The GM Story Part II- 2005

CaliforniaCheez

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In 2005 a new GM faced a bad situation due to continued losses of personnel, cap over extension for bad prior moves, and lack of developed depth. The lack of resources evident in the 04 season has come to a head in 05. The OG's and Sharper were unaffordable contracts that should have been restructured in prior years. They could not be kept. The O-line, D-line, and DB's needed overhaul. What has been done?

1) Cap control. Over 25% of cap resources are spent on dead cap money and QB Brett Favre. 52 roster spots get the remaining cap. Hard and painful as it is the team will get through it quickly. The prorated portion of Favre's signing bonus is less than salary so his eventual departure does not hurt the cap position. There is little dead cap (2%) so far for 2006.

2) Bring in competition and the winner plays. Freeman, O'Dwyer, Little, Franz, Ruegamer, Steele, Thompson, Truluck are examples of journeymen who were permitted to compete and earn a roster spot. In competition the cream rises to the top and the talent was not on the bench.

3) Trading down in the draft. There were more roster needs than draft picks. New guys are cheaper than free agents and journeymen. They have greater potential. The new players will not be rookies next year. Some of them will get weeded out. Some like Whitticker, Collins, Underwood are gaining some valuable experience early in their careers. Younger guys have tried harder when the chips are down than older guys who have longer term contracts. There will be greater comraderie amongst these players as their careers grow.

4) Dealing with the unexpected. Anticipated WR losses were adressed but the extent of injury could not be fully anticipated. Older never-beens like Freddie Mitchell were not signed in favor of younger talent that has greater future potential. Donald Lee is a good example. With holes elsewhere addressing RB was not a priority last off season. Lack of OT depth is running a risk currently.

5) Not giving up. The final roster day trades of Johnson and Morely, who contributed nothing to the Packers, for a functional player and a draft pick is salvaging something from nothing. There were rumors of a Ferguson trade and other moves not consumated. Not making a bad move has kept some flexibility while looking for good moves.

6) The Bubba Franks contract freed up cap room. While the transition tag was a cheaper than franchise tag, its parameters caused delay in negotiations. IR replacements and injury greivences costs did not cripple the cap. With no good fit players out there, the remaining cap money was not wasted. Some player(s) will receive a deal near the end of the season that will reduce cap cost in 06. Kampmann, Fisher, Jenkins and many of the one year deal guys are candidates.

7) Listened to Jim Bates who sincerely had faith in 2 DT's (a 6th rounder and undrafted free agent).

The mistakes:

Adrian Klemm- 2 years 2.6 million contract with 800K signing bonus. Signing another teams castoffs is generally a bad idea. Ruegamer/Wells are cheaper options more familiar with the offense. It was a gamble with mixed results. The Guard positions were unsettled for too long.

David Martin- 2 years contract on a guy who cannot stay healthy or productive.

Drafting Aaron Rodgers. This draft pick threw out all 3rd string QB trainees. O'Sullivan and McBrian were not given a chance. This selection drives off Nall in 06 and yet another developement QB will have to be acquired. This weakens the QB position in 06 and forgoes the contribution of a quality first round OG or DT in 05 and beyond. Trading down instead was also an option. If Rodgers is used for a trade maybe this pick might not be so bad. For every year Rodgers is not contributing more is expected if/when he ever takes a snap for the Pack.

I do recognize that some fans may disagree with this opinion of Rodgers as they may about the contract extension of Sherman. Both have valid arguments on both sides and with time which opinion will prevail. I leave it to you to decide how much these mistakes contibuted to the win/loss ratio this season.

The team in 05 is losing the close games that they won in 04. A franchise accustomed to the playoffs now finds itself in the bottom third of the league. On the whole Ted Thompson has shown creativity in working with limited resources. He does believe in building a team through the draft but not exclusively. He has to find better quality players. His longevity in Green Bay depends upon it. At midseason of year one he gets a B+ for the job done with financial constraints. A grade truly cannot be given until start of the 06 season.
 

Chamuko

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Very good, anyhow I dont think that you can tell that drafting Rodgers was a Mistake, nevertheless I agree about David Martin and I believe I cannot fully disagree about Klemm.

All of this said when I really felt bad about O´Sullivan and McBrian and that I would hate having Nall playing for another team next year and having to look for another QB.

On your first post I really hated when they let Hunter Hillenmeyer leave and I got upset when I saw him playing for the Bears, maybe this was the highest cost payd for keeping Sander in the roster..
 

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