Former Green Bay Packers General Manager Ted Thompson Passes Away at 68
Former Green Bay Packers general manager Ted Thompson passed away at his home on Wednesday (January 20) at the age of 68.
Thompson spent most of his executive career in football with the Packers. He climbed the corporate ladder from being the team's Assistant Director of Pro Personnel (1992), to the Director of Pro Personnel (1993-1997), and then on to the Director of Player Personnel (1997-1999). He left the Packers to spend four years with the Seattle Seahawks as the team's Vice President of Football Operations from 2000-2004. He then returned to Green Bay to become the general manager from 2005-2017.
During his time as general manager, Thompson was instrumental in putting together a strong roster built mostly on draft capital. His first draft pick was Aaron Rodgers, and he made the decision to move on from head coach Mike Sherman in favor of Mike McCarthy. Thompson shaped the roster from a 4-12 campaign in 2005 to an NFC Championship Game appearance in 2007.
The peak of his tenure came as part of the 2010 season when the Packers defeated the Pittsburgh Steelers to win Super Bowl XLV. From 2005-2017, Green Bay made the playoffs nine times.
Following the 2017 season in which the Packers finished 7-9, Thompson was removed from the general manager position. He remained with the team as a senior advisor from 2018 until his death.
Heading into this weekend's NFC Championship Game, Thompson still has players on the roster that he drafted playing. Those players include Rodgers, Davante Adams, Mason Crosby, David Bakhtiari, Corey Linsley, Kenny Clark, and Aaron Jones.
Source: Green Bay Packers
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