Ted Thompson, Packers GM who drafted Aaron Rodgers, dies at 68

Ted Thompson, the former Green Bay Packers general manager who drafted Aaron Rodgers, died on Wednesday at age 68. The news was first reported by Tom Silverstein of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, and was later confirmed by Packers head coach Matt LaFleur.

A cause of death wasn’t given, but Thompson revealed in 2019 that he had been diagnosed with an autonomic disorder. That disease is what led him to step down from his position in 2017.

Thompson was the GM of the Packers for 13 seasons, starting in 2005, and is responsible for the team’s last great run of success, its most recent Super Bowl trophy, and its star quarterback.

He started his career as a linebacker, playing for Southern Methodist University before signing with the Houston Oilers in 1975 as an undrafted free agent. His football career ended a decade later, but his Packers career began not long after. Green Bay hired him as a scout in 1992, and by the time he left for a job with the Seattle Seahawks in 1999, the Packers had been to the playoffs six times, to the Super Bowl twice, and they won it all in 1996.

Packers legacy

Thompson spent six years with the Seahawks as their vice president of football operations before rejoining the Packers as GM in 2005. In his first draft, with his very first pick, he chose a franchise-altering player: Aaron Rodgers. It was a daring choice for the Packers, since they already had Brett Favre installed at quarterback, but Thompson was committed to looking toward the future.

“I just think when you look back five years from now,” Thompson said via Packers News, “you’ll say, ‘This was a hell of a pick.’”

It took less than five years for Thompson to be proven right. Rodgers took over in 2008 after Favre left town, and in 2009 they started a run of eight straight playoff appearances, including a Super Bowl championship in 2011.

Thompson, a former scout, would continue to show himself as a smart evaluator and draft manager. He drafted nine players over his first six years who would make at least one Pro Bowl. His picks helped build the team that would win the Super Bowl in 2011, and so did his decision to hire Mike McCarthy as the team’s head coach in 2006.

Thompson’s legacy extends beyond Rodgers and the 2011 Super Bowl. His draft picks, signings, and trades helped build the current team, which is just one win away from making another Super Bowl.

The Packers inducted Thompson into their Hall of Fame in 2019, becoming just the second person to be inducted exclusively as a general manager. He didn’t attend the ceremony in person, instead sending pre-recorded remarks. That’s when he revealed that he’d been diagnosed with an autonomic disorder, which is what caused him to step down as general manager in 2017. Thompson said that his medical specialists did not believe that he was suffering from CTE.

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