TT Confidence Meter

[CaliforniaCheez]

I have the upmost confidence in the Packers General Manager, Ted Thompson. Higher than any of the categories in the poll.

1) The cap/payroll is in great shape with

2) The team being competitive.

The Packers are well positioned for the uncapped year.

In a forum like this it is all too easy to point out some choices that did not work out successfully.

On the whole the averages work out. In a year when they draft late such as this one it is better to think of it as them not having a 1st round pick. Consider their first as a secnd and so forth.

Things will work well and as always there a few worthwhile free agents to consider.

[cheesner]

Maybe I am right, or maybe I am wrong, - but other than NO, I don't think any team in the NFL is looking better for the upcoming decade. And we have TT to thank for that.

Nah. I'll thank Aaron Rodgers for that.

Thompson has been lucky just as much as he has been good IMO. He got lucky that Rodgers fell into his lap...if Thompson is sitting 7-8 spots higher, does he pull the trigger on Rodgers? Probably not. Getting Woodson was luck too...Chuck wasn't coming here, other than no one else wanted him.

Thompson is a solid GM...I'm not putting him in the top 5 just yet. In terms of purely evaluating talent, I think he is top 5. However, there is more than just talent evaluation...you need to know how to assemble the talent into a cohesive unit using all avenues available to you. In some respects, Thompson hasn't passed that test with flying colors yet. He is still living off Ron Wolf's OTs...or his OL would be abysmal. His stable of RBs have been mediocre. The punting situation...yeah, that's a black mark. He's also had some difficulty finding enough capable guys in the secondary...he's been hit and miss back there.

IMO, this team remains 3-4 players away from being a true title contender. We need a strong young LT...we need a more complete/game changing RB...we need another pass rushing LB...we need another starting caliber DB.

Lets see, he has AR, Collins, Jennings, Finley and CMIII to his credit as 5 diffence makers in 5 drafts. And I suspect more will emerge in the near future.

Who was better drafting? Not NO. They got lucky on every single draft pick. Certainly not Indy, they got lucky on Manning, Gonzalez, etc. and pretty much every pick they have ever made.

WHat the hell? It is ridiculous to not give TT credit where credit is due. His drafting record has been better or at least equal to, any GM in the NFL. To call it luck is foolish at best.

[Gunakor]

Ted has provided us with an exceptional return man. Blackmon just can't stay healthy anymore.

As opposed to when?

He didn't miss a game in 2008. How quickly we forget.

36 punt returns for 400 yards and 2 TD's ain't too shabby. 55 kick returns for almost 1200 yards ain't horrible either. If he comes back and can stay healthy he's all the return man we need.

[Brandon494]

I hate when people say TT got lucky with picking Rodgers. You think that was a easy pick to make when you have Favre at QB? He had to know he was going to take a lot of heat for using a 1st round pick on a QB.

An example of a lucky pick would be the Cavs winning the draft lottery getting the #1 pick and selecting a no brainer in Lebron James.

[Joemailman]

Taking Rodgers in 2005 was anything but a no-brainer. The Packers had the NFL's #3 offense and #25 defense in 2004. The conventional wisdom would have been go with the best defensive player in the 1st round.

Odell Thurman was available. Right, Bretsky?

[Bossman641]

I voted 7-8 in the poll.

Sure, Thompson has had a few misses along the way (the OL, Jon Ryan, Harrell) but when you look at the overall body of work it speaks for itself. And I think characterizing any move as "lucky" or a "no brainer" is ridiculous. Is the "luck" of Rodgers balanced out against the "unluckiness" of Harrell? If TT doesn't get credit for Woodson because it was a no-brainer, does he instead get credit for not signing any of the dozens of high-priced FA's who didn't live up to their contracts?

[cheesner]

I voted 7-8 in the poll.

Sure, Thompson has had a few misses along the way (the OL, Jon Ryan, Harrell) but when you look at the overall body of work it speaks for itself. And I think characterizing any move as "lucky" or a "no brainer" is ridiculous. Is the "luck" of Rodgers balanced out against the "unluckiness" of Harrell? If TT doesn't get credit for Woodson because it was a no-brainer, does he instead get credit for not signing any of the dozens of high-priced FA's who didn't live up to their contracts?

