From one extreme at GM to the other.

[PackerBlues]

I was hanging out with some old friends this past weekend discussing the Packers and came to the conclusion that Ted Thompson is the exact opposite of Mike Sherman.

Sherman would reach for any free agent help he could get. The bigger the name, the more he went after the guy. The more we needed a position filled, the harder Sherman tried to fill it with a veteran player he thought could help the team win.
Its not that Thompson does not like free agents, he just doesnt like veteran free agents. He seems to prefer guys that he "discovers".


Sherman was very into the idea of cohesion and keeping the team together as well as he could. If his salary cap situation dictated that he free up some cap space, he would come right out and tell people "this is the situation that we are in, and this is what we can do".
Ted came here as a head hunter. Bound and determined to "fix things". He chopped as many large salaries as he could as quickly as he could, regardless of the talent, positional need, or free space already on our cap room.

Sherman took chances in the draft to pick up a player at a position we needed. Thompson could care less about what the Packers need in the draft. He only drafts "the best player available".

Sherman paid attention to team history, not just the history of Lambeau, but also the history of the Players he put on the field. Thompson hates anything that came B.T. (Before Ted) If you are not a player that Ted put on the team.....get ready for the Dagger in the back, because it doesnt matter what you have done for the Packers or who you are, you will be gone.

Shermans teams had winning records.......Thompsons teams have not.

The teams Sherman put on the field had you expecting wins. The teams Thompson put on the field make you lose your lunch.

Hind sight is 20-20 for everyone except the blind. Thompson has been here long enough to make comparisons. I am not saying either of these guys are the perfect GM. I think they are extreme opposites of one another, and we could actually use a GM somewhere in the middle.

[Scott Campbell]

Re: From one extreme at GM to the other.

Ted came here as a head hunter. Bound and determined to "fix things".

Well after all, isn't that what he was hired to do? Harlan didn't hire the guy just to follow in the great Mike Sherman's footsteps.

[Cheesehead Craig]

Re: From one extreme at GM to the other.

I am not saying either of these guys are the perfect GM.

Your entire post states that you believe that Sherman was the perfect one and TT is completely useless.

[Scott Campbell]

Re: From one extreme at GM to the other.

Thompson could care less about what the Packers need in the draft. He only drafts "the best player available".

More silliness.

So Thompson never considers need - only BPA???


We desparately needed to upgrade the RB position. We drafted 2.

We desparately needed to upgrade the WR position. We drafted 2.

We desperately needed to upgrade the Safety position. We drafted 1.

We desperately needed to upgrade the TE position. We drafted 1.



So in a 7 round draft, we drafted 6 "need" guys. Though I'm sure need never played into these decisons. Sheesh.

[Brando19]

Re: From one extreme at GM to the other.

Thompson could care less about what the Packers need in the draft. He only drafts "the best player available".

More silliness.

So Thompson never considers need - only BPA???


We desparately needed to upgrade the RB position. We drafted 2.

We desparately needed to upgrade the WR position. We drafted 2.

We desperately needed to upgrade the Safety position. We drafted 1.

We desperately needed to upgrade the TE position. We drafted 1.



So in a 7 round draft, we drafted 6 "need" guys. Though I'm sure need never played into these decisons. Sheesh.

The TE position actually wasn't addressed....I doubt the guy we drafted even makes the team.

[ahaha]

Re: From one extreme at GM to the other.

Thompson hates anything that came B.T. (Before Ted) If you are not a player that Ted put on the team.....get ready for the Dagger in the back, because it doesnt matter what you have done for the Packers or who you are, you will be gone.

Does your definition of 'stabbing in the back' include signing Sherman guys to new contracts? Did Wells, Franks, Harris, Driver, Jenkins, and Barnett get shafted?

[Scott Campbell]

Re: From one extreme at GM to the other.

The TE position actually wasn't addressed....I doubt the guy we drafted even makes the team.

BS

You might not like how it was addressed, but it was addressed. By your logic they ought to just cut him right now and get it over with. Have you forgotten about where Driver and Marques Colston were drafted?

[esoxx]

I don't fault Ted for having HIS plan and following it. Time will be the only indicator of his plan's success/failure.

