So, from a broader range perspective - wonder if the GB organization's strategy is to see if SF or insert searching organization here - is to let Wolf interview, and be selected - before playing the Trump card of the Wolf hiring here with TT as Master Scout?
GB has to be the most stable and win/win option for Wolf long term? Other orgs looking for GM (SF, Jax?, Buf?, LA?) have way too much inherent drama and dysfunction.
Maybe this TT rumor has some teeth?
Hungry5 posted:Seems like the best thread for this.
Insider alert: ESPN analyst Louis Riddick will interview next week in NY for 49ers' GM job, per sources.
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) January 3, 2017
Damnit....Louis Riddick is the ONE guy on ESPN (other than C. Woodson) who is excellent on that god forsaken network. That's a huge loss for ESPN if he gets hired.
Working for man-baby Jed York might be a slight upgrade to working at ESPN. But it's still choosing between wiping your ass with a hacksaw (man-baby) or a handful of tempered glass shards (ESPN)
I would hate to lose Elliot Wolf if he is, as I suspect, more like his father in being more open to using all avenues to obtain talent than the current GM.
I also think SF is potentially a great landing spot for a young GM.
Zero expectations at present as the franchise is rife with dysfunction.
However, there is a history of success (5 Super Bowl victories and a recent SB loss). And, you are located in the most economically & technologically dynamic area of the world.
The critical question is whether young Jed is willing to step aside and give Wolf (or Gutenkust or anyone else) free rein to run the football operations or not.
Look no further than across SF Bay to see what a former Packer front office underling can accomplish when inheriting a dumpster fire -- and many said Mark Davis would not be able to refrain from meddling when McKenzie took over.
Or, consider what one accomplished NFL man faced when he took over a long moribund but (then) formerly glorious franchise (that was a laughingstock in league circles) in the early 90s. I suspect no challenge is too great for the son of Ron Wolf.
The elder Wolf left the game because he couldn't, or didn't want to, change with the way the league was evolving with FA.
I would hate to lose Elliot Wolf if he is, as I suspect, more like his father in being more open to using all avenues to obtain talent than the current GM.
No reason to believe the younger Wolf will be like his dad. He's just a likely to be more like Thompson in team building philosophy than he is his dad. He worked with his dad before he went on to college, but has spent the bulk of his professional (learning) career under Thompson.
Hungry5 posted:The elder Wolf left the game because he couldn't, or didn't want to, change with the way the league was evolving with FA.
I would hate to lose Elliot Wolf if he is, as I suspect, more like his father in being more open to using all avenues to obtain talent than the current GM.
No reason to believe the younger Wolf will be like his dad. He's just a likely to be more like Thompson in team building philosophy than he is his dad. He worked with his dad before he went on to college, but has spent the bulk of his professional (learning) career under Thompson.
You may be correct that Elliot will not approach roster building like his father did and will instead emulate TT.
Of course, Schneider, Dorsey, and McKenzie's approach to free agency (and trades) has been much more like Ron Wolf's than TT's so perhaps Elliot would indeed be more like his father than TT.
Further, Ron Wolf would rather keep his own than sign someone else's. Just like Thompson.
“We discovered early on that it was better to keep your own than get somebody else’s,” Wolf says. “You know truly what you have when you’re playing your own.”
Different eras/rules for free agency. Wolf v Thompson
So here is the presser from the team owner, Jed York. It is a different atmosphere in that room than in the Packers as you can tell within the first five minutes.
Jed York 49ers Post Season Press Conference
"Jed, what makes you competent to lead this search?"
If you want radio shock jock's review of the situation, check out the Jan 2, podcasts (3 - language NSFW) here:
I like TT's approach but even his most avid supporter knows he needs to do more in free agency where the draft has been deficient. Look no further than tight end last offseason. Finley's career abruptly ends in 2013 with no capable starter in sight. They drafted a few guys (Rodgers, Williams, Taylor, Quarless, Backman) that never really proved to be anything more than #2/3 guys (if that). So he signs Cook to shore up what this offense was lacking: an athletic TE that can put some pressure on the middle of the defense. Didn't break the bank, didn't kill team chemistry, and proved to be a positive contribution. I can't speak for anyone else, but that's all i'm looking for TT to do in free agent activity.
It's a balance. You have to build the core of your team via the draft, but free agency let's you fill holes. I think there were years where TT didn't do a good enough job at filling those holes in free agency. Still, TT is the head of a top 5 front office. It could be so much worse. If Elliot is offered the 49ers job, I don't think Murphy would force TT to resign. TT deserves to be GM for as long as he wants or until he can no longer adequately do the job.
