Ted Thompson to transition into a new role within the organization. GB will begin a search for a new GM.

[incognito_man]

1 minute ago, beveaux1 said:

I'm not really understanding why Ball would stay if he's not picked, but Wolf and Gutekunst would certainly leave if Ball is picked.  We were having cap problems before TT began using a cap management specialist.  Now, we have a fairly healthy cap.  If I'm 58 years old and I'm passed over for a job that I feel qualified for, I would pursue other employment or I'd retire.  A 44 year old and a 37 year old may not have that same mindset.

Well, Ball could be gunning for Murphy's job too

[spilltray]

4 minutes ago, beveaux1 said:

I'm not really understanding why Ball would stay if he's not picked, but Wolf and Gutekunst would certainly leave if Ball is picked.  We were having cap problems before TT began using a cap management specialist.  Now, we have a fairly healthy cap.  If I'm 58 years old and I'm passed over for a job that I feel qualified for, I would pursue other employment or I'd retire.  A 44 year old and a 37 year old may not have that same mindset.

That's just not true. Thompson inherited a mess of a cap from Sherman, but cleaned house quickly.

[incognito_man]

4 minutes ago, {Family Ghost} said:

Well, he does have some words from Alonzo Highsmith ... "it's nice to be trusted".  I think that was kind of a shot at Ted, but who knows for sure?

Eh, could be interpreted as "it's nice to go somewhere where I am [again] trusted" just as well.

Not sure how to take that comment.

[Packerraymond]

3 minutes ago, incognito_man said:

Well, Ball could be gunning for Murphy's job too

That's the job he would be perfect for.

[beveaux1]

Just now, Shanedorf said:

Packers employed one of the very best cap guys in the entire industry in Andrew Brandt. He was here prior to TT's arrival and for TT's 1st year here.

Then they went with Russ Ball as a replacement

That's true, but TT inherited a cap problem almost certainly of Sherman's making.  It took time to fix that problem.  It points to the dependence of TT and Murphy on Ball.  The fact that Brandt was not retained may or may not be an indictment of him.

[Packerraymond]

3 minutes ago, spilltray said:

That's just not true. Thompson inherited a mess of a cap from Sherman, but cleaned house quickly.

Everything he said was true, from 2006 to 2008 we went without a cap specialist and it was basically a roster purging period. By the time there were guys like Rodgers, Jennings, Collins etc needing extensions we hired Ball to manage the cap. Ted's not a cap guy, that's the ironic part, we're now looking at the guy he brought in so he could focus on the most important part of a GMs job. I know Ball's been training as a scout but color me skeptical as someone who wants him with the final say on player acquisition.

[incognito_man]

Just now, Packerraymond said:

That's the job he would be perfect for.

If your GM knows the scouts beneath him are better scouts than him, isn't he more likely to collect, organize and decipher the raw data without adding too much of his own cooking?

I'm not convinced your GM needs to be a scout or the best football talent evaluator. Your GM, most of all, needs to be the best opinion evaluator. I.e. why is this guys opinion better than this other guy. Both are experts?

Need someone with a 10,000ft view more than a Sooper scout.

[ugLymayNe]

2 minutes ago, beveaux1 said:

 It points to the dependence of TT and Murphy on Ball.

Wait...what?

[Packerraymond]

Just now, incognito_man said:

If your GM knows the scouts beneath him are better scouts than him, isn't he more likely to collect, organize and decipher the raw data without adding too much of his own cooking?

I'm not convinced your GM needs to be a scout or the best football talent evaluator. Your GM, most of all, needs to be the best opinion evaluator. I.e. why is this guys opinion better than this other guy. Both are experts?

Need someone with a 10,000ft view more than a Sooper scout.

While very true this is a rare quality to find in anyone. Knowing you have the power to solely make a decision but being humble and knowledgeable enough to seek the council of those who know more than you.

We'll never know if Russ Ball or any candidate were to have this, but yes I would certainly be more comfortable if this was the case.

[spilltray]

5 minutes ago, Packerraymond said:

Everything he said was true, from 2006 to 2008 we went without a cap specialist and it was basically a roster purging period. By the time there were guys like Rodgers, Jennings, Collins etc needing extensions we hired Ball to manage the cap. Ted's not a cap guy, that's the ironic part, we're now looking at the guy he brought in so he could focus on the most important part of a GMs job. I know Ball's been training as a scout but color me skeptical as someone who wants him with the final say on player acquisition.

The cap problems had nothing to do with Thompson hiring Ball to fix some sort of mess. The mess was already there and cleanup well under way.

[beveaux1]

I don't really care if Gutekunst, Wolf, Ball, Schneider, or McKenzie is selected.  I see the GM job as having many layers.  Scouting, cap management, personnel decisions,  fiscal management, and media relations are all part of the job.  If you choose a scouting guru, you better have the other parts of the job covered with good people or you fail.  The same goes for a cap guru.  This is one thing that our previous GM did pretty well.  I have no idea if the next GM will do this as well, but I would think that a new GM who has contacts outside of Green Bay would be able to fill his staff properly. 

[incognito_man]

1 minute ago, Packerraymond said:

While very true this is a rare quality to find in anyone. Knowing you have the power to solely make a decision but being humble and knowledgeable enough to seek the council of those who know more than you.

We'll never know if Russ Ball or any candidate were to have this, but yes I would certainly be more comfortable if this was the case.

This is the biggest difference between MM and BB. BB isn't a better football mind than MM.

BB is loyal to an idea. Viciously so.

MM is loyal to men. Perhaps to a fault.

The former, if the leader is skilled, results in the best idea winning out. Every time. The latter results in the wrong idea from the better man sometimes getting enacted.

BB is a cold *****, though.

[Green19]

8 minutes ago, beveaux1 said:

I don't really care if Gutekunst, Wolf, Ball, Schneider, or McKenzie is selected.  I see the GM job as having many layers.  Scouting, cap management, personnel decisions,  fiscal management, and media relations are all part of the job.  If you choose a scouting guru, you better have the other parts of the job covered with good people or you fail.  The same goes for a cap guru.  This is one thing that our previous GM did pretty well.  I have no idea if the next GM will do this as well, but I would think that a new GM who has contacts outside of Green Bay would be able to fill his staff properly. 

^^^ This is the argument FOR Ball. Because articles written on him point to his management of all these things as being why he is superior to Eliot and Brian.

They might be better talent guys but all the other things are learning curves for them.

The fear now is will all the good talent evaluators leave if Ball is hired? Because he will need the best talent guys to lean on... if that’s Eliot and Brian then that would hurt us.

[Arthur Penske]

Rapoport says Doug Whaley is expected to draw GM interest in GB.

[vegas492]

So...I don't read where anyone is worried about Ball leaving if Gute or Wolf get the job.

But, many are worried that both of them leave if Ball gets the job.

GB needs to promote one of the kids and give Ball a raise to keep him happy and in that role.