Green Bay Packers: GM Ted Thompson's 10 Best Value Draft Picks
Thrifty Spender: Green Bay Packers GM Ted Thompson's 10 Best Value Draft Picks
As an NFL general manager, one of the most valuable attributes you can have is the ability to identify value in a draft pick.
Whether a certain player falls into your lap or you find a "gem" in the later rounds, value picks can make or break a roster.
Thankfully for Packers fans, Ted Thompson has been one of the best at finding value no matter what round in the draft.
With the 2011 less than two weeks away, let's take a look at the 10 best value picks over Thompson's six years as the Packers GM.
Honorable Mentions
1 of 11
Bryan Bulaga (2010 First round, No. 23)
While he had an up and down rookie season, the Packers still got good value when Bulaga slipped all the way to pick 23.
C.J. Wilson (2010 Seventh round, No. 230)
I have a sneaky feeling that Wilson might play a much bigger role next season, as he continued to get better through his rookie year.
Johnny Jolly (2007 Sixth round, No. 183)
Jolly played plenty of meaningful downs for the Packers and still would be if his recent legal troubles hadn't derailed his career.
Brady Poppinga (2005 Fourth round, No. 125)
For a fourth round pick, the Packers got 44 starts and five sacks out of Poppinga in six seasons.
10. James Jones
2 of 11
Selected: 2007 Third round, No. 78 overall
Notable WR's picked before: Dwayne Jarrett (45), Steve Smith (51), Yamon Figurs (74), Laurent Robinson (75), Jason Hill (76)
Should have been picked: Late second-early third
Value (according to trade chart): 60-100 points (No. 78=200, No. 60=300/No.70=240)
Analysis: If you look back, the 2007 draft was full of talented receivers. Calvin Johnson, Dwayne Bowe, Sidney Rice and Steve Smith are heads above the class, but Jones is likely the best of the rest.
Fans have been frustrated by his recent bout with drops, and rightfully so, but the production is there.
As the third or sometimes fourth option in the Packers passing offense, Jones has caught 149 passes for 2069 yards and 13 touchdowns. He's likely to get paid starter's money this offseason as another team's potential No. 2 receiver.
9. James Starks
3 of 11
Selected: 2010 Sixth round, No. 193 overall
Notable RB's picked before: Toby Gerhart (51), Joe McKnight (112), Anthony Dixon (173), Jonathan Dywer (188)
Should have been picked: Late-third, early-fourth
Value: 54.8-124.8 points (No.193= 15.2, No. 90=140/No. 112=70)
Analysis: In terms of production, Starks ranked behind only Ryan Mathews, Jahvid Best and LaGarrette Blount in the 2010 rookie running back class. Mathews and Best were first round picks, while Blount was an undrafted free agent.
Starks ran for 416 total yards in 2010, including 315 in the playoffs. His 123 yards against the Eagles in the Wild Card round was a Packers rookie rushing record.
He may not be the immediate starter for Green Bay next year, but he should figure heavily into the Packers rushing attack. If Ryan Grant leaves after 2011, Starks would likely have the upper hand at being the long-term answer at running back.
.jpg?w=256 "Rams Eagles Football")
8. Desmond Bishop
4 of 11
Selected: 2007 Sixth round, No. 192 overall
Notable LB's picked before: Quincy Black (68), Buster Davis (69), Stewart Bradley (87), Michael Okwo (94)
Should have been picked: Third round
Value: 100.4-249.4 points (No. 192=15.6, No. 65=265/No. 96=116)
Analysis: You could always sense the potential for Bishop to be good was there, but he didn't put it all together until this past season.
Filling in for the injured Nick Barnett, Bishop tallied 103 tackles and three sacks in 12 regular season starts. For his efforts, the Packers re-signed Bishop to a four-year deal.
We don't know the future of Barnett, but Bishop should be one of the starters in the middle for the time-being.
7. Matt Flynn
5 of 11
Selected: 2008 Seventh round, No. 209 overall
Notable QB's picked before: Brian Brohm (56), Chad Henne (57), Kevin O'Connell (94), John David Booty (137)
Should have been picked: Mid-second to third round
Value: 261.2-411.2 points (No.209=8.8, No. 48=420/No.64=270)
Analysis: Thompson struck out miserably with Brohm in the second round, but the emergence of Flynn makes up for that mistake.
In fact, Flynn would likely be the third or fourth quarterback selected in the 2008 draft if it were done over. As it stands, he still could potentially demand a second or third round selection if players were able to be traded.
