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The Green Bay Packers have had a tumultuous offseason thus far. As they look to transition into the Matt LaFleur era after firing Mike McCarthy, things haven't gone smoothly.
A bombshell article from Bleacher Report had nearly everybody looking bad, and was a big distraction for a couple of weeks.
But Green Bay's front office is proceeding as normal, preparing for this week's draft. Notably, they've hosted a few of the top quarterbacks in this year's class for visits, even though they have Aaron Rodgers.
Rodgers is 35 now and has struggled with injuries recently, so it's possible the Packers are looking to set up a successor.
That being said, Packers general manager Brian Gutekunst said today that the concept of a predetermined succession plan was “overhyped” and not necessary, per Michael Cohen of The Athletic. Gutekunst also denied that the time they've spent with the top passers is of any significance, and insisted they do it every year.
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Gutekunst asked about a succession plan at quarterback. He describes it as "overhyped, or whatever." He says the #Packers spend a lot of time every year evaluating the quarterbacks, even when they don't draft one.
— Michael Cohen (@Michael_Cohen13) April 22, 2019
It's an especially interesting comment considering Rodgers came to be Green Bay's quarterback because of a succession plan. Rodgers, of course, was drafted in 2005 but sat behind Brett Favre for three seasons. Once Favre decided to retire, for the first time, Rodgers then ascended to the starting role.
It obviously worked out well for the Packers back then, but they apparently don't think it's something they have to worry about right now. Rodgers and McCarthy didn't get along the past handful of years, and the Packers are hoping the presence of LaFleur will bring some much-needed energy back to the team.
It'll be interesting to see if the Packers draft a quarterback at all, although it would be a pretty big shock if they drafted one early.
