packers11
01-11-2008, 04:42 PM
Green Bay went from 4-12 to 13-3. The QB is having a renaissance year. One man over all made it possible, Alex Marvez says. Full Story ...
Thompson weathered worst in Green Bay
By Alex Marvez
Alex Marvez is a Senior NFL Writer for FOXSports.com. He's covered the NFL for 13 seasons as a beat writer. For more by Alex, click here.
Updated: January 11, 2008, 4:51 PM EST
You'd have thought he cut Brett Favre.
No NFL general manager felt more heat entering the 2007 season than Green Bay's Ted Thompson.
He was criticized during free agency when the Packers signed only one low-end player (cornerback Frank Walker) despite having $15 million in salary-cap room.
He was booed by 2,000 fans at a Packers draft-day party for selecting injured defensive tackle Justin Harrell with his first-round pick.
Plus, Thompson didn't answer Favre's plea to trade for wide receiver Randy Moss. That furthered the belief Thompson hadn't surrounded Favre with enough weapons to field a competitive offense in what could have been the storied quarterback's final season.
Cheeseheads vented. Some called Packers headquarters to call for his firing. Others wrote venomous letters that are still kept inside a folder by his administrative assistant labeled "Disgruntled Fans." Three anti-Thompson Web sites — FireTedThompson.com, CanTedThompson.com and FirePackersGM.com — even popped up.
"When you're the point guy you expect some of that, but my goodness," Packers coach Mike McCarthy said. "To see him come under fire like that, what good is it? I thought it was inappropriate and I didn't agree with it."
But a funny thing happened. The Packers went 13-3 — with the NFL's youngest roster, no less — and enter Saturday's second-round home playoff game against Seattle just two wins from the Super Bowl. Favre enjoyed one of his best seasons and is no longer thinking retirement. And the Packers are currently projected to enter the off-season with $14.4 million in cap space.
Thompson has since received two letters of apology from previously disgruntled fans and two of the web sites have shut down. Packers management showed its appreciation last week by giving Thompson a five-year contract extension.
Through it all, Thompson never buckled to public pressure or lashed out at critics. Thompson isn't even bitter about the abuse he received.
"The passion that the people have here, they suffer the same ups and downs as the team," Thompson said Thursday from his office at Lambeau Field. "That's a good thing. That's the reason they booed me on draft day and had those Web sites.
"It wasn't because they hated me. It's because they loved the Packers. I'm OK with that."
The Packers weren't OK when Thompson was hired as general manager in 2005. While coming off a 10-6 season as NFC North champions, a series of poor drafts and suspect roster moves had left the franchise vulnerable in what became a 4-12 campaign. That led to the firing of head coach Mike Sherman, who had personnel power before Thompson's arrival.
"The team had aged a little bit," Thompson said. "Quite frankly, if I were here then, I might have done the same thing (Sherman did) because it was a team that had a chance every year. When you're that close, you try to hang onto as much of your team as you can. We just felt like it had reached a point where we had to add more young, core players."
Thompson did just that. Twenty three of 33 players drafted between 2005 and 2007 remain on the team's roster, including seven starters.
Thompson and his staff also have excelled at plucking players out of scrap heaps. Starting tight end Donald Lee (48 catches, six touchdowns) and strong safety Atari Bigby — the NFL's Defensive Player of the Month for December — were not only both waived by Miami, they went unclaimed and were later signed by the Packers as free agents.
The biggest coup: Green Bay sent a 2008 sixth-round pick to the New York Giants in September for Ryan Grant, an undrafted running back who hadn't played in his first two NFL seasons. Grant has since blossomed into one of the league's top rushers and bettered what was an anemic rushing attack.
While staging a youth movement, Thompson inked key veterans like Charles Woodson (one of Thompson's few veteran free-agent acquisitions), fellow cornerback Al Harris, linebacker Nick Barnett and defensive end Aaron Kampman to contract extensions. Another round of re-signings is expected before the March 2 start of the free-agent signing period.
"We know they're the backbone of the team," Thompson said of his core veterans. "They're the ones who are leading these young guys."
The biggest leader of all is Favre, whose feelings toward Green Bay management were the subject of off-season controversy. FOXSports NFL insider Jay Glazer reported that Favre was so frustrated with the state of the Packers that he asked for a trade in April. Favre and his agent later denied the report, but the quarterback's skepticism about Green Bay's chances in 2007 was irrefutable.
While not specifically naming Thompson, Favre publicly questioned the team's direction in May by saying, "I don't know if I've lost faith. I think everyone in the organization wants to win. I just don't know if it includes me. If it's going to be five years from now, I'm not going to be here. This is 17 years for me and I want to win (now)."
While not providing specifics, Thompson said the Packers did "some exploring" on Moss and "it just didn't work out" before Oakland traded him to New England. Thompson, though, did give Favre plenty of ammunition for Green Bay's spread formations.
