Much has been made about the draft and develop mentality of the Green Bay Packers organization under general manager Ted Thompson. It’s led to the team developing a reputation of being averse to playing in the free agent waters that open up every offseason.
However, after a report in late January that there was a rift between Thompson and head coach Mike McCarthy over the use of free agency, the Packers GM took some time at the NFL Draft Combine to address that situation.
According to Thompson, the Packers are not adverse to free agency, they just take a different approach to it than most teams.
“We value draft and development,” Thompson said. “We value free agency. We have guys like Julius Peppers, guys that have been free agents. If you can help us win football games and be a good teammate and that sort of thing, you have a place for us. So we’re not opposed to doing that.”
Thompson did bring in Peppers, whose career appeared to be stalling out a bit with the Chicago Bears and has since become a valued pass rusher and rejuvenated his career. The Packers GM is also responsible for bringing in Charles Woodson, who appeared on the downside of his career after several years with the Oakland Raiders. Instead, Woodson became a superstar again and a key member of the 2010 team that took home Green Bay’s fourth Super Bowl trophy in the franchise’s history.
However, those are but two high profile examples during a decade-long tenure that showed little use for free agency overall. Often times, Thompson uses free agency on lesser-known names and to help fill gaps in a roster for training camp. Free agent pickups aren’t typically a factor in the Packers’ plans.
Will things change this offseason after getting so close to returning to the Super Bowl? Don’t expect Thompson to mess with a formula that has worked well in terms of consistency from his franchise. In fact, Thompson doesn’t believe in change just to pursue something that may not even be there.
He said “we’re not going to chase a ghost” to satisfy that concern, meaning in no uncertain terms that the Packers aren’t changing who they are for just any free agent available.
