The Trust Keepers
May 6th, 2021
Sage of Tampa Bay Sports Ira Kaufman drives a 2020 Ford Escape with all the options, cherry red. Bill Currie Ford GM Sean Sullivan will assist your personally with whatever you need. Do not hesitate to ask!!! Shop now at BillCurrieFord.com. And remember their nationwide lifetime warranty on new and used vehicles.
BY IRA KAUFMAN
How dumb can you be?
That’s a question which should be directed toward Green Bay GM Brian Gutekunst for his part in the Aaron Rodgers fiasco. Lesson 1: You don’t even think about drafting a quarterback in a premium round without at least giving your incumbent under center a head’s up.
For Rodgers, the Jordan Love pick came as an utter shock in 2020.
That’s no way to treat a first-ballot Hall of Famer and the Packers are paying a heavy price for the oversight. That doesn’t mean you allow Rodgers to run your draft board, but keeping your most important player in the loop is an important courtesy.
”Tommy, here’s what we’re thinking.”
Take the case of the Bucs and Tom Brady.
Even though Brady shows few signs of slowing down and just led Tampa Bay to a championship, the man turns 44 in three months, Father Time doesn’t yet have No. 12 in his clutches, but he’s lurking in a parking spot at One Buc Place.
An unencumbered Jason Licht may have entered the draft without a pressing need, but he also knew this could be the right time to take a flyer on Brady’s successor. He also knew Brady had earned the right to know in general terms what the Buc brain trust was thinking.
So in what Licht describes as “casual conversations,” Brady was informed that a rookie quarterback may be on the way. The Bucs didn’t ask for Brady’s permission, nor should they, but there was no way Brady was going to be blindsided if Kyle Trask became a Buc.
That’s the way smart organizations operate.
Jimmy Garoppolo won’t ever be confused with Brady or Rodgers, but the 49ers showed him respect before selecting Trey Lance with the third overall pick. Since San Francisco traded up March 26, John Lynch and Kyle Shanahan made it a point to communicate with Garoppolo.
“You know, John’s been really cool throughout this whole process,” Garoppolo said. “As far as a GM goes, he’s a straightforward and an overall good person. You’ve got to appreciate him for that. Throughout the whole thing, it could have got a little fishy here and there, but he was very straightforward the whole time.”
Is that asking for too much?
Players want money, a fair chance to compete and honesty from the organization. Gutekunst now admits the Packers didn’t do a good job keeping their most important employee up to date.
“I certainly look back to last year’s draft, and some of the communication issues we could have done better, no doubt about it,”
Gutekunst said after the first round last Thursday night. “The draft is an interesting thing — it can unfold differently than you think it will unfold, and it happens pretty fast. Certainly, looking back on it, certainly, where we sit today, there could have been some communication things we did better.”
Communicator-In-Chief, writes Ira Kaufman.
We won’t know for a few years whether Licht aced the 2021 draft, but let’s give him high marks for his communication skills.
Brady isn’t going to feel threatened by Trask … that’s a given. He’s going to be Tampa Bay’s starting quarterback until he’s hurt … or calls it a career. That’s not the point. What’s crucial is the trust between Brady and the franchise’s decision makers.
By making Brady aware of the possibility that a player like Kyle Trask may be on the way, the Bucs showed him respect. In turn, Brady’s first thoughts revolved around the team.
Typical Brady.
You don’t blindside your starting quarterback in the draft, even when that guy may not be under center for you in the fall. The Bucs and 49ers did the right thing and the 2020 Packers did not. Respect goes a long way with professional athletes, as it should.
When it comes to keeping your quarterback informed, talk is cheap.
And necessary.
Ira!
What a spokesmodel! Bill Currie Ford is 1 mile north of Raymond James Stadium. Shop today at BillCurrieFord.com. Ask GM Sean Sullivan for The Ira Kaufman discount.
May 6th, 2021 at 9:00 am
JL and BA did the right thing by letting TB know and also did the organization and fans a solid by looking forward and being proactive to the long term success of this franchise.
I don’t know if Trask was the best choice, but I hope he is and I applaud the decision.
We’re still all-in for another SB run while building a solid core for the future.
If you can’t see that then I don’t know what to tell you.
Go Bucs!
May 6th, 2021 at 9:14 am
Wow….Brady mentioned 8 times and no monikers…..I got excited and then I realized the article was authored by Ira…..
And, yep….GB GM was stupid….
May 6th, 2021 at 9:16 am
I agree that communication is key, and that maybe the root of the problem. However, Rodgers is showcasing his ego and mental weakness the way he is handling the situation. It’s a mess and I would never want a “leader” like him to be a buc regardless of talent.
May 6th, 2021 at 9:51 am
I think Aaron Rodgers is the best QB in the league when healthy, and he knows it….so why making a crying baby scene because they draft a QB? Only unsecure or divas people have that kind of behaviour……The only DIVA should be your team……If you don´t see it that way, you should play golf or tennis, an individual sport…..The team is alwayse ahead of a player…..
TB12 is rich enough and always understood it, even more, everybody knows he is usually underpaid, but he chooses not to in order to have better players around him and win….Seems to me Rodgers is far away from that……
May 6th, 2021 at 9:53 am
I suspect that the Packers knew Rodgers would act out as a child no matter how much communication.
Just wait until he is a Raider and clashes with another fragile ego in Jon Gruden.
May 6th, 2021 at 9:54 am
With Rodgers being the diva that he is, I am wondering if we are getting the “Rest of the Story”.
May 6th, 2021 at 10:26 am
I think you guys are really buying the hype. Yeah, there are things he doesn’t like in the organization, among them drafting Love. But the numero uno…the big cheese…in this entire deal has to do with money $$$ moolah. He was player of the year… and isn’t getting close to what he thinks he should.
