Super Bowl ‘Always’ Expectation, Packers GM Brian Gutekunst Says
GREEN BAY, Wis. – With a new quarterback and so many young players, Green Bay Packers general manager Brian Gutekunst entered the 2023 NFL season without a “ton of expectations.”
With the rapid rise of Jordan Love, a ridiculously deep group of young perimeter weapons and a solid veteran core, the expectations are back to Aaron Rodgers levels.
Super Bowl championship.
“I think it always has been (the expectation). I don’t think it ever left,” Gutekunst said at the close of his season-ending news conference on Thursday at Lambeau Field. “You know, with 5 minutes to go in that game [against San Francisco], I think we were squarely thinking that’s where we were headed.
“So, I don’t think that’ll ever change here. I mean, that’s really the only goal. We’re not interested in much else.”
So, an overall final record of 10-9 and a wild-card playoff victory won’t lead to any banners being hung inside the venerable stadium.
However, the Packers will enter 2024 with high expectations – and the belief that they can meet them. They won their final three regular-season games, including dominating victories over Minnesota and Chicago to clinch a playoff berth. Then, they blasted the second-seeded Dallas Cowboys in a wild-card matchup before pushing the NFC-champion 49ers to the brink in the divisional round.
“I don’t know if I’d use the term ahead of schedule,” Gutekunst said. “Sometimes when you put too many expectations on guys, it can keep your mindset from where you can go. It can limit you, so to speak. So, I went into this year with not a ton of expectations.
“This is the Green Bay Packers, so we expect to compete for championships at all times, but I wanted to see how fast and how quickly this team could get up to speed and competing at a high level.”
After starting 2-5 and 3-6, and then losing two in a row to tumble to 6-8, the Packers hit that high level that Gutekunst was hoping to see.
Now, they have to take the next step.
“To see these guys come out of it the way they did gives you a lot of excitement,” he continued. “But every year is a different year. We had a lot of players early in their careers that played a lot this year. That’s unusual around here.
“I think the big them for them is going to be going into Year 2 understanding just because they had some success in Year 1 doesn’t mean that their spots are safe and that they better be working and be ready to compete once we get rolling. So, their future is bright, but it’s really kind of what they do from here on out.”
With Love fueling their powerful finish to the season, the Packers’ early Super Bowl odds at FanDuel Sportsbook are +2500. Those are the 10th-shortest odds overall, fifth in the NFC and second among NFC North teams (the Lions opened at +1700 and are +1200).
The Packers were +2500 at this time last year, when Aaron Rodgers remained the quarterback. That moved to +4000 after it became clear that Rodgers would be traded.
“I’m very process driven, as everybody here is,” Gutekunst said. “So, whether it was early when we won a couple of games or whether it was when we went through the tough stretch in October and weren’t doing what we wanted to do, just really focusing on the process.
“As you do that, I think you start to see things. You see guys getting better. You see units getting better. And then it’s just a matter of can you get better in time to get into the tournament and have a chance. I think that was the exciting part. It was just seeing the growth of the team, and with that, outside expectations change, right? And you go from, ‘No chance’ to, ‘They’d better make it,’ and now, all of a sudden, we have a chance to maybe go really far in the playoffs. I think that’s cool to see but, from our part, it’s really all about the process and really focusing on that, and that was really good throughout the year.”
