Thompson, McCarthy working to 'do what's right' on cuts

There is strength in numbers, something Green Bay Packers general manager Ted Thompson and coach Mike McCarthy seem to understand as well as anyone.

While some NFL general managers and coaches have icy relationships, Thompson and McCarthy continue to work closely together. Never is that more important this week, when rosters are sliced from 75 to 53 players.

Thompson said communication is key. He met with McCarthy on Wednesday, just to make sure they were on the same page.

"I went to see him this morning just to say, 'Look, we're going to have a tough couple days, we got to keep watching what's in the best interest of this football team and those young men downstairs,'" Thompson said. "We have to put that at the forefront. We can't worry about, 'I thought this guy was going to be this kind of player, or this guy is disappointing me, or the coaches like this guy or scouts like this guy.' We can't get into that.

"We have to do what's right for the Packers, and most of all what's right for the people that are in that locker room."

Thompson has the final say on roster decisions, but he highly values McCarthy's input. Thompson said McCarthy is the coaching representative, gathering opinions of his assistants.

It prevents the Packers from having too many voices in the room when final decisions are made.

"Mostly those conversations are conversations with just Mike and I," Thompson said. "He has a good feel for his staff and the likes and dislikes that they have projected. Everybody has a say. The people in the personnel group are the same way with me. They're pretty open and sometimes demonstrative.

"Everybody's trying to do the right thing, and Mike and I work pretty good together."

-- rwood@gannett.com and follow him on Twitter @ByRyanWood