Eliot's wife doesn't seem like a GB kinda gal. We'd have to fatten her up a bit if she's going to fit in on the Frozen Tundra
I say we all chip in and get the happy couple a stick blender
Rats! I threw out my invitation. Thought it was junk mail. 
Boris posted:Hungry5 posted:Seems like the best thread for this.
Insider alert: ESPN analyst Louis Riddick will interview next week in NY for 49ers' GM job, per sources.
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) January 3, 2017Damnit....Louis Riddick is the ONE guy on ESPN (other than C. Woodson) who is excellent on that god forsaken network. That's a huge loss for ESPN if he gets hired.
Would a talking head really "Put his money where his mouth is?"
Depends on where his mouth is.
Dr._Bob posted:Depends on where his mouth is.
Looks pretty close to his wallet
Satori posted:Eliot's wife doesn't seem like a GB kinda gal. We'd have to fatten her up a bit if she's going to fit in on the Frozen Tundra
Hateful.
Rockin' Robin posted:Orlando Wolf posted:Thompson, McCarthy, Sherman, Rhodes.Three of those four examples are coaches, not personnel guys. Sure, if you expand to coaches, you'll find some additional examples of guys coming back to GB, but even that won't come close to matching the number of talented guys who left GB as coaches and have yet to come back (Gruden, Reid, Mariucci, etc.)
But even if you include coaches, I would hardly describe Rhodes and McCarthy as "cutting their teeth" in GB. Rhodes was a defensive assistant in SF for a decade and had 4 SB rings before stepping foot in GB. McCarthy was QB coach for four years in KC before spending a single year in the same position in GB.
The MO in GB on the personnel side has been to let talented personnel leave. That's part of life in the NFL when you have success. But after watching three great ones leave without being truly replaced, there's legit concern you may lose a couple of more if TT decides to stay around.
2 of the past 3 GMs have left the organization and come back. Can't do more than that when you have success at top.
Another point to consider:
Why doesn't coaching staff turnover happen at a similar frequency to that of the executives? And if 'demand' indeed exists for the younger Wolf, why doesn't the same exist for at least some of our coaches/coordinators?
Orlando Wolf posted:2 of the past 3 GMs have left the organization and come back. Can't do more than that when you have success at top.
As a GM was Mike Sherman really an example of a guy who "cut his teeth in GB and proved himself elsewhere"? Or was he simply a coach who left with Holmgren, got rehired by Wolf and fell into a GM position he clearly wasn't qualified for?
When you're talking 3 GMs over 25 years, there is no pattern for hiring GMs in Green Bay. The only pattern has been quality guys have gone elsewhere. Again, that's inevitable to a degree, but after a certain point you risk losing all your internal talent and getting caught without a plan when the current GM finally leaves.
The immediate comparison that comes to mind isn't Mike Sherman…it's ironically the QB position. For years the Packer back-ups to Favre became starters elsewhere in the league, but towards the end of Favre's career someone had the good sense to push him out and turn the reigns over to the younger heir apparent.
Maybe we can build a secondary that scares people, instead of one that excites them.
If talented people see Green Bay as a great place to learn so they can get a great job somewhere else, that is only good for Green Bay.
Satori posted:Eliot's wife doesn't seem like a GB kinda gal. We'd have to fatten her up a bit if she's going to fit in on the Frozen Tundra
golddigger 
lovepack posted:Maybe we can build a secondary that scares people, instead of one that excites them.
Maybe they have, but injuries have curtailed the progress?
Shields is one of the best in the league. Randall and Rollins have shown moments of great ball awareness, toughness, and coverage ability. Now, in their 2nd year, how have their injuries throughout the year hampered/limited them? Randall has been on/off the injury report since week 5 with a groin and similarly Rollins since week 6, also with a groin. They both missed weeks 7 & 8, and Randall continued to be out for weeks 9, 10, & 11.
Last year folks were all over Adams, yet as has been mentioned often this year (here and from 1265), he was injured most of 2015. Look at what a healthy Adams does for the offense.
If there were healthier/better options for Adams last year or Randall and Rollins this year, does anyone truly believe Thompson would ignore them completely?
Hungry5 posted:If there were healthier/better options for Adams last year or Randall and Rollins this year, does anyone truly believe Thompson would ignore them completely?
Yes.
Many people here believe that no matter what the Packers do / don't do - they are doing it rong.
Many people? What, are you DJT now? 
Ignorance loves company.
" So he signs Cook to shore up what this offense was lacking: an athletic TE that can put some pressure on the middle of the defense. Didn't break the bank, didn't kill team chemistry, and proved to be a positive contribution. I can't speak for anyone else, but that's all i'm looking for TT to do in free agent activity. "
That's pretty much the only type of activity TT does- little or no risk with high potential upside. Jeff Saturday was a strikeout. Julius Peppers? Maybe a single? Charles Woodson was a grand slam. Signing average guys at inflated prices doesn't make sense, even if they are a little better than what you have right now.