You think he is going to say it is about money? That makes him the bad guy. No.. it is about disrespect in his narrative. But the bottom line? Give him a big contract with long term commitments, and a simple apology, and all will be forgiven and forgotten. It’s all about the lettuce.
May 6th, 2021 at 10:39 am
This is not iras point but all of a sudden this fo and assistants looks as good as the front office did in the late 1990s. Everybody there got a major job next, even mark dominic. Hope we keep this bunch. Doubt we will.
I dont like owners but i stand corrected in that the sons have proven they are nearly as good as the old man was. They do have a mess in england but a championship will fix that too.
If rogers wants another championship his best bet imo is to do what the goat did. Take a pay cut. It works. Who knows maybe rifers wants to come here so its all newspaper talk anyway.
May 6th, 2021 at 10:40 am
Rodgers picture is next to the word “bitch” in Webster’s picture dictionary for dummies. Not only did the Bucs make her their bitch in 2020, but now she’s decided to spread it around to the the NFL’s bitch. And if it really is about the money, then you can’t bitch at the Packers for not getting you toys because they can’t afford them, because the Queen Bitch wants it all for herself.
What a diva. What a bitch.
May 6th, 2021 at 10:53 am
Well hell, we would all like to tell our boss what to do. Freakin crybaby Rogers.
May 6th, 2021 at 10:57 am
I don’t understand how a lot of qbs put a higher priority on short term money than on winning. Think about the financial opportunities Brady has gotten all because he takes less money contract wise than he should. This allows the team to build around him and have more talent. That allows the team to win more games. Winning more games means more Superbowls (in his case). 7 superbowls later he can get whatever endorsement deal he wants and then some. It also helps him play longer, making more money in the league.
May 6th, 2021 at 11:01 am
Cobra – yup. That is where i think he will go if rumors true
Green bay looking in qb market apparently
Gruden loves vet qbs
Not sure if carr has remaining gauranteed money could put cabash on that
May 6th, 2021 at 11:14 am
it was a head coach he ran off last time…I’m with Bradshaw, he’s weak and petty…play football…
May 6th, 2021 at 11:41 am
I used to want Rodgers in post-GOAT pewter & red.
Used to.
May 6th, 2021 at 11:41 am
For most of these guys, in a normal situation, it is just about squirrelling away as much cash as possible. They are our teams and it is more for us…but for them, it is just a job. Give Licht and Arians credit for setting up an environment where Brady could enjoy working here and chase his biggest dreams…an undefeated season and more super bowls. And give Brady credit for being about more than just the money. And inspire other guys to defer some cash to chase another ring. But it is what it is.
What T’s me off is when for a player is all about squeezing every dime out of the organization…and then they complain when the team can’t find money to load up with quality FA’s. There is flexibility…but over time, you can’t have both.
May 6th, 2021 at 11:51 am
screw rodgers….
i dont see any problem with what the packers did….that chump has been surrounded by talent his entire career….
packers are in the same position they were with favre…they have a future HOF QB that brought their team 1 SB years ago who cant win the BIG GAME NOW!!!!
instead of crying about the back up QB, go win a SB….
GO BUCS!!!!
May 6th, 2021 at 11:59 am
Heaven knows, these days you can’t offend anyone. I guess the Packers should have informed Rodgers– although I partly agree with what Terry Bradshaw said about him.
It sound like that Packers just can’t communicate well with Rodgers. They don’t tell him that they are going to draft a QB… they don’t tell him that they are kicking a field goal if they don’t score a TD on third down….
May 6th, 2021 at 1:16 pm
Follow the money… Mahomes has a 45 mil. a year 10 year contract. Rodgers much less. He wants more money.
May 6th, 2021 at 1:18 pm
………And job security.
May 6th, 2021 at 1:20 pm
They are idiots, not only did forget to mention, they traded up to get a guy who’s going to be average at best when compared to Rodgers. Green Bay and Rodgers represent The James harden or Russell Westbrook of the nfl, doing all these amazing things in the regular season but get smashed in the playoffs every time if they can get there
May 6th, 2021 at 1:23 pm
I heard Jake from State Farm is pretty pissed off about it too.
May 6th, 2021 at 1:26 pm
PPower… Rodgers isn’t really competing with Love…anymore than Brady is with Trask…Aaron was the league MVP last year. It is about the money. It’s almost always about the money.. and job security.
May 6th, 2021 at 1:48 pm
I find it ironic that Rodgers is pissed-off about the same thing he was a huge part of when GB ran Favre out of town….
May 6th, 2021 at 3:36 pm
Ruk… maybe even worse, as Rodgers was projected to be a top level QB, and not a project like Love. He had some mechanics issues, but I remember seeing him on the cover of a draft magazine that year, and speculation on him going up near the top of the draft.
May 6th, 2021 at 3:58 pm
If I had to bet where Rodgers will end up I’ll put my money on Vegas. Chucky must be going out of his mind dreaming of replacing Carr, with Rodgers. Chucky would also be willing to gamble a boat load of draft picks to make that happen. Raiders need to make a splash, new home, new stadium, no chance of beating Mahomes with Carr. Packers ship him to the AFC, get picks, and have a Love in. Mark it down.
May 7th, 2021 at 5:12 am
Rodgers is smart enough to know that this could have happened exactly the way that it played out. After all the packers did the same damn thing to Favre when they drafted Rodgers. The gm is a moron and from most of what Ive read/seen on Rodgers, he’s an entitled brat to put it kindly, so I think that there was bad blood even before they drafted Love. Glad it aint my team. 😛