The Packers hit on second-year wideout Greg Jennings and rookie James Jones with first-day draft picks. Donald Driver, Favre's favorite target, was rewarded for his solid play with a raise and one-year contract extension in August even though his deal wasn't set to expire until 2009. Big-bodied Ruvell Martin (four touchdowns) and Koren Robinson — who was signed in 2006 despite a history of alcohol problems following a suggestion from Favre — also have contributed.
As it turned out, Favre didn't need Moss to finish with one of his best statistical seasons while breaking some of the NFL's top career passing records. And most importantly, Favre was back in the playoffs for the first time since 2004.
"He just wants to win," Thompson said. "At his age (38), I think there was some trepidation on the part of us being so young. But he likes these young guys. He's probably the youngest guy at heart of any of them. He's the guy jumping around, having fun and doing crazy stuff.
"I'm pretty sure he's happy right now. There have probably been times he was not so happy."
Thompson then laughed, which has proven an effective mechanism to diffuse the heat he has faced. Thompson remembers the feedback he received in 2006 when he hired McCarthy, who had no previous head coaching experience and was coming off a poor season as San Francisco's offensive coordinator.
"I got criticized for that, too," a smiling Thompson says in his trademark East Texas drawl.
Thompson knows the chirping will start again if the Packers make an early postseason exit. Ironically, the coach whose team could lead to Green Bay's demise is one of Thompson's mentors.
After spending eight years in Green Bay's front office learning under then-general manager Ron Wolf, Thompson followed Mike Holmgren to Seattle in 2000 for a promotion as vice president of football operations. Holmgren had final say over personnel moves during their five seasons together in Seattle but gave Thompson significant leeway.
"He gave me the ability to stand on my own two feet and say, 'Go do this. You make this decision,'" said Thompson, who turns 55 on Thursday. "That's something I wasn't able to do here because of how the organization was set up. I had to hire people, set up drafts and all this other stuff that I had always worked second-fiddle to Ron with.
"I couldn't do this now if I hadn't have left. You would think, 'Maybe if I had just stayed, I may have been the next guy.' I don't think I would have been as prepared for it."
Thompson actually wasn't planning for a career in NFL management after ending his 10-year career as a Houston Oilers linebacker in 1985. Thompson became a financial advisor but admits his soft-spoken, level-headed approach made that job a bad fit.
"I sat in a brokerage house for a couple of months but I couldn't sell anything," Thompson said. "I'm not a seller. I can't do that. I learned during that time I missed the game and felt I had something to offer."
The business world's loss is Green Bay's gain.
"It's nice to see people writing the appropriate articles about him now and giving him the credit he deserves," McCarthy said. "He's the key to all this."
Read this article at:
http://msn.foxsports.com/nfl/story/7662000
Thompson weathered worst in Green Bay
By Alex Marvez
Alex Marvez is a Senior NFL Writer for FOXSports.com. He's covered the NFL for 13 seasons as a beat writer. For more by Alex, click here.
Updated: January 11, 2008, 4:51 PM EST
You'd have thought he cut Brett Favre.
No NFL general manager felt more heat entering the 2007 season than Green Bay's Ted Thompson.
He was criticized during free agency when the Packers signed only one low-end player (cornerback Frank Walker) despite having $15 million in salary-cap room.
He was booed by 2,000 fans at a Packers draft-day party for selecting injured defensive tackle Justin Harrell with his first-round pick.
Plus, Thompson didn't answer Favre's plea to trade for wide receiver Randy Moss. That furthered the belief Thompson hadn't surrounded Favre with enough weapons to field a competitive offense in what could have been the storied quarterback's final season.
Cheeseheads vented. Some called Packers headquarters to call for his firing. Others wrote venomous letters that are still kept inside a folder by his administrative assistant labeled "Disgruntled Fans." Three anti-Thompson Web sites — FireTedThompson.com, CanTedThompson.com and FirePackersGM.com — even popped up.
"When you're the point guy you expect some of that, but my goodness," Packers coach Mike McCarthy said. "To see him come under fire like that, what good is it? I thought it was inappropriate and I didn't agree with it."
But a funny thing happened. The Packers went 13-3 — with the NFL's youngest roster, no less — and enter Saturday's second-round home playoff game against Seattle just two wins from the Super Bowl. Favre enjoyed one of his best seasons and is no longer thinking retirement. And the Packers are currently projected to enter the off-season with $14.4 million in cap space.
Thompson has since received two letters of apology from previously disgruntled fans and two of the web sites have shut down. Packers management showed its appreciation last week by giving Thompson a five-year contract extension.
Through it all, Thompson never buckled to public pressure or lashed out at critics. Thompson isn't even bitter about the abuse he received.
"The passion that the people have here, they suffer the same ups and downs as the team," Thompson said Thursday from his office at Lambeau Field. "That's a good thing. That's the reason they booed me on draft day and had those Web sites.
"It wasn't because they hated me. It's because they loved the Packers. I'm OK with that."
The Packers weren't OK when Thompson was hired as general manager in 2005. While coming off a 10-6 season as NFC North champions, a series of poor drafts and suspect roster moves had left the franchise vulnerable in what became a 4-12 campaign. That led to the firing of head coach Mike Sherman, who had personnel power before Thompson's arrival.
