Thompson's 'value' pick brings the boos
Posted: May 2, 2007
Richard Pufall
Green Bay - Ted Thompson threw a steak on the grill Saturday. But all anyone seemed to want was the sizzle.
When big, beefy defensive tackle Justin Harrell showed up as the No. 1 blue-plate special, most of Packer Nation groaned that he was more fizzle than sizzle. Packer fans, you see, didn't come into the 72nd NFL draft with a craving for defensive linemen.
Thompson believes he was serving up a player of substance, another building block cut from the draft, upon which would rest a solid franchise for years to come.
But the crowd gathered in the Lambeau Field Atrium for the draft-day party got ugly when Thompson came to chat with them after Green Bay's top choice was announced.
They booed the GM like he was Jim Carter running onto the field to replace Ray Nitschke at middle linebacker.
"We felt like he was the best value on the board," Thompson said, explaining why the Packers used the 16th pick in the first round to take the 6-foot-4½, 314-pound tackle from Tennessee.
The fans weren't interested in value. They didn't want a bargain. They wanted a running back. Or a wide receiver. How about a tight end?
They weren't booing Harrell so much as what he represented. To them, this was a giant step in the wrong direction.
They weren't angry with what Thompson and the Packers did, as much as what they didn't do.
The buzz heading into the draft had the Packers taking running back Marshawn Lynch of California in the first round. But when the Buffalo Bills snatched Lynch away with the No. 12 pick, the Packers shifted to Plan B.
To the fans, Harrell wasn't even Plan Q. But it's Thompson who draws up the plans at 1265 Lombardi Ave.
"We felt like anytime you have a chance to get a quality defensive lineman of his ability, you have to think about taking him," Thompson said. "And we felt very good about him, starting a couple weeks ago. You know, when it starts coming together and you see, you try to work through the different scenarios - who might be available, who might not be available - and we felt very comfortable with him."
Some wondered why the Packers didn't trade up to get Lynch. Others thought he wasn't worth going up to get. No matter, there was plenty of pass-catching firepower to be had with the No. 16 pick, right? How about wide receivers Robert Meachem, Dwayne Bowe, Craig Davis or Anthony Gonzalez? Maybe tight end Greg Olsen?
No, no, no, no and no. Instead, the Packers picked a defensive tackle with a history of injury problems. Of course, no one yawned about Green Bay's pick. You see, it is physically impossible to yawn while booing.
But all was not lost. They still had a chance to trade for wide receiver Randy Moss. He could, after all, be had for a song, because the Oakland Raiders wanted him gone.
But the most compelling tune came from the flute of the Patriots, who lured Moss to New England after giving the Raiders a fourth-round draft choice. It wasn't - believe it or not - about the money, because Moss took a huge pay cut to sign with the Patriots.
Moss tore up his Oakland contract that called for him to make $9.75 million in 2007 and $11.25 next season. He signed a one-year deal with New England for $3 million, which also includes $2 million in incentives.
It's clear Moss wanted to play for the Patriots. What isn't clear is whether he would have signed with the Packers if Green Bay had trumped New England's offer with a third-round pick. And no one knows if Moss would have played in Green Bay for the bargain New England negotiated.
We'll never know, because this is one of those things Thompson won't talk about.
When asked what happened to Green Bay's bid for Moss, Thompson said: "Couldn't tell you."
Then he went into greater detail about nothing.
"I'm not going to talk about too much on that because we talked to (several) different teams about different trades, different players, different draft choices, things like that, and I don't think it's appropriate to get into specifics," Thompson said. "But I just found out this morning (Sunday) on the news, maybe like you guys did, that he was going to New England."
Did Thompson think the Packers still had a chance at Moss when Day 1 of the draft ended? "Uh, yeah."
And there it was. No offensive playmaker in the first round. No Moss. No sizzle. All fizzle.
"I have sizzle," Thompson said with an impish grin and a rare splash of humor. "I just don't show it very often. I don't know, I felt going in that this was a draft - I've said this before - I didn't think it was quite as deep as it was last year so I thought you had to do a little more work and a little more study. And at the end of the day, the two days, I think we've added some value to our team, I certainly do."
Thompson's 2007 draft - which grew from nine to 11 players - has drawn some negative early reviews from the "experts" around the country. The grade-point average seems to be about a "D."
We don't love Green Bay's draft. We don't hate it, either. We do like it.
With Harrell plugged into the middle the Packers could have one of the NFL's top-ranked defenses. And defense wins in this league.
Brandon Jackson, the second-round pick, should be a good fit in the committee at running back, along with Vernand Morency, Noah Herron, Arliss Beach, P.J. Pope and maybe seventh-rounder DeShawn Wynn.
To be sure, with Moss the Packers might have had the NFL's best corps of receivers. But with any combination of Donald Driver, Greg Jennings, Ruvell Martin, Koren Robinson and rookies James Jones and David Clowney, they should be very good.
Mason Crosby probably will win the kicking job and his fellow rookies should upgrade Green Bay's feeble special teams.
Thompson is happy with his team as it stands right now, even if few others agree.
He said if they had to play tomorrow, the Packers would be ready to go.
"I think so," he said. "Some of these guys have never actually been to Green Bay so we'll have to get through that. But yeah, I think it's starting to come together."
You can almost hear the sizzle.
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Originally Posted by Ted Thompson
I can't believe he'd say this. sizzle? Not a snowballs chance in hell. Everything is boiled in water - and tastes like it.
