Bretsky
10-20-2006, 08:11 AM
Thompson needs time to patch up Packers
Posted: Oct. 19, 2006
After 21 months, defining Ted Thompson's impact on the Green Bay Packers continues to be an elusive venture, kind of like trying to nail Jell-O to the wall.
"Obscure and oblique, inscrutable and vague, so hard to pin down," was what Pete Townshend once wrote about another topic, but those words could just as well apply to the early stages of a regime that has been castigated by many, accepted by some and remains frustratingly imperceptible to the majority.
Does he have a plan, and if so, why did he stray from what has every appearance of a youth movement by throwing way too much money at Charles Woodson and compromising such tenuous depth at wide receiver by taking a 1,000-to-1 shot on Koren Robinson?
Ted Thompson has a 5-16 record as a GM in Green Bay.
If you are waiting for a definitive sign that Thompson has the keen insights of his mentor, Ron Wolf, or is a clueless fraud squandering the Packers' vast resources, that epiphany isn't exactly forthcoming by the way the general manager is going about this thing.
Known mostly so far for blowing up the roster, Thompson deserves the time to prove whether the replacements he has gathered can play. He deserves that much, because if you believe that many of Mike Sherman's draft picks greased the Packers' slide to oblivion, and if you subscribe to the common-sense theory that hardly anything was worth salvaging from a team that has gone 5-16 since 2005, then Thompson merits the chance to see this through.
Not the absurd latitude Matt Millen has received in Detroit, but enough to prove whether he can reverse the natural ravages visited upon a successful franchise by the NFL's punitive system.
While the body of a general manager's work cannot be fairly judged in less than two years, especially when the rebuilding job is so immense, Thompson has experienced hits and misses along the way.
The Brett Favre situation was handled poorly in the off-season. Thompson should've traded him to accelerate rebuilding when teams had the cap room. Then maybe by now he'd have a reading on whether Aaron Rodgers could play, especially with the chance to draft another high first-round quarterback this spring.
Although Mike McCarthy's qualifications were never overly impressive, I'm starting to get the impression that Thompson's hasty decision on the head coach was sound. Even Mike Holmgren would struggle with this start-over roster.
Of the free agents Thompson let go, he clearly made a mistake with Mike Wahle. Ryan Longwell was going to leave for a dome or warm weather, no matter what. Darren Sharper wasn't worth what Minnesota paid him. The rest aren't worth mentioning.
It's hard to fault Thompson for the way he handled the Javon Walker situation; sometimes you have to know when to cut your losses. At the same time, Thompson was too rash with Ahmad Carroll. The same could not be said for Najeh Davenport or Samkon Gado, whose 15 minutes of fame in Green Bay had expired.
Woodson was a mistake, as Robinson would be if he doesn't return clean and sober. The hope here is that the man straightens out his life, no thanks to the league's draconian policy that prohibits the Packers from assisting Robinson.
Thompson's choice of A.J. Hawk at No. 5 will always cause some to unfairly judge the linebacker, but this is a guy who has the chance to become the face of the Packers when Favre retires.
But those are instant snapshots. Over time, the Thompson era will rise or fall on the young players.
Posted: Oct. 19, 2006
After 21 months, defining Ted Thompson's impact on the Green Bay Packers continues to be an elusive venture, kind of like trying to nail Jell-O to the wall.
"Obscure and oblique, inscrutable and vague, so hard to pin down," was what Pete Townshend once wrote about another topic, but those words could just as well apply to the early stages of a regime that has been castigated by many, accepted by some and remains frustratingly imperceptible to the majority.
Does he have a plan, and if so, why did he stray from what has every appearance of a youth movement by throwing way too much money at Charles Woodson and compromising such tenuous depth at wide receiver by taking a 1,000-to-1 shot on Koren Robinson?
Ted Thompson has a 5-16 record as a GM in Green Bay.
If you are waiting for a definitive sign that Thompson has the keen insights of his mentor, Ron Wolf, or is a clueless fraud squandering the Packers' vast resources, that epiphany isn't exactly forthcoming by the way the general manager is going about this thing.
Known mostly so far for blowing up the roster, Thompson deserves the time to prove whether the replacements he has gathered can play. He deserves that much, because if you believe that many of Mike Sherman's draft picks greased the Packers' slide to oblivion, and if you subscribe to the common-sense theory that hardly anything was worth salvaging from a team that has gone 5-16 since 2005, then Thompson merits the chance to see this through.
Not the absurd latitude Matt Millen has received in Detroit, but enough to prove whether he can reverse the natural ravages visited upon a successful franchise by the NFL's punitive system.
While the body of a general manager's work cannot be fairly judged in less than two years, especially when the rebuilding job is so immense, Thompson has experienced hits and misses along the way.
The Brett Favre situation was handled poorly in the off-season. Thompson should've traded him to accelerate rebuilding when teams had the cap room. Then maybe by now he'd have a reading on whether Aaron Rodgers could play, especially with the chance to draft another high first-round quarterback this spring.
Although Mike McCarthy's qualifications were never overly impressive, I'm starting to get the impression that Thompson's hasty decision on the head coach was sound. Even Mike Holmgren would struggle with this start-over roster.
Of the free agents Thompson let go, he clearly made a mistake with Mike Wahle. Ryan Longwell was going to leave for a dome or warm weather, no matter what. Darren Sharper wasn't worth what Minnesota paid him. The rest aren't worth mentioning.
It's hard to fault Thompson for the way he handled the Javon Walker situation; sometimes you have to know when to cut your losses. At the same time, Thompson was too rash with Ahmad Carroll. The same could not be said for Najeh Davenport or Samkon Gado, whose 15 minutes of fame in Green Bay had expired.
Woodson was a mistake, as Robinson would be if he doesn't return clean and sober. The hope here is that the man straightens out his life, no thanks to the league's draconian policy that prohibits the Packers from assisting Robinson.
Thompson's choice of A.J. Hawk at No. 5 will always cause some to unfairly judge the linebacker, but this is a guy who has the chance to become the face of the Packers when Favre retires.
But those are instant snapshots. Over time, the Thompson era will rise or fall on the young players.