Packers' 2008 Draft a Testament to Thompson's Acumen, Team's Depth
By Chris Havel
Ted Thompson is a victim of his own success.
The Green Bay Packers have won 18 of 22 games, including a 13-3 regular-season record in 2007. They also return 20 of 22 starters from a team that came oh-so-close to the Super Bowl.
None of that prevented some so-called media experts, and more than a few Packers fans, from casting aspersions upon Thompson’s decisions in the 2008 NFL Draft. They didn’t like that Thompson traded down to select Kansas State receiver Jordy Nelson with the 36th pick. They were perplexed that he spent the 56th pick overall to select Louisville quarterback Brian Brohm.
They seemed to miss the fact that a record seven offensive tackles and most of the top cornerback prospects were off the board by the time the Packers were on the clock. They failed to realize that just because they didn’t know Jordy Nelson didn’t mean Thompson doesn’t know.
All they could do was ask, “Why?”
Why a receiver when the Packers are five deep there? Why a quarterback when heir apparent Aaron Rodgers already has enough pressure trying to replace a legend?
Here are the answers to those and several other post-draft questions:
Why the receiver?
There are several excellent reasons beginning with the most important of all: Thompson really and truly liked what he saw of Nelson’s production and potential.
Nelson (6-3, 217) is a terrific athlete with excellent hands who also happens to be a football player in the best sense. He might be one of the few college athletes that doesn’t own video games or play Madden football. He is a farm kid from Kansas that eats, sleeps and thinks his future profession. He ran the 40-yard dash in 4.55 seconds which is plenty fast for his size.
Nelson was featured in a West Coast style offense at Kansas State, and while being the target of every defense he faced still managed to catch 122 passes. In that regard, he is very similar to Packers receiver Greg Jennings, the difference being that Nelson is bigger and faster. He also returned punts in college, and when asked if he returned kickoffs replied, “No. I was one of the up-men in the blocking scheme.” Nice.
Furthermore, the Packers’ current receiving corps wasn’t as deep as some might think. Donald Driver is a wonderfully gifted and conditioned athlete, but he also is a 33-year-old man playing a young man’s game at a position that puts a premium on explosiveness. Driver, like Brett Favre, can’t play forever even if it seems otherwise.
Jennings is a fine player but he has never been “the guy” and while I believe he can be a team’s go-to receiver the fact is he still needs someone on the other side.
James Jones had his moments as a rookie but he is still a lot of seasoning away from being an every-down starter in the NFL.
Koren Robinson, bless his soul, has done an amazing job battling his personal demons. But anyone that has had to battle such demons knows that nothing is guaranteed. Robinson also had a nagging knee injury that slowed him last season.
Ruvell Martin, a class act, is a valuable asset on the 53-man roster, but he isn’t starter material.
Why the quarterback?
C’mon. It’s the same reason the Packers cut Jerry Baab and Dalton Bell on Monday. The Packers needed Brohm – who might be the best quarterback in the draft – to provide much-needed depth behind Rodgers. While Rodgers is Brett Favre’s heir apparent, he hasn’t proven to be particularly durable.
Rodgers isn’t going to be deterred by Brohm’s presence. And if he is then it is doubtful he is the right man for the job. Rodgers will succeed or fail based upon his own merits and the team’s success. When Rodgers throws an interception I can’t imagine the first-year starter saying, “It was too dark to see because of Favre’s shadow and Brohm’s reflection.”
The Packers’ Mike McCarthy is still in some ways a work in progress as a head coach, but as a quarterbacks’ coach he has few peers. It is wise for Thompson to provide the master with the best-possible clay to in order to mold a quality product. Brohm is the clay.
Why select the tight end? Wouldn’t Purdue’s Dustin Keller have been a better choice?
No. There is a reason the Jets haven’t been special in a long time. It’s because they trade up to the 30th pick to select a lesser tight end than the one the Packers nailed at 91. Texas’ Jermichael Finley is young (21), raw (an early entry) and unpolished, which to Thompson’s way of thinking merely means Finley is still growing, without any significant bad habits and not close to realizing his considerable potential. In a year from now, the Packers wouldn’t have been drafting early enough to get a sniff of Finley. That’s because Thompson knows what he is doing. He is so far ahead of the game that his critics and detractors can’t see the wonderful job the Packers’ GM is doing, and the progress he has made in a brief amount of time.
Oh, did I mention that Patrick Lee, the cornerback from Auburn, might be the pick of the litter? Lee, at six-feet and 197 pounds, runs the 40-yard dash in 4.41 seconds. That isn’t fast. It’s ridiculous. Furthermore, he has long arms and is a smooth enough athlete to play bump-and-run coverage against the big boys. The fact that Lee’s talent wasn’t showcased at Auburn was lost on a lot of observers. Thompson wasn’t among them.
Then there is Wake Forest defensive end Jeremy Thompson. He was forced to read and react in college, which means he rarely was allowed to pin his ears back and rush the passer. He possesses an athletic 6-foot-5 frame at 264 pounds and is a workout warrior.
The hunch here is Thompson will be the speed pass rusher the team desperately needs opposite left end Aaron Kampman. That is only a hunch. The fact that the Packers selected him merely means I’ve got a pretty good chance to be right.
Chris Havel is a freelance writer, best-selling author and host of northeast Wisconsin’s top-rated sports radio talk show, Sports Line, heard Monday through Friday from 4 to 6 p.m. on Sports Radio 107.5 FM and 1400 AM THE FAN. He writes a weekly column exclusively for Packers Fan Tours’ Website throughout the 2007 season.
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