Brian Gutekunst began his NFL career as a scouting assistant for the Kansas City Chiefs in 1998. He ascended the ranks the old-fashioned way, clawing from the college scout level of the Green Bay Packers organization, to the director of college scouting, to director of player personnel, and eventually to general manager.
During his time as an executive, Gutekunst was repeatedly interviewed for GM positions around the league, but the Packers retained him via promotion after the late Ted Thompson stepped down in 2017. The world was fascinated to see how Gutekunst would approach the job following Thompson’s 12-year tenure, because the keys to the kingdom aren’t passed down often in Green Bay. And, fair or not, it is likely that a similar succession, this one at quarterback, will largely determine how people remember Gutekunst.
His fresh fingerprints were all over his first couple of offseasons. Gutekunst released legendary receiver Jordy Nelson to clear space for Jimmy Graham’s massive three-year deal. Sick of watching a helpless defense squander Rodgers’ prime, Gutekunst splurged on a pair of edge-rushers the following spring who later became known as the Smith brothers, safety Adrian Amos, and tackle Billy Turner. It was the dawn of a new day in Titletown, one during which they would actually be aggressive on the open market.
Recently, though, Gutekunst and his new administration have settled back into much of the old Packer way. Their biggest signing this offseason was a one-year deal for Jonathan Owens, a safety currently listed behind journeyman Rudy Ford on the depth chart. The deal elicited some major headlines, but mostly because Owens is married to U.S. Olympic gold medalist Simone Biles.
Much of the inaction can be attributed to necessary cap relief after going all-in with Aaron Rodgers the past two seasons. However, the rest of it is because Gutekunst has drafted incredibly well during his tenure. As a result, there simply aren’t too many holes for the Packers to fill. Desperate deals on the open market are unnecessary. As for the lack of a veteran presence in the pass-catching rooms, he emphasized the need for the young guys to play in what is widely expected to be a rebuilding year in Green Bay.
In a league in which a new wave of analytics-based strategy has put young, Ivy League quants like Andrew Berry and Kwesi Adofo-Mensah at the helm of NFL rosters, Gutekunst’s scouting background is an evident, significant factor in the successes he’s had. He has found franchise cornerstones in Elgton Jenkins, Jon Runyan Jr., Rashan Gary, and Jaire Alexander. Christian Watson, Quay Walker, and 2022 fourth-rounder Zach Tom appear destined for that trajectory. And guys like Luke Musgrave, Jayden Reed, and Carrington Valentine are flashing massive potential in camp.
Yes, there has been the third-round curse, and, yes, the jury is still out on a lot of guys like Eric Stokes and Devonte Wyatt. But Gutekunst has built a defensive unit with the capability of being elite and an offensive line that looks like it’s already there. His next big project, the receiver room, has a ton of potential with Watson, Reed, and Romeo Doubs poised to develop alongside Jordan Love.
But after every draft pick, signing, cut, and other transaction he’s made, it feels like nothing will ever loom larger than that guy I just mentioned. For Love, whatever he may turn out to be, we as Packers fans sacrificed the final years of Rodgers’ career and seeing him retire as a Packer. For Love, although none of it was his fault, we endured a trio of drama-filled seasons when we should’ve been contending. And for Love, we passed on a defender, a secondary receiver, or another type of impact player who could’ve helped amid the disgusting pile of miscues and missed opportunities that was the 2020 NFC Championship game.
It was with that pick, which Gutekunst and the front office made after trading up, that told the world that the Green Bay Packers were just going to do their thing, no matter who was in charge. The league has been past sitting and developing quarterbacks for a while now. The Indianapolis Colts have handed the keys to Anthony Richardson, the most raw major quarterback prospect in recent memory. It remains to be determined the extent to which the Packers viewed Love as impossible to pass up, or a promising project that aligned with their desire to have their Rodgers successor play as a backup, just as Rodgers did from 2005 to 2008. Whether Love is good or bad, I’m sure that part will be revealed in a Netflix documentary some day.
All of this to say, while Gutekunst has done an incredible job of drafting and developing a defense and an offensive line in particular, his legacy seems to rest on the outcome of his sole attempt to do it with a quarterback. It’s clear that he is a good scout and a good GM. He has had his misses, like every other executive in league history, but overall, he has put the Packers in position to contend.
Now, he has set them up for the future of his creation in what will either serve as the biggest vindication or indictment of the Packer way that has ever taken place on the national stage. Win or lose, he should and likely will keep his job. However, this is one of those reckonings that I believe calls for an examination of how tradition should be balanced with new ideas and logic. Because everything shouldn’t hinge on the extent to which a 24-year-old out of Utah State has been able to reach his potential. But it does.
