Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers (12) and quarterback Jordan Love (10) listen to head coach Matt LaFleur during the fourth quarter of their game Sunday, December 4, 2022 at Soldier Field in Chicago, Ill. The Green Bay Packers beat the Chicago Bears 28-19.
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In 2018, Brian Gutekunst took over as the general manager of the Green Bay Packers. Ted Thompson, his predecessor, moved into a senior advisory role with the team as he was dealing with health challenges that would eventually claim his life in 2021. Thompson, of course, was the architect of the Super Bowl XLV-winning team and was the general manager who selected Aaron Rodgers in the first round of the 2005 NFL Draft, a move at the time that was extremely unpopular with the fanbase.
Rodgers’ eventual success, however, made Thompson into a legend, a figure that is still revered among fans. Similarly, when Gutekunst selected Jordan Love in the first round of the 2020 NFL Draft, he was dragged through the mud by fans, and Rodgers winning the next NFL MVP Awards did not help.
However, Love’s success as Green Bay’s starting quarterback have changed the narrative (for some) regarding Gutekunst. Instead of being viewed as the general manager who drove a future Pro Football Hall of Famer out of town, he is (or at least should be) viewed as the one with enough foresight to know that the best time to draft a quarterback is when a team doesn’t need one.
The New Aaron Rodgers Documentary Claims Ted Thompson Told the Green Bay Packers to Draft Jordan Love
Dec 15, 2024; Seattle, Washington, USA; Green Bay Packers quarterback Jordan Love (10) during the second half against the Seattle Seahawks at Lumen Field. Mandatory Credit: Steven Bisig
Earlier this week, the new Netflix documentary “Enigma,” which is about Aaron Rodgers, his divorce from the Packers, and his time with the New York Jets, was released for streaming.
There were many people interviewed as part of the making of the film, including current Packers head coach Matt LaFleur. As fans may recall, LaFleur was hired by Gutekunst and the organization in 2019 to take over for Mike McCarthy, who was fired before the end of the 2018 season.
One clip (or clips) of LaFleur went viral on social media as he is apparently filmed saying that the person responsible for the decision to draft Love was Thompson, not Gutekunst:
“I don’t think a lot of people, at least in our camp, thought that Jordan would have been there when we were picking and the opportunity presented itself. It was an opportunity that Ted Thompson thought was too good to pass up.”
This, of course, does a great deal to take credit away from Gutekunst for selecting Love. This is problematic because drafting a franchise quarterback is often viewed as the defining pick of a general manager’s career. If Gutekunst did not make the pick himself, or was heavily influenced by Thompson, it would hurt his credibility as an executive.
The problem, though, is that LaFleur revealed today that the quote attributed to him was not accurate. Instead, it was the result of clever editing by the documentary’s production team.
Green Bay Packers Head Coach Matt LaFleur Did Not Give Ted Thompson Credit for Drafting Jordan Love
Nov 27, 2022; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers (12) and quarterback Jordan Love (10) lead their team out of the tunnel before action Philadelphia Eagles at Lincoln Financial Field. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher
During his media session following Packers practice on Thursday, LaFleur was asked about his remarks crediting Thompson for the drafting of Love.
His response indicates that the editing insinuated above almost certainly took place:
“I haven’t seen that. I don’t remember saying that, but apparently I did. You know, I don’t know if they cut it up.
“I think what we were trying to do was show parallels between Ted drafting Aaron and Gutey drafting Jordan. But I don’t know how it got edited and what not. But Ted Thompson had nothing to do with the drafting of Jordan Love.
“I think there were some lessons learned from him doing what he did when he drafted Aaron, and you see it all across the league. You better have a quarterback, or else life can be very, very difficult.
“I think he obviously made a great decision, and one that does take courage in the moment. You’re going to get a lot of flack for it. It was the case how ever many years ago when Aaron was drafted. It was the case five years ago when Jordan got drafted.
“So it takes courage in that moment, but by no means was I trying to reference that Ted was the reason we drafted Jordan.”
The question, then, is why would the documentary try to take credit away from Gutekunst and give it to Thompson?
While it cannot be confirmed, it is possible that Rodgers, who tried to have Gutekunst fired before being traded away from the organization, wanted to discredit the person he feels is the reason he no longer is with Packers and give to the person [Thompson] who brought him into the organization in the first place.