Packers hire Brian Gutekunst as GM

[Vincenzo]

Huh.

One more conspiracy minded theory before I buy in. Gutekunst was being represented (or identified might be a better term) by the search firm that was helping the Texans search for a GM. He was identified this weekend as a finalist for interviews next week for Houston. Murphy has used that search firm before and one of that firms partners is advising Murphy about the GM search.

Is it a coincidence that Gutekunst got the nod a little faster than expected?

Brian Gutekunst is the least objectionable choice of the three know candidates. And this is fine. Its also a reason not to be that excited. I hope he is just as ruthless as Ted and that includes stuffing McCarthy in a box and dropping him in the Fox River if he keeps whining about everyone else not doing their job.

I am not very excited.

Yes.
So much for the “extensive search” Murphy said to the media last week.
I think he hit the panic button as soon as he heard the Texans were interested.

[pbmax]

He looks like the kind of guy who would have some balls. Not surprising they went this direction over Wolf, given Gute seemed to be getting more interviews around the league over the last couple years. Now I'm reading on Twitter that "NFL sources" felt he was a future front office star two years ago.

Really don't hate this hire even though I wanted them to wait and get Paton or DeCosta, but those were hardly guarantees. Ball would have been a disaster even from a PR standpoint and fan confidence would probably be pretty low. I'm excited about just someone new who won't be afraid to pick up the phone himself to talk with agents and try to work some magic. I have a feeling TT was just a complete hermit when it came to this kind of thing.

Would love to have seen De Costa come in and bring a little Ravens D drafting luck/tips to the Packers constant mining of O talent.

[pbmax]

Yes.
So much for the “extensive search” Murphy said to the media last week.
I think he hit the panic button as soon as he heard the Texans were interested.

Media moaning is often self serving and basically meaningless, but Nagler and Oates made good points on Twitter in the last 24 hours.

The publicly owned team would not comment on its GM search or interview process. Have they even confirmed that Getsy left, Bennett has been stripped of his job and Van Pelt has left? The Bears had comments on each interview after it happened.

That kind of secrecy I can forgive in football operations, where you fear giving the opposition good intel or draft nuggets. But its dumb when hiring the top of the franchise.

[rollo]

I think this is a great hire. I wonder, did the Packers fulfill the Rooney Rule during their GM candidate search?

[pbmax]

I also really want to know how much of Russ Ball's front runner status was an invention of the coverage.

[pbmax]

OK, last of the bad attitude:

Predict when BG will have to fire the guy who might have paved the way (M3) for his ascension?

If Spoon was right in his assessment of this as a win for M3, then its the worst reason to hire a GM. I don't care if the coach survives in his job, I want the fundamentals of the franchise maintained and McCarthy doesn't represent a key cog there.

[Joemailman]

I just want to note that this statement:

The hiring of Gutekunst is a huge victory for coach Mike McCarthy, who badly wanted someone who was experienced in player personnel and would be willing to partake in all phases of player acquisition.

Gutekunst has never expressed what his style of management would be, but having worked with Ron Wolf and current general managers John Schneider, John Dorsey and Reggie McKenzie, all of whom have been aggressive in player acquisition, it’s likely he’s more open to free agency than Thompson.

is the most logically incoherent statement I have read in a week full of them. Its bafflingly stupid.

I agree it's incoherent in that it ignores the possibility that he might have been influenced by working with Thompson. However, saying he might be more involved in free agency than Thompson isn't exactly going out on a limb. It will probably be true to some extent.

[Joemailman]

I think this is a great hire. I wonder, did the Packers fulfill the Rooney Rule during their GM candidate search?

I don't know. Does requesting an interview with Reggie McKenzie suffice?

[pbmax]

I agree it's incoherent in that it ignores the possibility that he might have been influenced by working with Thompson. However, saying he might be more involved in free agency than Thompson isn't exactly going out on a limb. It will probably be true to some extent.

Exactly. So the statement could have read: "Given Thompsons' league leading resistance to veteran free agency, its likely Gutekunst will be more open to it even if his actually player acquisition philosophy is unknown at this time."

The first sentence about training (the same people who trained Ted) is an effort to make a case that doesn't exist.

[pbmax]

I don't know. Does requesting an interview with Reggie McKenzie suffice?

I bet they interviewed Whaley.

Unless the list of interviews is longer than we know, Murphy was just doing tokenism and not interested in looking beyond the Packers way of doing things.

[rollo]

I don't know. Does requesting an interview with Reggie McKenzie suffice?

I don't think it does. The Lions sort of used that as an excuse in 2003 but still got fined 200k.

"In 2003, the NFL fined the Detroit Lions $200,000 for failure to interview African-American candidates for the team's vacant head coaching job. After Marty Mornhinweg was fired, the Lions immediately hired former San Francisco 49ers head coach Steve Mariucci (a native of the Upper Peninsula of Michigan) to replace him without interviewing any other candidates. The Lions claimed they attempted to interview other candidates but that the African-American candidates withdrew from interviews, believing Mariucci's hiring was inevitable.[18] The Lions wouldn't have a minority head coach until hiring Jim Caldwell in 2014."

[Joemailman]

http://packerrats.com/showthread.php...be-the-next-GM

CaptainD, Carolina_Packer, esoxx, Fritz, Pugger, and swede got their man.

[mraynrand]

Would love to have seen De Costa come in and bring a little Ravens D drafting luck/tips to the Packers constant mining of O talent.

From some reading I did the other day, I'm not sure where the genius/luck is over there in Baltimore. Perhaps a new assistant could be brought in from Baltimore, not unlike hiring a new faculty who was a fellow in a competing institution. Pump 'em for information and techniques; get a new perspective, make jokes about the Hairballs.

[Tony Oday]

Hate the Rooney Rule, most racist rule in football...hey everyone we need a token interview!

[mraynrand]

Exactly. So the statement could have read: "Given Thompsons' league leading resistance to veteran free agency, its likely Gutekunst will be more open to it even if his actually player acquisition philosophy is unknown at this time."

The first sentence about training (the same people who trained Ted) is an effort to make a case that doesn't exist.

journalism is dead

[gbgary]

I bet they interviewed Whaley.

and maybe highsmith.

[pbmax]

journalism is dead

I think its just tired of producing free content and bad videos.

[Joemailman]

and maybe highsmith.

I think Highsmith left because he wasn't going to get an interview.

[pbmax]

Hate the Rooney Rule, most racist rule in football...hey everyone we need a token interview!

As in much of life, the only way the Rooney Rule is racist is if you treat the candidates and search that way.

Any decent organization (and its in doubt if the Packers qualified this time) casts a much wider net than the rule. Its an opportunity to learn something new. Belichick and Parcels did it when interviewing assistant coaches. They did it to Dungy to figure out how they made the Pittsburgh defense work when it looked too small to them to function.

And that should be a story someone writes at length about. Steelers were the most 4-3 team in history (Steel Curtain) that regularly beat the tar out of 3-4 teams it faced (Browns, Oilers). Mid decade, after a series of near .500 finishes, they switched and the fan base did not revolt. Dungy was there for that.

[pbmax]

Packers are hiring Brian Gutekunst as GM, ESPN's Adam Schefter confirmed. Gutekunst is the most well-rounded scout in the personnel department and knocked it out of the park in his interview.


Rob Demovsky, ESPN Staff Writer