Kind of hard to do a comparison like that because Rodgers, Collins, Nelson, Sitton weren't exactly all-pro calibre for a few years after they were drafted. If you did the same analysis of those first drafts in 2008 it really doesn't look as good.

Originally Posted by: steveishere 

Kind of hard to do a comparison like that because Rodgers, Collins, Nelson, Sitton weren't exactly all-pro calibre for a few years after they were drafted. If you did the same analysis of those first drafts in 2008 it really doesn't look as good.

Originally Posted by: steveishere 

Clay Matthews was an all-pro player by year two. Josh Sitton didn’t receive the recognition, but he was one of the best guards in football throughout his second season. Those two players ascended rather quickly. Aaron Rodgers sat the bench, so that’s a bizarre circumstance, but he was a blue chipper by 2009. In fact, I would’ve put him in the red after 2008, which was his first year as a starter.

Players drafted in 2010 have four years of experience. There’s a body of work to examine now. Nick Collins became a blue chipper in 2008, which was his fourth season in the NFL. Jordy Nelson also became a blue chipper after his fourth season (2011) in the NFL. Nobody has achieved even red status from the 2010 class.

Only Randall Cobb and Davone House made the list from the 2011 class, with Cobb in the red and House in the yellow. You could argue House didn’t even deserve to make the list. Regardless, if it takes three years to examine a draft class, then 2011 is also fair game.

In Ted Thompson’s first five drafts, the number of blue and red chip players outnumbers the number of yellow chip players. In his last four drafts, the yellow chippers outnumber the blue and red chip players. My point isn’t that Thompson can’t work the draft anymore. If anything, you could argue he’s come back to earth after sustaining high-level success for five years. However, Thompson’s recent drafts (particularly 2010 & 2011) have not lived up to standard, creating holes in the roster. I think this is the main reason why the Packers may poke their head into free agency. They need to compensate for 2010 and 2011. It also explains why 2006 was such an active year for them in free agency. Mike Sherman's three drafts were terrible. They needed to compensate for that. Perhaps the Packers haven’t been cautious just for the sake of it over the last several years. Perhaps they’ve been cautious because the program worked so well for so long. The cracks are beginning to show, however, opening the door for another 2006.

Originally Posted by: porky88 

In Ted Thompson’s first five drafts, the number of blue and red chip players outnumbers the number of yellow chip players. In his last four drafts, the yellow chippers outnumber the blue and red chip players. My point isn’t that Thompson can’t work the draft anymore. If anything, you could argue he’s come back to earth after sustaining high-level success for five years. However, Thompson’s recent drafts (particularly 2010 & 2011) have not lived up to standard, creating holes in the roster. I think this is the main reason why the Packers may poke their head into free agency. They need to compensate for 2010 and 2011. It also explains why 2006 was such an active year for them in free agency. Mike Sherman's three drafts were terrible. They needed to compensate for that. Perhaps the Packers haven’t been cautious just for the sake of it over the last several years. Perhaps they’ve been cautious because the program worked so well for so long. The cracks are beginning to show, however, opening the door for another 2006.

Originally Posted by: porky88 

Clay Matthews was an all-pro player by year two. Josh Sitton didn’t receive the recognition, but he was one of the best guards in football throughout his second season. Those two players ascended rather quickly. Aaron Rodgers sat the bench, so that’s a bizarre circumstance, but he was a blue chipper by 2009. In fact, I would’ve put him in the red after 2008, which was his first year as a starter.

Players drafted in 2010 have four years of experience. There’s a body of work to examine now. Nick Collins became a blue chipper in 2008, which was his fourth season in the NFL. Jordy Nelson also became a blue chipper after his fourth season (2011) in the NFL. Nobody has achieved even red status from the 2010 class.

Only Randall Cobb and Davone House made the list from the 2011 class, with Cobb in the red and House in the yellow. You could argue House didn’t even deserve to make the list. Regardless, if it takes three years to examine a draft class, then 2011 is also fair game.

In Ted Thompson’s first five drafts, the number of blue and red chip players outnumbers the number of yellow chip players. In his last four drafts, the yellow chippers outnumber the blue and red chip players. My point isn’t that Thompson can’t work the draft anymore. If anything, you could argue he’s come back to earth after sustaining high-level success for five years. However, Thompson’s recent drafts (particularly 2010 & 2011) have not lived up to standard, creating holes in the roster. I think this is the main reason why the Packers may poke their head into free agency. They need to compensate for 2010 and 2011. It also explains why 2006 was such an active year for them in free agency. Mike Sherman's three drafts were terrible. They needed to compensate for that. Perhaps the Packers haven’t been cautious just for the sake of it over the last several years. Perhaps they’ve been cautious because the program worked so well for so long. The cracks are beginning to show, however, opening the door for another 2006.

Originally Posted by: porky88