Wow.....how many more conspiracy theories can you come up with?

None of us, ( I repeat NONE) and not even the one and only Bob McGinn have any idea of what truly is going on. The idea that TT will still be pulling the strings is just plain stupid. There is nothing wrong or sinister with what Murphy is doing.

If MM is indeed claiming he'll leave if Ball is the GM, (which I doubt is true) then adios. Just like the players play and coaches coach, coaches coach and GM's run the football operations. If he doesn't like it, find a job elsewhere.

I don’t agree that allowing Lang to leave was a mistake.

Highsmith leaves without an interview to go somewhere "he'll be trusted"
McKenzie turning down an interview despite Gruden coming back (to an almost blank check and lots of power),
TT is still hiding in some closet with a BIG title,
rumors we could lose the entire Personnel Dept,
and now McPuffy making a power play?
KInda' looks like Murphy's got the entire organization upside down! He claims to have been the guy "That made the decision", yet it appears he can't make a decision without outside influence to insure he covers his a$$. Maybe he flipped his inner-tube at his theme park hill and banged his head.
This sucks, even Cleveland looks more organized at this point.
Maybe Murphy should ask Jerry Jones how things have gone since his "Football Guy" left the organization.

It is a very bad idea to have the head coach also have a great influence on who to draft. this is not about one person or one person's vision of where the team should go. And with all due respect, McCarthy didn't even seem to know how to use Brett Hundley to his strengths. and that was a guy he saw for 3 years in practice. Now imagine McC could determine who to draft. Guys he might see a little film of....

As you've seen from my posts lately, I'm all for showing Mike McCarthy the door. So if he leaves he leaves. I am sure there are qualified HC candidates out there, and working with one of the best QBs in the history of the game and still have a couple years ahead with #12 should be incentive enough.

While I understand a GM and head coach should get along, McCarthy getting along with the GM should only be ONE criteria to the hiring decision, not THE criteria.

McCarthy needs to adapt and put his stubborn ego aside no matter who gets hired. If he is going to be difficult, then it is indeed time to let him go and turn over a new leaf.

The question then is, who would be the head coaching candidates?

Just give Rodgers the titles of Head of Football Operations.

I don't blame McKenzie at all.
Wisconsin weather or Vegas? Hmmm....

Maybe we can get Belichick now that there seem to be problems in NE. If he got to 7 Super Bowls with a 5th rd stiff like Brady, imagine what he could do with the real GOAT.

With all due respect, the entire premise of this article rests on McGinn' s report. Practically everyone here recognizes that McGinn is bitter man, and that his sole goal is stir up controversy regarding the Packers (and gain clicks for whatever goofy website McGinn owns).

Anything coming from McGinn should be taken with a mountain of salt.

What makes anyone think Ball was responsible for releasing players like Lang, Sitton, Hyde and Heyward? It's hard for me to imagine that McCarthy and TT would aver to him on such critical personnel decisions. Same goes for the decision not to sign FA. Does anyone believe that TT wanted someone and Ball said no, he's too expensive? This whole argument that he's TT's guy makes no sense. TT ran the draft and TT decided on a system of draft and develop, not Ball.

Mac's dislike of Ball likely has more to do with the fact that Ball worked more closely with TT on an everyday basis than Mac did and he's taking his frustration at the lack of filling holes out on both of them.

Did Mac want to resign Hyde, Heyward and Peppers and Ball refused? I have very little faith in Mac's player evaluation skills after his defense of Hundley.

As many have said Ball isn't just an accountant he's a football guy. I hope he rightly sees that Mac's refusal to rid himself Capers has been a fatal error and that his offensive schemes are overly dependent on having the greatest QB of all time.

I hope Ball gets the job and that his first act is to fire Mac. But I also hope TT doesn't become his consigliore. The TT/Mac era must be over.

this is the best thing i've read about McCarthy in a long time. i think he's right! if they hire Ball , a numbers guy with no scouting experience as GM, then what you have is TT pulling the strings behind the scenes in this draft!
i said yesterday, they need an actual evaluator of talent and my choice would be Wolf although i wouldn't be too upset with Gutekunst.
if they hire Ball, you know that the organization is not committed to winning. if it happens then Murphy is ultimately responsible. he should have cut ties with TT completely or stand up to him now and say....no Russ Ball as GM.

the more i see this sh!t show unfolding the more i think Murphy should have canned EVERYONE! name HIS GM. have him pick the head coach and have the head coach build his staff. clean and simple with no internal BS and no ties to old buddies or tendencies!