The Packer's on field tactics are geared toward achieving consistent success without the cyclical failures that are built into the talent distribution system (the draft). The schemes use unpredictability and flexibility to compensate for the lower talent level that comes with success. The mistakes from the resulting complexity will reduce the effectiveness and it does limit the fit with individual players (eg Janis) But It also allows the "next man up" approach.
grignon posted:"Julius Peppers? Maybe a single?
Disagree, Julius Peppers has been a godsend to this team
Satori posted:grignon posted:"Julius Peppers? Maybe a single?
Disagree, Julius Peppers has been a godsend to this team
Except for that ill-advised impromptu advice on the field to Burnett after his INT that could have been (should have been) a dagger-inducing Pick Six. Wonder if he thinks about that a lot....
How can he not think about it? Many people keep referring to it.
Cook and Peppers were cut by their former teams. So signing them would not work against the compensation picks that TT might otherwise lose if they were UFAs who simply played out their contracts. Most here are saying that that the UFAs are the ones TT should be signing. Signing your own isn't that sexy FA that fans look forward to - never mind GB re-signs several of their own players every year. And a by-product of that is method is the continuity and accountability that it promotes. Go check out other teams where they let anyone who is good walk because they evidently think some other player is better than the one they have. Then they find out he doesn't fit like they thought, his practice habits aren't good, and with no other good players around to call him on that, the team is stuck with an underachieving player and a big bill to pay. Now that a talent base on the Packer team exists, signing UFAs just isn't going to happen - if it can be helped.
While every team building system works for the right people, what TT does has to work for him. And one of the benefits of drafting and developing players as opposed to signing UFAs, is that for the drafted player it his first NFL team. As such he has a chance to learn how to play without having to unlearn what another team tried to teach him - which takes more time and hampers development. It also makes managing the salary cap a little easier. And finally, it makes every player earn their spot on the team. There are no guys who you are stuck with for money reasons. And only proven guys get paid the big bucks - or anything close to it. And that is how it should be. It took TT 2 years to get to the point where no one was immune from being cut when he took over. And remarkably it has stayed that way for the most part. And of course, there is waaaaaay, more to it than that. For all this top level stuff, there is a lot of underlying details that would need to be understood.
Elliot (spell?) will be his own person. If anything he falls back on his training. But as he goes he will do his job in a way that suites him. There will be a method to his madness as we say. I think that is the only way a person can have any success in a position like that.
YATittle posted:Satori posted:grignon posted:"Julius Peppers? Maybe a single?
Disagree, Julius Peppers has been a godsend to this team
Except for that ill-advised impromptu advice on the field to Burnett after his INT that could have been (should have been) a dagger-inducing Pick Six. Wonder if he thinks about that a lot....
I've forgiven him...almost. 
FYI - That wasn't Peppers call, he was just following the orders of MM who told the team before the NFCCG that if they got an INT , just go down or out of bounds and let AR and the offense handle it from there. Oops
Painful learning experience for all
Satori posted:FYI - That wasn't Peppers call, he was just following the orders of MM who told the team before the NFCCG that if they got an INT , just go down or out of bounds and let AR and the offense handle it from there. Oops
Painful learning experience for all
BUT I could be wrong but I thought one of our safeties almost had a PICK SIX early in the game....
Satori posted:FYI - That wasn't Peppers call, he was just following the orders of MM who told the team before the NFCCG that if they got an INT , just go down or out of bounds and let AR and the offense handle it from there. Oops
Painful learning experience for all
FU MM?
Think HaHa had two picks that day.
"Disagree, Julius Peppers has been a godsend to this team"
I did think Pepper's payoff was debatable. He was well worth it his first year and a half. Solo homer at least. Since then? I don't think he consistently beats a competent single matchup anymore. He's not playing like a $10million guy now. To be fair, neither are CM3, Cobb or Shields.They got hurt, Peppers got old. Same effect.
But it's not like there was a Kahlil Mack out there waiting for TT to sign him in Pepper's place. The best FA you were going to get for Pepper's money was another Peppers.
Anyone seen Eliot today? He's not in his office.
— Ted Thompson's Mind (@ThompsonsMind) January 4, 2017
Have heard Peppers wants to play next year. Wonder what he's worth.
grignon posted:I did think Pepper's payoff was debatable. He was well worth it his first year and a half. Solo homer at least. Since then? I don't think he consistently beats a competent single matchup anymore. He's not playing like a $10million guy now.
Come up big over these next 4 games with a ring at the end and he'll have earned every penny.
