Matt LaFleur Explains Why He Missed Jeff Ulbrich’s Wife’s Funeral
Matt LaFleur never got the chance to say goodbye.
Matt LaFleur wanted to be there.
The Green Bay Packers coach planned to attend the funeral of Cristina Ulbrich, the wife of his longtime friend Jeff Ulbrich.
Unfortunately, a mechanical problem with his private plane left him stranded in Wisconsin.
LaFleur and his wife, BreAnne, had planned to fly from Packers training camp to the service. Then the aircraft failed its preflight check.
BreAnne found another way to the funeral and arrived on time. Matt wasn’t so fortunate.
He had to return to the Packers’ preseason schedule.
“All the sudden, I’m back in meetings,” LaFleur told The Athletic. “I’m like, ‘It’s out of my control.’”
It was an especially painful situation because the LaFleur and Ulbrich families go back years.
The two coaches met in Atlanta in 2016. LaFleur coached the Falcons’ quarterbacks while Ulbrich worked with the team’s linebackers.
Their families became close from there.
Matt LaFleur Worried About Close Friend Jeff Ulbrich
Jeff Ulbrich (Photo via Twitter)
Cristina died last month following a battle with cancer. The Falcons announced her death on July 30.
“Cristina was a devoted wife, mother, and friend whose strength, grace, and resilience touched all who knew her,” the team said.
Jeff and Cristina had been together since meeting in 1997. They raised three children, Jax, Jace and Samantha.
LaFleur said Cristina’s death has stayed with him.
“It’s different … when it’s somebody your age,” he said. “She was a rock star. I think about it every day. I worry about ‘Brich.”
Cristina had supported Jeff throughout his entire football career.
She stood beside him when he transitioned from playing to coaching. She even refused to schedule family vacations until Jeff secured his next coaching job.
That patience eventually paid off.
Jeff became the New York Jets’ interim head coach in 2024 before joining Atlanta as defensive coordinator.
For LaFleur, however, this preseason has been a reminder that football isn’t always the most important thing.
Even so, sometimes a plane won’t cooperate. Sometimes work gets in the way. And sometimes you don’t get to give the goodbye you planned.