Flynn isn't as impactful as most of the names on this list, but Thompson got great value by taking him in the seventh round.
6. Josh Sitton
6 of 11
Selected: 2008 Fourth round, No. 135 overall
Notable G's picked before: Chilo Rachal (39), Jeremy Zuttah (83), Mike McGylnn (109),
Should have been picked: Top 20-25
Value: 681.5-811.5 points (No. 135=38.5, No. 20=850/No.25=720)
Analysis: Sitton is one of the top 10 or 12 players from the 2008 draft, but guards don't typically get drafted that high.
While that hurts his trade value according to the draft chart, Sitton is arguably one of Thompson's best draft choices.
He was far and away the Packers best offensive lineman the past two seasons, and his 2010 campaign should have earned him an invitation to Hawaii. Still, there's plenty of Pro Bowls and All-Pro selections left in his bright future.
5. Jermichael Finley
7 of 11
Selected: 2008 Third round, No. 91 overall
Notable TE's picked before: Dustin Keller (30), John Carlson (38), Fred Davis (48), Martellus Bennett (61), Brad Cottom (76)
Should have been picked: Top 15-20 overall
Value: 714-914 points (No. 91=136 No. 15=1050/No.20=850)
Analysis: Finley was a young and raw tight end coming out of Texas in 2008, but his talent was worth the wait.
Drafted at the end of the third round, Finley has progressed into one of the more explosive and feared tight ends in the NFL.
He needs to stay healthy to cement his status as a top 15 or 20 player from the '08 class, but the talent is clearly there.
4. Nick Collins
8 of 11
Selected: 2005 Second round, No. 51 overall
Notable S's picked before: Antrel Rolle (8), Brodney Poll (34), Josh Bullocks (40)
Should have been picked: Top 12
Value: 810-1010 points (No. 51=390, No. 12=1200/No. 8=1400)
Analysis: Thompson's mentor and former Packers GM Ron Wolf took safety Darren Sharper from small-school William & Mary, and he followed in those footsteps by selecting Bethune-Cookman's Nick Collins in the second round of 2005.
Like the gamble worked for Wolf and Sharper, Collins has been a success as well.
And while Antrel Rolle got the big contract last summer from New York, it's Collins who can lay claim to the best defensive back chosen in the '05 draft.
3. Greg Jennings
9 of 11
Selected: 2006 Second round, No. 52 overall
Notable WR's picked before: Santonio Holmes (25), Chad Jackson (36), Sinorice Moss (44)
Should have been picked: Top 10
Value: 920-1120 points (No.52=380 No.7=1500/No.10=1300)
Analysis: A year after Thompson snagged the best defensive back in the '05 draft class, he found the best receiver in the 2006 class in Jennings.
The best part? Thompson traded back from pick 36 (where the Patriots took Jackson) to 52 and still got the chance to pick Jennings.
Five years later, the Packers have a top-five NFL receiver and Jackson is without a team.
2. Clay Matthews
10 of 11
Selected: 2009 First round, No. 26 overall
Notable LB's picked before: Aaron Curry (4), Brian Orakpo (13), Brian Cushing (15), Larry English (16)
Should have been picked: Top 3 overall
Value: 1500-2300 points (No. 26=700, No. 3= 2200/No. 1=3000)
Analysis: Thompson uncharacteristically traded back into the first round in 2009 to take Matthews, and it paid off handsomely.
In 31 career regular season games, Matthews has 23.5 sacks and three forced fumbles. Only Orakpo comes close to that kind of production (19.5 sacks), and Curry and English have been mostly disappointments.
Matthew Stafford would still likely be the first overall pick, but Matthews has made a strong argument for being what should have been the No. 2 pick in that draft.
1. Aaron Rodgers
11 of 11
Selected: 2005 First round, No. 24 overall
Notable QB's picked before: Alex Smith (1)
Should have been picked: No. 1 overall
Value: 2260 points (No.24=740, No.1=3000)
Analysis: The top spot makes sense both mathematically and football-wise.
After progressing into an elite quarterback and winning the Super Bowl, Rodgers obviously should have been the top overall selection in 2005. The 49ers made a colossal error in picking Smith over Rodgers
To Thompson's delight, the Packers were than able to get a franchise quarterback—something that usually takes a top-five pick—with the 24th overall pick. It wasn't the most popular decision, especially as his first pick for the Packers, but it was hands-down the right selection.
Anyway you slice it up, Thompson's drafting of Rodgers that late in the first round is his best value pick during his six-year run as the Packers GM.
.jpg?w=480 "Rams Eagles Football")
