Cheese Curds, 1/8: Work begins immediately for new Packers GM Brian Gutekunst

It is expected that Monday will be the first day on the job for Brian Gutekunst in his new position with the Green Bay Packers. The former director of player personnel was reportedly hired as General Manager on Sunday, so we expect to hear an official announcement sometime today.

Once he does take over the big office, he has a roster with a lot of question marks waiting for him. While there are holes at some key positions, some of the toughest decisions Gutekunst will likely make this offseason revolve around established veteran players with big contracts. Three specific names come to mind immediately, as Clay Matthews, Jordy Nelson, and Randall Cobb are all candidates for restructuring.

One thing that we have yet to learn about Gutekunst is his availability in terms of press conferences and meetings with the media. Ted Thompson, his predecessor, was conspicuously absent, only speaking publicly a few times per year — once at the Scouting Combine and again at the end of training camp. Gutekunst’s attitude can’t be more standoffish than Thompson’s, can it?

Here’s a look at the new GM and some of the tasks that await him in his first days, weeks, and months in office.

Offseason - Off to a busy start | Packers.com
Mark Murphy’s “Murphy Takes 5” column for this month came in the middle of the GM search on Saturday, but he still has a handful of interesting questions come in.

Packers hit home run with Brian Gutekunst as GM, but questions linger | ESPN
A source classified Gutekunst as a “home run” hire, compared to John Schneider being a “grand slam.” Still, that’s a good sign, and Gutekunst’s background — in both pro and college scouting — helped distinguish him from Russ Ball and Eliot Wolf.

Five priorities for new Packers GM Brian Gutekunst | Packersnews.com
One of the more low-key priorities revolves around whether to give cornerback Damarious Randall the fifth-year option that is available since he was a first-round pick. Gutekunst will also have to figure out what to do with Jordy Nelson’s and Randall Cobb’s contracts.

Ron Wolf: Packers didn’t deem son Eliot worthy of GM job ‘or they would’ve hired him’ | ESPN
It’s tough to tell from these brief comments if Wolf is frustrated with the Packers for not hiring Eliot, but the situation is very simple in his eyes: the Packers felt Gutekunst was the better choice.

Report: Browns plan to go after Eliot Wolf | Packers Wire
Cleveland could do far worse than transplanting a large portion of the Ted Thompson tree into Northeast Ohio; a trio of John Dorsey, Alonzo Highsmith, and Wolf would be an incredible turnaround in the Browns’ front office’s approach over just a few months.

Marcus Mariota’s heroic effort against the Chiefs, plus 6 things we loved from Wild Card Weekend | SB Nation
Sean McDonough’s voice is broken, flags were caught, and Alvin Kamara was dealing.