GREEN BAY — While he clearly isn’t a clone of his mentor and predecessor, Green Bay Packers general manager Brian Gutekunst’s core philosophies about roster building aren’t vastly different from what Ted Thompson espoused, believe it or not.
Sure, as he showed with the four-member free agent class — outside linebackers Za’Darius Smith and Preston Smith, safety Adrian Amos and offensive lineman Billy Turner — the Packers introduced Thursday, Gutekunst is certainly ready, willing and able to use the free agent market. And he hasn’t ruled out adding a few more veterans from the market, either.
But as Gutekunst has said many times, he still believes excelling during the NFL draft is the proper way to build a Super Bowl-contending team.