Just three days after his 68th birthday, former Green Bay Packers General Manager, Ted Thompson has died. A source close to the team confirmed Thompson’s passing to WTMJ.
Hired to replace Mike Sherman in January of 2005, Thompson guided the Packers to a Super Bowl 45 win over the Pittsburgh Steelers six years later. The MVP of that game was Thompson’s first – and most controversial – draft pick, Aaron Rodgers.
Packers Hall of Famer Larry McCarren will remember Thompson as a shrewd General Manager, and a good man.
“As a person in an executive position in the whirling, swirling world of showbiz where people can really get enamored with what’s in the mirror, Ted was never about Ted. he was always about the team and what was best for the Green Bay Packers.”
Thompson would stay in his role with the Packers through the 2017 season. In 2018, Brian Gutekunst was promoted from his role as the Director of Player Personnel.
In May 2019, Thompson revealed that he had been suffering from an autonomic disorder and that was the reason he could no longer serve in his front office role.
Thompson’s first stint in Green Bay started in 1992 as the Assistant Director of Pro Personnel. After seven seasons with the Packers, he was named the Vice President of Football Operations for the Seattle Seahawks.
As an undrafted free agent in 1975, Thompson was signed by the Houston Oilers. A backup linebacker and special teams ace, Thompson played 10 seasons in the NFL.
Other players Thompson is responsible for brining to the Packers: Nick Collins, Mason Crosby, Jordy Nelson, Clay Matthews, Bryan Bulaga, Greg Jennings, Randall Cobb, Davante Adams, Kenny Clark, David Bakhtiari and Aaron Jones.