General manager (American football)

A general manager (GM) is a sports management position for an American football team who typically oversees rosters and contracts. GMs answer directly to the team's owner in such an organizational model and are viewed as the team's most senior executive in football operations.

Responsibilities

The general manager (GM) is typically the head of football operations, which includes leading the scouting department and being responsible for handling free agent transactions and contract negotiations with players and coaches. The scouting department's role is to evaluate college football players entering the annual NFL draft. ^[1] During the NFL Combine, general managers will interview players. ^[2]  

Many GMs begin their front office career as an assistant scout and are promoted into roles such as director of college scouting or vice president of player personnel before being GM. The GM is also responsible for negotiating contracts with players and coaches. ^[3] As with head coaches and some players, GMs are required by the NFL to attend press conferences with the media. During the season, general managers will work 100 hours or more a week. ^[3] Some Pro Football Hall of Fame general managers include Tex Schramm, Al Davis, Bill Polian, Ron Wolf, Bobby Beathard, Gil Brandt, and George Young.

List of current NFL general managers

Current NFL general managers

Team	General manager	Since	Ref.
Arizona Cardinals	Monti Ossenfort	2023	[4]
Atlanta Falcons	Terry Fontenot	2021	[5]
Baltimore Ravens	Eric DeCosta	2019	[6]
Buffalo Bills	Brandon Beane	2017	[7]
Carolina Panthers	Dan Morgan	2024	[8]
Chicago Bears	Ryan Poles	2022	[9]
Cincinnati Bengals	Duke Tobin [a]	1999	[10]
Cleveland Browns	Andrew Berry	2020	[11]
Dallas Cowboys	Jerry Jones [b]	1989	[12]
Denver Broncos	George Paton	2021	[13]
Detroit Lions	Brad Holmes	2021	[14]
Green Bay Packers	Brian Gutekunst	2018	[15]
Houston Texans	Nick Caserio	2021	[16]
Indianapolis Colts	Chris Ballard	2017	[17]
Jacksonville Jaguars	James Gladstone	2025	[18]
Kansas City Chiefs	Brett Veach	2017	[19]
Las Vegas Raiders	John Spytek	2025	[20]
Los Angeles Chargers	Joe Hortiz	2024	[21]
Los Angeles Rams	Les Snead	2012	[22]
Miami Dolphins	Chris Grier	2016	[23]
Minnesota Vikings	Kwesi Adofo-Mensah	2022	[24]
New England Patriots	Eliot Wolf [c]	2024	[25]
New Orleans Saints	Mickey Loomis	2002	[26]
New York Giants	Joe Schoen	2022	[27]
New York Jets	Darren Mougey	2025	[28]
Philadelphia Eagles	Howie Roseman	2010	[29]
Pittsburgh Steelers	Omar Khan	2022	[30]
San Francisco 49ers	John Lynch	2017	[31]
Seattle Seahawks	John Schneider	2010	[32]
Tampa Bay Buccaneers	Jason Licht	2014	[33]
Tennessee Titans	Mike Borgonzi	2025	[34]
Washington Commanders	Adam Peters	2024	[35]

References

1. Tobin, the team's director of player personnel, holds de facto GM responsibilities.
2. Jones, the team's owner, holds the additional titles of president and general manager. In the 2010s, he ceded some decision-making power to son Stephen Jones and senior personnel executive Will McClay.
3. Executive vice president of player personnel serving as de facto GM