Great point. Some of TT's best moves were moves he didn't make.

Every player in the draft carries a risk of bust. If its because of attitude, it can be prevented. If its because of injury, like in Harrell, there isn't o much you can do about it. Still, attitude problems are still worth it. Finley slipped to the 4th round in part because he was very immature. At the 4th round TT felt the high risk was worth the potential reward. His rookie season he was looking like a probable failure. His attitude and throwing his QB under the bus, looked to me like he wasn't going to make it. Surprisingly, he matured fast and TT and the Packers are cashing in on that pick.

Do you want to call it luck?

Its like poker, you can play any hand you want, if you play your pocket aces, you will win heads up 80% of the time. You aren't guaranteed to win, but the odds are in your favor. If you play your 2-7 off, your odds are way down, but you will still win some. The idea is to put yourself in the best odds of success as often as you can. To an uneducated eye, what appears as luck is actually careful and intelligent planning and risk management. To me, TT appears to be a master at this.

[Guiness]

Taking Rodgers in 2005 was anything but a no-brainer. The Packers had the NFL's #3 offense and #25 defense in 2004. The conventional wisdom would have been go with the best defensive player in the 1st round.

Odell Thurman was available. Right, Bretsky?

Ouch, that was cheap Joe. Poor Bretsky's taken one holy hell of a beating for liking that guy!

[Scott Campbell]

Ted has provided us with an exceptional return man. Blackmon just can't stay healthy anymore.

As opposed to when?

He didn't miss a game in 2008. How quickly we forget.

32 games out of 64 possible in his career. He's durable only if you're comparing him to Justin Harrell.

[Scott Campbell]

At the 4th round TT felt the high risk was worth the potential reward.

3rd round.

[Scott Campbell]

Taking Rodgers in 2005 was anything but a no-brainer. The Packers had the NFL's #3 offense and #25 defense in 2004. The conventional wisdom would have been go with the best defensive player in the 1st round.

Odell Thurman was available. Right, Bretsky?

Ouch, that was cheap Joe. Poor Bretsky's taken one holy hell of a beating for liking that guy!

Things are looking up for B. Meacham finally did something.

[gbgary]

we need a more complete/game changing RB....

I still fail to understand why everyone is so down on Ryan Grant. The guy is a top 10 back in the NFL. That's what he is. 2 years in a row now, in a pass happy offense. Since week 9 of the 2007 season, the week Grant became the regular starter in our pass happy offense, ONLY Adrian Peterson has gained more yards rushing. But unlike Peterson, Grant doesn't fumble the ball. What does a guy have to do to earn respect around here?

What we need is Ryan Grant to do what Ryan Grant does. We need a better line in front of him. We need a better line in front of Rodgers. We need a better line, period. There is nothing wrong with any of the skill positions on offense.

I would say a better line will help him break explosive runs...that is really why he isnt considered an elite back in my opinion.

Well, that and he doesn't utilize a second move or break many tackles on the second level...

And as we all complain about that, he averaged 4.5 ypc en route to 1253 yards and 11 TD's on the season. Here's my question. Who cares about a second move or breaking tackles at the second level when he's getting the yards, moving the chains, and scoring the points? I could care less about breaking tackles at the second level as long as he's consistently falling forward for 4. That leaves 3rd and 2. That moves the chains, keeps the clock running, and wears out the defense. I'll take that all afternoon, every Sunday in Autumn.

We run a form of ZBS. Lets get our zone blockers out on the second level guys and throw a block so Grant doesn't have to break so many goddamn tackles. That'd help too.

I was only commenting on why he isn't considered elite. He doesn't create. That's why he's not considered elite.

fwiw...

http://bleacherreport.com/articles/346112-green-bay-packers-position-analysis-volume-ii-running-backs

[Smidgeon]

we need a more complete/game changing RB....

I still fail to understand why everyone is so down on Ryan Grant. The guy is a top 10 back in the NFL. That's what he is. 2 years in a row now, in a pass happy offense. Since week 9 of the 2007 season, the week Grant became the regular starter in our pass happy offense, ONLY Adrian Peterson has gained more yards rushing. But unlike Peterson, Grant doesn't fumble the ball. What does a guy have to do to earn respect around here?