The more I read about this situation, the less I want Ball . He's got ZERO scout experience. Get a true evaluator and let someone else be the Andrew Brandt type of person to crunch numbers. If this turns into a headlong rush to sign Ball, this could be a catastrophic period for the team.

have the GM pick the HC.

I look at the thumbs downs to anti Ball posts. I see some posts that clearly see MM as the problem not the FO. I disagree, and more so than I might have a few weeks ago, but I see the point of view.

What I have not seen anywhere is a clear statement by someone laying out why they believe Ball himself and on his own merits is the right person to lead the Packers to new super bowls. What is the positive argument for appointing Ball?

Wow, is this report really needed. And how good is McGinn's info? Most of us have got what we wanted. TT and DC gone. There is a lot of shuffling going on. Trying to read more into it and attempt to participate in the intrigue doesn't get us anywhere. Just wait a week or so.

The longer the process takes, the more that the rumors will fly. I hope it all means that the Packers are taking their time in evaluating and interviewing candidates. Remember that this is a bye week for the top four seeded teams in the league.

As for MMs alleged power play, it probably means that he has been asked or on his own has provided input on his criteria for a new GM. As usual, the media with nothing else to report on has extended the rumors into an all out crisis at 1265. This will sell papers and increase clicks among Packers fans everywhere. As for MM he doesn't want the GM position for himself, he just wants someone he can work with on fielding a winning team for the Packers. If Russ Ball or any internal candidate were going to be the new GM they would be named by now, unless the league requires the Packers to interview external candidates, hence the reason to utilize an executive search firm.

Due diligence, properly done on both people and organizations takes time. I've done plenty of both over the years. If that is what the Packers are doing they need to get it right. BTW, rumors are like the preseason games, they mean nothing. RELAX. Thanks, Since '61

I get that change is hard, but this has to be the most poorly managed change by a Wisconsin sports team in my lifetime. Succession plan? If this is what having a plan looks like, I'd hate to see what the Packers look like without a plan. A money guy as GM? Formula for disaster. Just because you know how to negotiate doesn't mean you should be deciding who to negotiate with or what the priorities should be. And I negotiate for a living. Bringing Russ Ball on over objections from MM and AR is NOTHING like bringing TT in to fill the GM role for Sherman. Mackenzie choosing not to even interview (which, if nothing else, he could have used as leverage to get a salary increase out of Oakland) is a big tell. The GM transition should have happened a month ago. Green Bay is in chaos. It will be surprising if this thing ends well.

One. Is truly amazed at the rampant desire by posters on this site to blow up the entire front office and coaching staff based on one losing season in the last nine years. You would think that our team was the Cleveland Browns. Be careful of what you wish for. I do not subscribe to the idea that Ball is a TT clone and just a "bean counter". We really don't know what abilities he has other than the financial acumen that he has shown over the last decade. The idea that he should be disqualified because of his association with TT is ludicrous. MM was given an one year extension because you don't want a lame duck coach when you name a new GM. I don't want a completely new front office and coaching staff. Change is good, too much change is a recipe for disaster. I've watched pro football for over 60 years and I've seen what happens when teams "start over". Usually it isn't pretty. The Raiders may find this out very quickly.

We have a distinct advantage of not having a single owner. If we had a Jerry Jones it would suck big time. The reason it stayed the same for so long was because we won, simple. We all know it's because we have a great QB, but the bottom line is we kept winning. Look at some of the teams that are in this year, they and their fans act like they won the frickin lottery. One of my co workers who is a Lion fan says, my bucket list is to see the Lions win a playoff game. The cheap ball comes in because of the success over the long haul and avoiding cap hell. We have missed on draft picks only because of the success and picking at the bottom of each round. The organization knows the window is closing with AR and knows it needed to do something different. Almost every team in the playoffs are in because of QB play. Some are in with great defenses that are built with good drafts after sucking for years. We should have a good draft and some FA signings that will make an immediate impact. All because we sucked this year, but this will turn around with the right moves, now lets make them. We all know we weren't going to win it all with this current team, and here's to getting over the hump.

Whoever takes over for TT just has to say to themselves , I have Aaron Rodgers all I have to do is improve the defense and protect him , the rest Aaron will take care of.

