*Washington Redskins general manger Scot McCloughan was recently a topic of discussion for two former colleagues, as Green Bay Packers general manager Ted Thompson and Seattle Seahawks General Manager John Schneider both talked about his passion for football. * Winners of four Super Bowls and the last four NFC North titles, the Green Bay Packers take the approach of rarely looking from the outside when building their team, electing to groom internal talent instead.
That starts with longtime general manager Ted Thompson, whom current Washington Redskins general manager Scot McCloughan got his start under as a scout from 1994-99.
Thompson was recently asked about McCloughan's credentials as he enters his first season as the Washington Redskins' general manager, and said "he's an excellent football guy."
"Very passionate about his work," he told ESPN’s John Keim. "Very aggressive in his evaluation."
Thompson said McCloughan – who spent the 2014 season running his own scouting company – "was always really good" at evaluating talent.
"It was something I could trust," Thompson said of McCloughan's eye for players. "There are a lot of times when you're a scout, you want to see it yourself before you believe it. If Scot tells me something, I believe it before I actually see it for myself."
During his introductory press conference with the Redskins, McCloughan said the most important thing he learned from Thompson and former Packers general manager Ron Wolf was "to not dabble in free agency."
"It's always the draft," he said. "I'm a little different – I'm a little more aggressive than that. The thing about Ron and Ted both is [they're] just so organized, so structured and they knew exactly what they wanted in a football player. …You don't do knee-jerk reactions. You're very, very thorough, not just from the standpoint of how they play on tape but how they're wired. What's the strength coach say? What's the trainer say? What do other teammates who played with them the year before say? I think once you get the whole portfolio kind of together, then you realize, you know what, this is the kind of guy we want."
Take a look at some photos from Scot McCloughan's first day as general manager of the Washington Redskins.
From 2010-13, McCloughan was the Seattle Seahawks' Senior Personnel Executive, working step-by-step with general manager John Schneider.
Together, they helped revamp the Seattle roster with Super Bowl talent.
"They have an immensely passionate football man," Schneider said of McCloughan last week. "He's been going to college visits [for a long time]. Even his dad would bring him. He knows the game. He understands players and that's probably the best compliment I can give him."
McCloughan's fingerprints have already helped reshape the Washington defense, as the Redskins have brought in Ricky Jean Francois, Stephen Paea, Terrance Knighton, Chris Culliver and Jeron Johnson during free agency.
The Redskins hope it's the start of a McCloughan-built foundation, and Schneider believes he will only "continue to bring in solid football guys and players."
RELATED LINKS:
-- 2015 Redskins Free Agency Journal
-- Jay Gruden Talks Redskins' Offseason
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