The Green Bay Packers’ search for a new general manager is just beginning, but it sure appears vice president of football administration Russ Ball has emerged as an early favorite to replace Ted Thompson.

Packers president Mark Murphy didn’t explicitly say anything of the like Tuesday, but he didn’t have to. He had two telling comments on the candidacy of Ball, the organization’s jack of all trades.

First, Murphy explained that Ball was directly involved in the contract extensions given to receiver Davante Adams and center Corey Linsley last week. While unsurprising, given Ball’s role as vice president of player finance, his inclusion in the process – just days before a final decision was formally announced on Thompson’s future – confirms his growing importance in the organization and Murphy’s unshakable trust in his negotiation skills and decision-making processes.

Second, Murphy denied his next general manager would need a scouting background. He also wasn’t willing to limit his search to Ron Wolf’s scouting tree. The questions from reporters at Lambeau Field were specifically designed to weed out Ball as a candidate. Murphy ensured the search would be wide open, with Ball as one of the leading internal candidates.

The whispers coming out of Green Bay are also saying Ball’s name.

Tom Silverstein of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel wrote “many in the organization” believe Murphy will pick Ball as his next general manager. He’s expected to speak with Ball about the opening later this week, along with Eliot Wolf and Brian Gutekunst, the two other internal candidates.

Pro Football Talk’s Mike Florio said people around the league see Ball emerging with the job.

The puzzle pieces seem to fit.

Ball has done a little bit of everything for the team’s football operations, he became Thompson’s go-to man as he slowed down and started outsourcing responsibilities over the last year, and he has strong, deep relationships with both Murphy and coach Mike McCarthy, the two top decision makers left in the franchise.

Also, Wolf and Gutekunst have interviewed for several openings in recent years. Both eventually returned to Green Bay and were handed promotions in the front office, but their interest in outside opportunities might suggest, as Florio mentioned, an understanding that Ball was next in line once Thompson stepped down.

The recent move of senior personnel executive Alonzo Highsmith adds weight to the claim. He jumped at the opportunity to join new Browns general manager John Dorsey in Cleveland, in part because he didn’t even view himself as a legitimate candidate to replace Thompson, despite almost 20 years of scouting experience in the organization. Maybe he knows the path Murphy is destined to take.

Highsmith told Rob Demovsky of ESPN that he doesn’t expect to be the last member of the current front office hierarchy to leave Green Bay.

If Ball lands the job, he’ll need a top scout or two to help lead the personnel department. He’s a managerial wizard, but he doesn’t have the scouting experience. Wolf and Gutekunst would be ideal candidates for the job, but both could seek an exit – and a new opportunity elsewhere – if Murphy picks Ball. The two personnel men want to be a general manager in the NFL, and losing out to Ball now would only delay the realization of the dream several more years.

Murphy confirmed he’ll utilize help from an outside consultant in picking the team’s next general manager. Maybe an unbiased set of eyes will shift Murphy in a different direction, but the final decision is in the hands of the Packers president. Early in the process, it appears Ball is Murphy’s front-runner.