Not to long ago I believe Jason Perone wrote an article on Ted Thompson health. Was it something to do with possible effects of multiple concussions he suffered as a player?

Amazing, what began as a firing of Dom Capers has now evolved into the release of 4 more assistant coaches plus one more leaving for a college gig and long time front office man Alonzo Highsmith hightailing it to Cleveland. It has suddenly become apparent that this organization has reached the point where the word dysfunctional can hardly describe it. I now have to question how all of this can turn out good. McKenzie took one look at that job and flat out said no thanks. I could go on at length here but to make a long story short if Russ Ball is hired as GM they will lose Wolf, Gutenkust or both and it has been reported neither MM or AR want Ball as GM.Even if replacements are hired, I still get the feeling it will leave TT as Sr. Advisor still calling the shots in the draft. If Ball is hired it will be a case of the more things change the more they stay the same at 1265.

HOUSE OF CARDS!!
Rodgers is the reason Thompson-McCarthy-Capers hung around as long as they have and now with Murphy's weak leadership this whole thing could fall like a house of cards!
*Thompson hasn't seemed to be all there upstairs for years, it was fully apparent in his rare, slow and odd press conferences. He should not be allowed to lurk in the dark shadows of 1265 Lombardi, they will not attract a top GM that way.
*McCarthy has gotten to big around the middle and his head, he shouldn't be involved in the GM decision
*Capers should have been gone 5 years ago, again complacency due to Rodgers putting the team on his back.
*Rodgers however should not have input on the new GM either, just concentrate on Danika Patrick that's what I would do, lucky dog.
*The Packers should have been prepared for this and should have been more pro-active but Murphy was too focused on the real-estate development end of things while Rodgers was pulling wins out of his "Azz".
SOLUTION: Hire a real GM, Fire McCarthy, shuffle Thompson off to a retirement community, trade Rodgers now for a shipload of draft picks. RE-BUILD NOW!

I agree with others....this is a fake news report.
I have no idea who the next GM will be and outside speculation is just that outside the organization and pure speculation.

Now this change has been in the works for some time. The timelines tend to point to this GM replacement for at least 8 months. My speculation is that Murphy didn't want Dorsey and Zo left because Cleveland would give him a better opportunity to advance than Green Bay.

Who knows what will happen, but my money is on MM being the HC for some time.

Great executives make hard, bold and tough decisions.
So far, this looks like a poorly orchestrated patch job by Murphy while giving McCarthy too much leeway. We have already seen what a great coach he is without Rodgers at the helm, while the Vikings lost their QB and other key players and they look like the class of the division for years to come. Fake news probably yes, but a plan should have been in place and so far this looks ugly. Could be a long cold winter

Fake news. The definition of fake news is “any facts we we do not like, disagree with, or do not want to hear.” Yeah, every reporter who reports anything negative about the Packers is a bitter, twisted old man and all the reporters pumping sunshine up everyone’s butt are fine examples of sports journalism. You can exclude McGinn and read the reports coming out of GB and it still looks like this GM search has turned into a cluster f**k. All the different factions seem to be leaking tidbits trying to push their agendas. Unless ALL the reporters are bitter old men who hate the Packers and are making everything up.

This is NOT fake news. Mcarthys job is in the libe. He stated we needed talent and not this russ ball conservative B .S. with finance.

You know your job goes both ways. Get fired or quit. MM will have no problem getting another job. Good job Mike Mcarthy I am backing you on this one!!

Bob McGinn uses sock puppets aka anonymous sources to say basically anything he wants. Then if Bob McGinn gets something right, then Bob McGinn let's everyone know.

As far as MM threatening to quit, I wouldn't be concerned. His record without a HoF qb running his offense speaks for itself. Don't forget SF with Smith as QB. He fired the QB coach citing Hundley should have been better prepared. Yet Hundley had 3 years of MM's QB school, and if he knew Hunley was ill-prepared, why didn't he make effective changes during the season to help that? He fired the OC, yet he calls all the plays. Remember when he gave up play calling, then took it back with little change in offensive performance? Still had the same problems on offense.

Rodgers makes this offense work, even with MM's mediocre play calling, which is why the run sometimes gets abandoned. Rodgers prefers to run passing plays at times. MM threatening to quit is about as empty of a threat as I can imagine.

McKenzie declining and Highsmith leaving town probably has more to do with them not wanting to fulfill the Rooney quota for a job that has already been filled internally. Packers just cannot announce it yet due to Rooney rule.

