In the 3 Thompson drafts that we can reasonably evaluate at this point ('05-'07; 21 total selections), he's not acquired a single legitimate starter from rounds 4-7.

Jolly has been the best of the bunch. He's made some starts and could conceivably start at DE this year, but as of now he's probably at best 2nd on the depth chart at that position. Poppinga was a starter early last year and the year before, but we all knew he wasn't the answer at the position. We signed a mid level FA to replace him (Chillar) and just used a 1st on a guy at his position. Moll is a career backup. Hall is your average FB. Blackmon is a return specialist. Crosby is a kicker.

These players have some value to us, yet on the trade market all 6 combined, the cream of three Day 2 crops, might bring you the equivalent of a mid 3rd round pick.

So, you say those rounds haven't provided any legitimate starters, and then you go on to list 4 or 5 that have been legitimate, solid starters for 2 seasons (Poppinga, Jolly, Hall, Crosby)?

I get that these guys aren't superstars, and I don't think Thompson has found any real diamonds in the late rounds (with the exception of Crosby), but I don't think your post does anything to prove that.

really don't get this. Several picks were used on still developing O-linemen. Spitz, Sitton, Giacomini...are all guys that are projected starters in the near future. TT hasn't set the world on fire for day 2 but he hasn't tanked either. Jolly is a good player and a lot of teams would love to have him. Calling him 0 fer is not accurate at all.

Yep this is zero starters.........Poppinga, Jolly, Hall, Crosby. Looks like 4 starters to me!

I gotta disagree.

Crosby is going to be an elite kicker.
Hall starts.
Jolly plays.
Poppinga has started, we dont know what he does this season.
Sitton seems to be the starter at RG this season, and looked like it last season until he got hurt.

Mr (sunshine) Packone comes from a long line of pessimists

As his late Uncle Jean Rostand used to say, "My pessimism extends to the point of even suspecting the sincerity of the pessimists. - Jean Rostand"

the key word was "legitimate" starter. and i'm afraid i have to agree with him. crosby is not what we normally think of when we use the word "starter". he's a kicker. and besides him, there aren't really any legitimate starters. we all know how much ted loves to trade down and get those late round picks. but his track record isn't too good with those picks.

How are starters (particularly some who started on a team that was a FG in overtime) not legitimate???


Oh yeah, everybody on a team needs to be All Pro to be legitimate. All 32 teams are full of guys like that.

Never mind that Diggs and Lennon have started since Brady beat them out. Nelson and Taylor were NFL starters and he beat them out. Chillar was an NFL starter and he beat him out...

What, by you guys estimate what does GB have 3 maybe 4 legitimate starters???

3 or 4??? What are you smoking?!?! Rodgers is a serviceable backup for most other teams. Collins doesn't even make an AFC team. Jennings was good for only 3 or 4 games and hasn't returned a punt for a TD in the NFL. He wouldn't even make the Patriots practice squad! GB is the least talented team in the NFL! Of course it is all Thompson's fault.

want the quintessential example of a starter that is not legitimate?

will whitticker. a thompson 7th-rounder. "started" 14 games for the packers. couldn't even make the practice squad anywhere else.

There you go... you've named one from TT's first season -- Whittaker could not make Green Bay's squad the next season either.

He is the closest example you can come up with, but even then he won a starting job in the NFL

Something approximately 2,880 guys get a legitimate shot at trying for each season and only 769 achieve.

How are guys that started on a 13-3 team not "legitimate" starters?

There may not be a ton of big names from Day 2, but the roster has been turned over and depth has been added, competition for roster spots has increased, and as a result the team has improved overall.

That is what Day2 is about. You pick up players that add to competition, push other guys and develop. Some step up to the next level and most do not. In the late round, the players usually need a lot of development. Jolly is a good example of this. Even if he never starts and as long as he does not end up in jail, he will be a solid contributor. Other players are starting and some have chance to be solid. Very few players in the late round are elite/all stars. For every Davis, Brady and fill in the blank here are countless players that may be good enough to actually make the 53 man roster in their first couple of years. This is reality. Thompson has added a lot of depth to the team. This year he picked players to plug 2 big areas of need. Still, the end is for development, depth and pushing others to be better.