"The team had aged a little bit," Thompson said. "Quite frankly, if I were here then, I might have done the same thing (Sherman did) because it was a team that had a chance every year. When you're that close, you try to hang onto as much of your team as you can. We just felt like it had reached a point where we had to add more young, core players."
Thompson did just that. Twenty three of 33 players drafted between 2005 and 2007 remain on the team's roster, including seven starters.
Thompson and his staff also have excelled at plucking players out of scrap heaps. Starting tight end Donald Lee (48 catches, six touchdowns) and strong safety Atari Bigby — the NFL's Defensive Player of the Month for December — were not only both waived by Miami, they went unclaimed and were later signed by the Packers as free agents.
The biggest coup: Green Bay sent a 2008 sixth-round pick to the New York Giants in September for Ryan Grant, an undrafted running back who hadn't played in his first two NFL seasons. Grant has since blossomed into one of the league's top rushers and bettered what was an anemic rushing attack.
While staging a youth movement, Thompson inked key veterans like Charles Woodson (one of Thompson's few veteran free-agent acquisitions), fellow cornerback Al Harris, linebacker Nick Barnett and defensive end Aaron Kampman to contract extensions. Another round of re-signings is expected before the March 2 start of the free-agent signing period.
"We know they're the backbone of the team," Thompson said of his core veterans. "They're the ones who are leading these young guys."
The biggest leader of all is Favre, whose feelings toward Green Bay management were the subject of off-season controversy. FOXSports NFL insider Jay Glazer reported that Favre was so frustrated with the state of the Packers that he asked for a trade in April. Favre and his agent later denied the report, but the quarterback's skepticism about Green Bay's chances in 2007 was irrefutable.
While not specifically naming Thompson, Favre publicly questioned the team's direction in May by saying, "I don't know if I've lost faith. I think everyone in the organization wants to win. I just don't know if it includes me. If it's going to be five years from now, I'm not going to be here. This is 17 years for me and I want to win (now)."
While not providing specifics, Thompson said the Packers did "some exploring" on Moss and "it just didn't work out" before Oakland traded him to New England. Thompson, though, did give Favre plenty of ammunition for Green Bay's spread formations.
The Packers hit on second-year wideout Greg Jennings and rookie James Jones with first-day draft picks. Donald Driver, Favre's favorite target, was rewarded for his solid play with a raise and one-year contract extension in August even though his deal wasn't set to expire until 2009. Big-bodied Ruvell Martin (four touchdowns) and Koren Robinson — who was signed in 2006 despite a history of alcohol problems following a suggestion from Favre — also have contributed.
As it turned out, Favre didn't need Moss to finish with one of his best statistical seasons while breaking some of the NFL's top career passing records. And most importantly, Favre was back in the playoffs for the first time since 2004.
"He just wants to win," Thompson said. "At his age (38), I think there was some trepidation on the part of us being so young. But he likes these young guys. He's probably the youngest guy at heart of any of them. He's the guy jumping around, having fun and doing crazy stuff.
"I'm pretty sure he's happy right now. There have probably been times he was not so happy."
Thompson then laughed, which has proven an effective mechanism to diffuse the heat he has faced. Thompson remembers the feedback he received in 2006 when he hired McCarthy, who had no previous head coaching experience and was coming off a poor season as San Francisco's offensive coordinator.
"I got criticized for that, too," a smiling Thompson says in his trademark East Texas drawl.
Thompson knows the chirping will start again if the Packers make an early postseason exit. Ironically, the coach whose team could lead to Green Bay's demise is one of Thompson's mentors.
After spending eight years in Green Bay's front office learning under then-general manager Ron Wolf, Thompson followed Mike Holmgren to Seattle in 2000 for a promotion as vice president of football operations. Holmgren had final say over personnel moves during their five seasons together in Seattle but gave Thompson significant leeway.
"He gave me the ability to stand on my own two feet and say, 'Go do this. You make this decision,'" said Thompson, who turns 55 on Thursday. "That's something I wasn't able to do here because of how the organization was set up. I had to hire people, set up drafts and all this other stuff that I had always worked second-fiddle to Ron with.
"I couldn't do this now if I hadn't have left. You would think, 'Maybe if I had just stayed, I may have been the next guy.' I don't think I would have been as prepared for it."
Thompson actually wasn't planning for a career in NFL management after ending his 10-year career as a Houston Oilers linebacker in 1985. Thompson became a financial advisor but admits his soft-spoken, level-headed approach made that job a bad fit.
"I sat in a brokerage house for a couple of months but I couldn't sell anything," Thompson said. "I'm not a seller. I can't do that. I learned during that time I missed the game and felt I had something to offer."
The business world's loss is Green Bay's gain.
"It's nice to see people writing the appropriate articles about him now and giving him the credit he deserves," McCarthy said. "He's the key to all this."
Read this article at:
http://msn.foxsports.com/nfl/story/7662000