Packers announce Brian Gutekunst as new GM, but Mike McCarthy now reports to Mark Murphy

According to a press release by the Green Bay Packers on Monday morning, Brian Gutekunst has officially been named to the position of general manager. Along with Gutekunst’s promotion is the announcement that Russ Ball will also become the new executive vice president/director of football operations. They will both now report directly to Mark Murphy.

However, included in the press release is a curious statement that head coach Mike McCarthy will now report directly to Mark Murphy as well. This change appears unusual, as the general manager has traditionally held the power to make a change at head coach, should he deem it necessary. Instead, Gutekunst will have to run the decision by Murphy. Furthermore, this is a change from the structure that the Packers have operated under since Ron Wolf's hiring as GM in 1991.

Reactions to the announcement have been mixed. ESPN’s Kevin Seifert refers to the new structure as a “Triangle of Authority”. This term may be familiar to some as it was used to describe the Minnesota Vikings’ front office starting in 2006.

The official announcement contains one more important piece of information. The team has released a pronunciation guide for the new general manager’s name:

Its GOO-tuh-kunst. Let's all get familiar with it, because it's a name Packers fans will be saying a lot in the coming years.