[Blue]

You are Mark Murphy and President of the Packers. After your dentist appointment that has repaired the space in your front teeth, you have an appointment with Ted Thompson to discuss his plans for the upcoming 2009 off season. You are well within your rights to discuss this as TT answers to you. He tells of draft picks he is looking at and will draft the way that he has since being here which has been somewhat fine. You ask him about resigning certain players, he tells you, his targets and philosophies on how much to who and different scenarios. The conversation then leads to free agency and a few certain players that you both know will be upgrades on the team. Not necessarily marquee or break the bank type---but certainly upgrades. TT becomes vague and noticeably uneasy and seems to resent the questioning leaving you Mark Murphy feeling that he is again not going to use or even consider using Free Agency.


Do you can him?


To me if the guy believes after this season that his system is bulletproof and even after the contract extension last year, can his ass.

Promote Reggie McKensie(sp) and move on.

[ricky]

[quote name='Blue' date='Dec 13 2008, 08:30 PM' post='215581']
You are Mark Murphy and President of the Packers. After your dentist appointment that has repaired the space in your front teeth, you have an appointment with Ted Thompson to discuss his plans for the upcoming 2009 off season. You are well within your rights to discuss this as TT answers to you. He tells of draft picks he is looking at and will draft the way that he has since being here which has been somewhat fine. You ask him about resigning certain players, he tells you, his targets and philosophies on how much to who and different scenarios. The conversation then leads to free agency and a few certain players that you both know will be upgrades on the team. Not necessarily marquee or break the bank type---but certainly upgrades. TT becomes vague and noticeably uneasy and seems to resent the questioning leaving you Mark Murphy feeling that he is again not going to use or even consider using Free Agency.


Do you can him?


To me if the guy believes after this season that his system is bulletproof and even after the contract extension last year, can his ass.

I think the question is a bit off-base. I think the Packers need to sign at least one "break the bank" type of player. After all, TT has signed "upgrades" in FA- Woodson, Chillar, Pickett, Roman (thought to be an upgrade). That's not a big deal.

The question should be, if TT is unwilling to throw the dice and bring in Haynesworth or Peppers (the latter guaranteed to hit the market), what should be done? I think TT is well aware of the weaknesses of the team, and will move to fix them.

So, no, I don't believe he should be canned and replaced by McKenzie (sp?); not unless you want the GM to be a proxy/puppet for the team president. After all, you believe TT has been good at drafting players. How would his replacement do?

Too many unknowns. It makes me nervous. I'll keep TT, and hope he does the right thing. If not, prepare for another year or so of mediocrity.

[LuvdaPack36]

No you dont can him but you make him sit in the corner with a dunce cap on until he spill his guts about his plans and promises to utilize FA properly.

[Pugger]

Just because TT doesn't go out and sign the FAs we as fans think he should sign we all assume he has this aversion to getting involved in FA. There is no way we can know how active he is in this arena unless the press finds out about it. None of really know what went down with the Moss trade, the FAs available this summer or the Gonzales situation earlier this season. Most of the talk on these boards is pure conjecture on our parts as to what TT is doing in acquiring veterans via FA or trade. TT isn't one to leak info to the media about his activities or his plans - and he shouldn't.

[LuvdaPack36]

Just because TT doesn't go out and sign the FAs we as fans think he should sign we all assume he has this aversion to getting involved in FA. There is no way we can know how active he is in this arena unless the press finds out about it. None of really know what went down with the Moss trade, the FAs available this summer or the Gonzales situation earlier this season. Most of the talk on these boards is pure conjecture on our parts as to what TT is doing in acquiring veterans via FA or trade. TT isn't one to leak info to the media about his activities or his plans - and he shouldn't.

He's admitted to not caring for FA as much as other GMs. It has nothing to do with what fans think and we may not know what EXACTLY went down with Randy or Tony but that does make us blind or dumb to what PROBABLY happened.

[Vinnie]

There is no way we can know how active he is in this arena unless the press finds out about it.

You would be suprised the amount and the type of info that gets out in a town like GB or maybe your not suprised?

[Heatseeker]

Fair question, sure.. I just don't think it's all that realistic. TT will give the same lip service to Murphy as he's done to the media and the fans regarding free agency.

"Oh I have flair" LOL


He'll say something like he plans to look at several key free agents, etc. with, IMO, no real intention on signing them.

Personally, I couldn't care less anymore if he signs FA's or not. I just want a winning team. I'm not expecting him to sign free agents, but as a fan of a team with as much winning tradition as the Packers, I do expect a winner to be put on the field. And that, is what should decide Thompson's fate. Not because his philosophy on free agent signings differs from other GM's.

[packinatl]

Ted Thompson had the reputation of being a great evaluator of talent when he came to GB. There is more to being a successful GM than that.

As far as his FA signings, he brought in Chiller but in reality as a #4LB, he got in on Woodson late in the process and there were many that questioned that deal due to question about Woodson both on and off the field.

Signing FA's is more and more like college recruiting than it even was, you dont just need to have the cash, you have to sell GB. The one asset that TT and before him Wolf had to sell was Brett Favre. Players wanted to play for Farve and they thought that coming to GB was a shot at the SB. Sure $$$$ are a factor but getting big time FA's will be harder in the future. As I said there is more to being a successful GM than just evaluating talent

[Lare]

Personally, I couldn't care less anymore if he signs FA's or not. I just want a winning team. I'm not expecting him to sign free agents, but as a fan of a team with as much winning tradition as the Packers, I do expect a winner to be put on the field. And that, is what should decide Thompson's fate. Not because his philosophy on free agent signings differs from other GM's.

I agree. I also don't think the scenario is very realistic simply because I don't think there's much accountability anywhere within the organization right now.

In the words of Desmond Bishop when asked in an interview this week if his performance against Houston merited him consideration for starting this week;

"I don't know. I don't think it's about what you do anymore," said Bishop, who started at will linebacker against the Texans after Chillar suffered a groin injury in practice during the week. "I think it's beyond that. It's something else. I don't know what it is, but it's something beyond what you do on the field.

You can call it sour grapes if you want, you can say he has a biased opinion of his own performance and abilities, but the point is if he's saying this in the media chances are he's not the only player on the team who feels this way. And if players don't feel it matters how they perform on the field, there's really no incentive for them to perform on the field. Same goes for management.

JMO

[BacknPack]

Just because TT doesn't go out and sign the FAs we as fans think he should sign we all assume he has this aversion to getting involved in FA. There is no way we can know how active he is in this arena unless the press finds out about it. None of really know what went down with the Moss trade, the FAs available this summer or the Gonzales situation earlier this season. Most of the talk on these boards is pure conjecture on our parts as to what TT is doing in acquiring veterans via FA or trade. TT isn't one to leak info to the media about his activities or his plans - and he shouldn't.

ALL information on this board is speculation, isn't it? I doubt if ANY of us work for the GBP organization. We speculate and discuss OUR opinions......that's what fan forums are all about. We can get reporters news from the newspaper, TV station, or magazine they write for, but this is a fans forum.

TT happens to be the GM of the team. He brings in (or doesn't bring in, in some cases) players. If we can't speculate on who he should or shouldn't bring in (cut, re-sign, etc.) then what do you suggest we talk about as far as TT goes? His eyes? His demeanor? ???