This is a typical thread of the our GM can't draft, sign or evaluate BS.

The OP exaggerates, but makes an interesting point. Nobody drafted in rounds 4-7 by Thompson has yet made it to "the next level". Players like Jolly and Poppinga have done what day-two picks are supposed to do — fill a need, add depth — while Hall and Crosby play at positions which rarely get drafted before the fifth round.

Thompson's (thus far) average performance on day two is only remarkable because the Packers built a reputation over the previous decade as the league's best second-day drafters. In the space of a dozen years, under Wolf and Sherman, they picked Donald Driver, Mark Tauscher, Aaron Kampman, Adam Timmerman, Marco Rivera, KGB, Dorsey Levens and Mark Chmura in rounds four and below — that's seven ProBowlers and a franchise right tackle — not to mention the very capable Mark Brunell, Matt Hasselbeck, Aaron Brooks, Edgar Bennett, Hunter Hillenmeyer, Corey Williams and Doug Evans, or Poppinga/Jolly-level players like Bob Kuberski, Na'il Diggs, Scott Wells, David Martin, Billy Schroeder, Corey Bradford and Keith McKenzie.

Thompson's second-day picks, though numerous, haven't yet approached the quality of his predecessors'. It's really still too early to judge the 2007-08 drafts — players like Driver and Rivera took a few years to emerge — but Thompson's first two 'second halves' seem underwhelming in comparison to the fruitfulness of the previous 12 years. I am, however, hesitant to criticize the GM for this: when he took over, he was faced with a cap problem and some glaring holes in the starting line-up, not to mention a lack of depth, which conditioned a lot of his early drafts; and in any case, I believe the coaching staff is primarily responsible for making-or-breaking lower-round picks. McCarthy's fidgetiness and lack of faith in his back-ups (as evidenced by shifting Woodson, Colledge and Hawk out of position rather than following the depth chart) have taken playing time away from the likes of Giacomini, Barbre, Bishop and Rouse, preventing us from judging them.

Hopefully the classes of 2008 and 2009 will re-establish the Pack's reputation as low-round draft champions.

I think that Lang, Meredith, and Johnson could all end up being bonafide starters at some point. Amazing how so many people can see into the future. Ted and his team had another good draft.

Many credible draft analyst's are already calling the Packers draft a success. Enjoy.

http://insider.espn.go.com/nfl/draft09/ins...%26id%3d4103819

My vote for oxymoron of the century.

In 2005, GB drafted Poppinga, Coston, Hawkins, Montgomery, Bragg, Campbell & Whitticker. So in 2005, Poppinga and Montgomery remain. I remember that Coston had some value, but ultimately failed. Hawkins was a big gamble that badly failed. Whittaker did start for one year and then was cut. Not much.

In 2006, GB drafted Rodgers KR, Blackmon, Martin, Moll, Jolly, Culver & Tollefson. Blackmon & Jolly remain as does Moll. We knew that Blackmon had injuries, but he was worth the gamble. This year will be telling, his 4th year. Does he continue to show positive contribution in the special teams and can he contribute to the defense. Jolly, legal troubles aside, has been a solid contributor to the DL. He should be a key player this year in the rotation. Moll may or may not stick as a backup this year.

I think this is how things develop. Sure Tauscher contributed a lot sooner, but many take a few years. The later rounds are a lot like the early rounds, only your mistakes are less amplified and the hits are more amplified. In 2007, GB has gotten solid contributions from Hall and Crosby. Crosby solved our Kicking spot immediately. Barbre may start this year and is in the running. Bishop is kindof stuck behind Hawk & Barnett right now. How will he do with Barnett still recoving? Finally, Wynn may provide a solid spot at RB. He has the talent, maybe not the will. That is what you get in the late rounds; either talent without drive or drive without high talent.