1. Weathersby, Edwin. "A Scout's Take on How College Football Recruits Are Evaluated". Bleacher Report. Retrieved 2022-04-14.
2. "Inside pre-NFL draft prospect interviews: What teams ask at the combine and why". ESPN.com. 2022-03-03. Retrieved 2022-04-14.
3. "How to Become an NFL General Manager". JobsInSports Blog. 2021-11-03. Retrieved 2022-04-19.
4. Weinfuss, Josh (January 16, 2023). "Cardinals hire Titans exec Monti Ossenfort as new general manager". ESPN.com. Retrieved January 16, 2023.
5. Tabeek, Matthew (2021-01-19). "Falcons name Terry Fontenot general manager". www.atlantafalcons.com. Retrieved 2021-01-19.
6. Mink, Ryan. "Eric DeCosta's Rise to General Manager Is a Story for Patient Dreamers". baltimoreravens.com. Retrieved 1 May 2024.
7. Sessler, Marc. "Buffalo Bills name Brandon Beane general manager". NFL.com. Retrieved 1 May 2024.
8. Gantt, Darin (January 22, 2024). "Dan Morgan named President of Football Operations/General Manager". Panthers.com. Retrieved January 22, 2024.
9. Mayer, Larry (January 25, 2022). "Bears hire Ryan Poles as general manager". Chicago Bears . Retrieved January 25, 2022.
10. Daugherty, Paul. "Doc: These are the Bengals' good new days". Cincinnati.com. Retrieved 1 May 2024.
11. Gribble, Andrew. "Andrew Berry named Browns Executive Vice President of Football Operations and General Manager". ClevelandBrowns.com. Retrieved 28 January 2020.
12. "Executive Profile – Jerry Jones". Dallas Cowboys. Archived from the original on March 5, 2010.
13. Gordon, Grant (January 12, 2021). "George Paton agrees to six-year deal as new Broncos general manager". NFL.com. NFL Enterprises, LLC. Retrieved January 12, 2021.
14. Patra, Kevin. "Lions agree to terms with Brad Holmes on five-year deal as new GM". NFL.com. Retrieved 14 January 2021.
15. Wesseling, Chris. "Packers hiring Brian Gutekunst as general manager". NFL.com. Retrieved January 7, 2018.
16. Wilson, Aaron (January 6, 2020). "New Texans GM Nick Caserio signs contract". Houston Chronicle. Retrieved January 6, 2020.
17. O'Keefe, PJ (January 30, 2017). "Colts hire Chris Ballard as new General Manager". RTV6. Retrieved November 11, 2017.
18. "Official: James Gladstone Agrees to Terms on the Jaguars General Manager Position". jaguars.com. Retrieved 21 February 2025.
19. "Chiefs promote Brett Veach to general manager". NFL.com. Retrieved 1 May 2024.
20. "Raiders name John Spytek General Manager". Raiders.com. Retrieved 25 January 2025.
21. "Los Angeles Chargers Agree to Terms with Joe Hortiz as General Manager". chargers.com. January 30, 2024. Retrieved January 30, 2024.
22. Yasinskas, Pat (February 12, 2012). "Source: Rams to hire Les Snead as GM". ESPN . Retrieved October 28, 2012.
23. "Dolphins finalize hiring of Chris Grier as general manager". USA Today. Retrieved 1 May 2024.
24. "Kwesi Adofo-Mensah Named New Vikings General Manager". Minnesota Vikings. January 26, 2022. Retrieved January 26, 2022.
25. Price, Christopher. "Meet Eliot Wolf, the man who has the pedigree to make personnel decisions for the Patriots". Boston Globe. Retrieved 22 February 2024.
26. "PLUS: PRO FOOTBALL; SAINTS PROMOTE LOOMIS". The New York Times. Retrieved 1 May 2024.
27. "Giants hire Joe Schoen as next general manager". NFL.com. January 21, 2022. Retrieved January 21, 2022.
28. Baca, Michael. "Jets hire Darren Mougey as new general manager". NFL.com. Retrieved 26 January 2025.
29. Frank, Reuben. "Understanding the complicated legacy of Howie Roseman". NBC Sports Philadelphia. Retrieved 1 May 2024.
30. Pryor, Brooke. "Pittsburgh Steelers promote Omar Khan to take over as GM". ESPN. Retrieved 1 May 2024.
31. Orr, Conor. "San Francisco 49ers name John Lynch general manager". NFL.com. Retrieved January 30, 2017.
32. Pasquarelli, Len. "Seahawks hire Schneider". ESPN. Retrieved 1 May 2024.
33. "Bucs hire Cards' Licht as general manager". January 21, 2014.
34. Dajani, Jordan (January 17, 2025). "Titans hire Mike Borgonzi as new general manager, ex-Chiefs assistant GM heads to Tennessee". CBS Sports. Retrieved January 17, 2025.
35. Selby, Zach (January 15, 2024). "Commanders hire Adam Peters as general manager". Commanders.com. Archived from the original on January 15, 2024. Retrieved January 15, 2024.