[Scott Campbell]

Re: From one extreme at GM to the other.

He seems to prefer guys that he "discovers".

Charles Woodson got the biggest FA contract the Ted has handed out since he's been here. I wasn't aware that Ted "discovered" Charles.

I think you're making a ridiculous outlandish claim based upon one signing - Manual.

[Brando19]

Re: From one extreme at GM to the other.

The TE position actually wasn't addressed....I doubt the guy we drafted even makes the team.

BS

You might not like how it was addressed, but it was addressed. By your logic they ought to just cut him right now and get it over with. Have you forgotten about where Driver and Marques Colston were drafted?

Need a tissue, Scottie? I'm just giving my opinion. I said I DOUBT he makes the team...that's my opinion. I just wanted to address the TE position in FA...but I agreed with everything else you posted. CHILL!

[PackerBlues]

Gee Brando, didnt you know that you are not allowed to have a differing opinion here?

I was just pointing out that in my opinion Sherman and Thompson are exact opposites. One sits at one extreme, one sits at the other. Then I tried to back up my opinion by stating my point of view on certain things that I noticed.

I think I could have said that Sherman was fat and Thompson isnt and some TT hugger would have found some way to try to argue.

[retailguy]

Gee Brando, didnt you know that you are not allowed to have a differing opinion here?

I was just pointing out that in my opinion Sherman and Thompson are exact opposites. One sits at one extreme, one sits at the other. Then I tried to back up my opinion by stating my point of view on certain things that I noticed.

I think I could have said that Sherman was fat and Thompson isnt and some TT hugger would have found some way to try to argue.

The Thompson lovers are just a little backed on their heels for a moment. I don't think any of them gave it a thought that it'll be a few more years before this is a "complete" team.

They thought the "magician" would give them 7 fully trained, fully functional rabbits on draft day, and instead they got 11 projects, just like last year.... and the year before.

We're on no timetable... We get what we get. Good news is we get great high draft choices, so rebuilding is a little easier, I guess.

[woodbuck27]

I believe that as a board we should relax now on TT. Let's all hope he will have success with his draft. We can argue the plus or negative side till the cows come in, every day bet. now and seasons end.

That. . . is a waste of effort.

I believe that this season is on TT given his neglect of the team on 'O'.He decided to add depth on the 'D' but certainly went with need picks in the draft for our 'O'. He may have reached on some picks based on others draft boards, but he used his board. On other picks others say he made value picks. He used his board for those picks as well.

Now !! Lets try to agree that it (our draft - balances out).

It's also obvious to all of us that:

No FA's and no trade to acquire help on 'O' when we finished 2007 as the 22nd ranked 'O', is questionable. I believe . . that TT must be held accountable for that.

It certainly appears or rather may be argued. That the loss of Ahman Green may spell more difficult times on 'O'. Experienced and talented RB's as Ahman certainly was as a Packer are difficult to replace.

Again. This season will be the tool we need to assess whether or not Ted Thompson failed our teams 'O' and thus the team overall. It's Ted Thompson's job to a large extent, to give the players to our coaching staff to mold into a competitive team.

Lets see how he made out as the season progress's; how we finish. How competitive we were looking back over the course of this upcoming season.

GO PACKERS !

[Packnut]

Debate

It does seem that this forum has come down to the "Thompson debate" being the main topic of discussion. The way I see it, good or bad, this is the hand we've been dealt and now it's time to hope for the best. I hope this turns out to be an outstanding draft and Teddy gets crowned the NFL's draft guru.

I have vowed not to type another Thompson negative from now until training camp starts. It serves no purpose and to be honest, only time will tell who among us actually knows what the hell they are talking about......

[Lurker64]

I believe that as a board we should relax now on TT. Let's all hope he will have success with his draft. We can argue the plus or negative side till the cows come in, every day bet. now and seasons end.

That. . . is a waste of effort.

I agree wholeheartedly. We should really spend more time talking about the players than the GM. The die is cast on the GM, and right now we should really be getting excited for the season. I mean, rookie camp is going on right now. Regular minicamp starts soon. It's an exciting time to be a football fan! Let's stop kvetching about people who don't actually play the game.