SIX DAYS! It's been SIX DAYS since all this started to unfold! What did we legitimately expect at this point?

I think many WANTED TT to step aside and WANTED someone to be named as successor immediately. Know what? There's exactly ONE other team looking for a GM right now (Houston, since the Giants filled their post earlier)...and supposedly they've found their guy already. And it's not Gutekunst. That means that no matter who Murphy hires, it's likely that Wolf, Gutekunst, and Ball--assuming they don't get the Packers gig and an external guy doesn't clean house--are unlikely to go anywhere unless they want to take a major step backward. They're better served to stick around, make things work in GB, and be available next year.

(note that Seattle denied the Packers permission to talk to John Schneider...)
https://www.profootballrumors.com/2018/01/seahawks-deny-packers-permissi...

It's a buyer's market for GMs right now, and since coordinators and position coaches aren't going to start falling until teams start hiring HCs, Murphy shouldn't feel too terribly rushed. Find the best guy. Period.

"Oh, and Ball doesn’t have any scouting experience, which would seemingly make what looks to be a huge change into more of the same."

Spot on. If Ball gets the GM job, you can forget even sniffing the SB in Rodgers remaining years. It will simply be more of the same. Well under the cap, and well out of contention.

This website is getting its traffic and we are scurrying about like children yelling at each other. Cory Jennerjohn has done his job to incite the fracas. It is all about hearsay and irresponsibly presented as the state of affairs on Lombardi Ave.

I can see an organization doing its due diligence in finding the next best GM. The chaos that people cite is the nonsense being put forth in these articles. None of us or these reporters know any of this ass facts about who like who and who is leaving if someone gets the job. The Packers will pick the best man - not Ted's puppet. McCarthy will get a guy who will get him players and will try to make it work - otherwise MM will be gone. It is how it works regardless of what you imagine about MacKenzie, Highsmith or the powerplay that surely exists in someone's head.

I’m not up to speed on the packers front office like some on this site, but placing the right hand man of the guy who many claim has hamstrung the Packers seems asinine to me. Personally I’d rather go all in on the change and not just change the name of the problem. With my limited information Ball seems like a patch work job and TT lite.

Whom ever the Packers next GM is, He/She will have to have immediate success. Wouldn't it be something if the Packers hired a woman?

One initial comment followed by 100 reply comments. -- A first maybe.

It's been less than a week since the last game of the season (seems a lot longer). --- Writers, fans & so called experts who just may have some inside info are still just speculating. -- No way anyone else (on the outside) can know what will come down ultimately.

I'm more than willing to wait until the dust clears.

It’s clear as day that some serious political shenanigans have come home to roost at 1265 Lombardi. In one corner is Murphy/Thompson/Ball and possibly Gutekunst. In the other is Wolf/McCarthy and Rodgers. The winner gets the GM chair. The loser, a 1 way ticket out of town. And right now, it looks like Russ is going to be the winner. McKenzie, despite just being undermined, didn’t want to interview. Highsmith didn’t want to interview and took some parting public shots on his way out of town. Schneider was barred from interviewing. This is the man who could have possibly saved the impending catastrophe. Austin was barred from interviewing for DC. Bennett left town. We officially have the slowest WRs in the league. So replacing Getsy, we now have the worst offensive coordinator for the 49ers since before the Walsh days. We have interviewed 3 internal DC candidates - none of whom have acquitted themselves well in the past as a position coach.

I’m seriously starting to think that ARod may refuse to sign a new contract the second that Mike leaves – or is fired. Vikings fans wet dreams are coming true.

Not good.

According to reports AR is in MM corner on Russ Ball.

I think he could be good in the way that you never know if anyone will succeed with a promotion. The Peter Principle at work. (Google it if you haven't heard of it).

But with the smoke of politics having been seen for years around TT and the rest of his FO, as well as MM having said what he did..... I am not inclined to believe that RB would be a good GM.

That said, it is possible that the Packers could make a strong argument with the NFL about John Schneider. He does not have full personnel authority as GM in Seattle. Carrol must approve of everything. So it's not a done deal that SEA could insiste on compensation.

Schneider has developed good rosters in Seattle. I'm officially on his train. WOOHOO

They shouldn't have to do that. Pete the Cheat runs Seattle's whole program and Schneider is guy 1A. Everyone knows it.

Being GM in GB would be a promotion. Contest the block Murphy!