General manager (American football)

Professional football

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. During the NFL Combine, general managers will interview players.

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. 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. Pro Football Hall of Fame general managers include Tex Schramm, Bill Polian, Ron Wolf, Bobby Beathard, Gil Brandt, and George Young.

List of current NFL general managers

College football

In the 2020s, the introduction of name, image, and likeness (NIL) and professionalization of college athletics led schools to hire NFL-style general managers to oversee personnel and scouting departments separate from the role of athletic directors. They were introduced with recruiting and staff management as the focus, but evolved as NCAA transfer portal rules relaxed and became larger aspect of college roster building. Notable early hires include former NFL quarterback Andrew Luck, NFL executive Michael Lombardi, and NFL head coach Ron Rivera.

References

References

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24. "PLUS: PRO FOOTBALL; SAINTS PROMOTE LOOMIS".
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