What we need is Ryan Grant to do what Ryan Grant does. We need a better line in front of him. We need a better line in front of Rodgers. We need a better line, period. There is nothing wrong with any of the skill positions on offense.

I would say a better line will help him break explosive runs...that is really why he isnt considered an elite back in my opinion.

Well, that and he doesn't utilize a second move or break many tackles on the second level...

And as we all complain about that, he averaged 4.5 ypc en route to 1253 yards and 11 TD's on the season. Here's my question. Who cares about a second move or breaking tackles at the second level when he's getting the yards, moving the chains, and scoring the points? I could care less about breaking tackles at the second level as long as he's consistently falling forward for 4. That leaves 3rd and 2. That moves the chains, keeps the clock running, and wears out the defense. I'll take that all afternoon, every Sunday in Autumn.

We run a form of ZBS. Lets get our zone blockers out on the second level guys and throw a block so Grant doesn't have to break so many goddamn tackles. That'd help too.

I was only commenting on why he isn't considered elite. He doesn't create. That's why he's not considered elite.

http://bleacherreport.com/articles/3...-running-backs

The article says he's good at taking what's given to him (which I agree he is), but he still doesn't make anything out of nothing which is why he isn't considered elite. He isn't a threat to score everytime he touches the ball. He's incredibly consistent and doesn't turn the ball over.

I like Grant. Maybe he pairs well with AR in that neither really ever turn the ball over. Maybe he's more ideal for the system than I think. But that wasn't the point of my statement. The point of my statement is that he isn't considered elite because he doesn't create.

He is a very good running back and I'm happy Green Bay has him over Morency or Gado or Herron, etc. He's effective for what he has to do. He could be upgraded, but there are definitely more pressing needs this offseason.

[channtheman]

we need a more complete/game changing RB....

I still fail to understand why everyone is so down on Ryan Grant. The guy is a top 10 back in the NFL. That's what he is. 2 years in a row now, in a pass happy offense. Since week 9 of the 2007 season, the week Grant became the regular starter in our pass happy offense, ONLY Adrian Peterson has gained more yards rushing. But unlike Peterson, Grant doesn't fumble the ball. What does a guy have to do to earn respect around here?

What we need is Ryan Grant to do what Ryan Grant does. We need a better line in front of him. We need a better line in front of Rodgers. We need a better line, period. There is nothing wrong with any of the skill positions on offense.

I would say a better line will help him break explosive runs...that is really why he isnt considered an elite back in my opinion.

Well, that and he doesn't utilize a second move or break many tackles on the second level...

And as we all complain about that, he averaged 4.5 ypc en route to 1253 yards and 11 TD's on the season. Here's my question. Who cares about a second move or breaking tackles at the second level when he's getting the yards, moving the chains, and scoring the points? I could care less about breaking tackles at the second level as long as he's consistently falling forward for 4. That leaves 3rd and 2. That moves the chains, keeps the clock running, and wears out the defense. I'll take that all afternoon, every Sunday in Autumn.

We run a form of ZBS. Lets get our zone blockers out on the second level guys and throw a block so Grant doesn't have to break so many goddamn tackles. That'd help too.

I was only commenting on why he isn't considered elite. He doesn't create. That's why he's not considered elite.

fwiw...

http://bleacherreport.com/articles/3...-running-backs

That really makes a good point about Grant. Mainly, because he doesn't have the long 60 yard TD runs, his average of 4.4 is truly pretty accurate. Instead of often getting 2-3 yards/carry and then busting off a 60 yarder to bump that average up, Grant really is a consistent 4 ypc guy.

[Gunakor]

Ted has provided us with an exceptional return man. Blackmon just can't stay healthy anymore.

As opposed to when?

He didn't miss a game in 2008. How quickly we forget.

32 games out of 64 possible in his career. He's durable only if you're comparing him to Justin Harrell.

Beside the point. You said Ted Thompson hasn't provided us a decent return man. 2 years ago Will Blackmon was an exceptional return man for us (nice job omitting the return stats I posted from that year in your response btw), and he was brought in by Ted Thompson. I offered the Tramon Williams example as a decent return man also. That's 2 more than decent return men Ted has provided us with.