think we’re still in the early stages and don’t know where we’re going to be as a defense.”

More Green Bay Packers news

Packers release Matt Orzech* | Three overreactions by the Packers-Texans | Josh Jacobs from the record book | Rashan Gary is eliminated | The Packers did what great teams do | Jordan Love comes through in a 2 minute situation | The legendary debut of Brandon McManus | Inventory report | Game history: Packers 24, Texans 22 | Highlights from the 24-22 win