Eliot Wolf - Pro Football Rumors

Packers Notes: GM Search, Ball, Wolf, Evans

January 2nd, 2018 at 7:58pm CST by Dallas Robinson

Now that the Packers have reassigned former general manager Ted Thompson (he’s now a senior advisor to football operations, the club announced today), Green Bay is searching for a new decision-maker atop its personnel department. Incumbent vice president of football administration Russ Ball is thought to be a candidate for the position and has a “close relationship” with Packers president Mark Murphy, according to Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk, but promoting Ball could cause other problems for Green Bay. If Ball (or an external candidate is hired), the Packers will likely lose fellow personnel men Eliot Wolf and Brian Gutekunst to other clubs, reports Tom Silverstein of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. However, if one of Wolf or Gutenkunst is promoted to GM, the other man will likely stay in Green Bay, per Silverstein.

Here’s more on the Packers:

While the Packers will utilize search firm Korn Ferry as they look for a new general manager, Murphy told reporters that he will make the final call on the club’s top personnel job (Twitter links via Jason Wilde of ESPN.com). Additionally, Green Bay’s next GM will have the power to fire the team’s head coach, an interesting development given that Mike McCarthy is currently signed through 2019. Murphy said “[McCarthy] will be our coach,” an indication that the new Packers general manager will be stuck with McCarthy for at least one campaign.
Green Bay’s decision to extend McCarthy’s contract will allow the longtime head coach more flexibility as he seeks to fill out his staff, writes Rob Demovsky of ESPN.com. The most pressing decision for McCarthy will be to hire a new defensive coordinator following Dom Capers‘ firing, but the Packers will also see change on the offensive side of the ball. Luke Getsy, who’s served as Green Bay’s wide receivers coach for the past two seasons, is now Mississippi State’s offensive coordinator, per Demovsky.
The Packers have interest in re-signing veteran guard Jahri Evans, who will become a free agent in March, per Ryan Wood of PackersNews.com (Twitter link). Evans would likely need to accept less than the $2.25MM he earned in 2017, per Wood, and the 34-year-old offensive lineman would almost certainly ink a one-year pact. In his first season outside of New Orleans, Evans ranked as the No. 30 guard among 82 qualifiers, per Pro Football Focus.

Ted Thompson Out As Packers GM

January 1st, 2018 at 5:42pm CST by Micah Powell

The Packers are now searching for a new general manager after Ted Thompson is expected to take a new role in the organization, sources tell NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport (Twitter link).

ESPN’s Chris Mortensen confirmed Thompson will assume a new role within the team and the front office will undergo an overhaul, led by team president Mark Murphy (Twitter link).

Thompson has operated as the team’s general manager since 2005 and has been with the team through two stints since 1992. In his first NFL Draft, Thompson selected Aaron Rodgers with the 24th overall pick. Green Bay has been among the best teams in the draft since Thompson’s arrival, plucking stars like Clay Matthews and Jordy Nelson.

Under Thompson’s watch, the team advanced to the playoffs nine times and won the Super Bowl in 2010. The Packers missed the postseason for the first time since 2008 when it finished 7-9 in 2017.

There are several internal candidates to keep an eye on to take over as general manager, including director of college scouting Brian Gutekunst, director of football operations Eliot Wolf and vice president of football administration/player finance Russ Ball, Rapoport reports (Twitter link). Mortensen reported all three are expected to receive new duties with the change. (Twitter link). The team is expected hire a true general manager and will not operate with all three in the position, ESPN’s Jason Wilde reports (Twitter link).

NFC North Notes: Vikings, Keenum, Packers

December 24th, 2017 at 3:40pm CST by Dallas Robinson

The Vikings still have not opened extension talks with pending free agent quarterback Case Keenum, according to Jason La Canfora of CBSSports.com. Previous reports have indicated general manager Rick Spielman & Co. won’t discuss contracts with any of their free agent signal-callers until the season concludes, and that stance has not changed, per Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk. Indeed, Keenum may require a franchise or transition tag in order to not hit the open market, several executives tell La Canfora. Keenum, Teddy Bridgewater, and Sam Bradford are all scheduled to become unrestricted free agents next spring, meaning the Vikings will have several decisions to make over the coming months.

Here’s more from the NFC North:

While the Packers have certainly struggled without quarterback Aaron Rodgers, the club isn’t expected to make wholesale changes during the offseason, reports Tom Pelissero of NFL.com. However, defensive coordinator Dom Capers could take the fall after leading a defense that ranks just 19th in DVOA. If Capers is fired, one candidate to take over Green Bay’s defense may be current Bears DC Vic Fangio, per Pelissero. Fangio, whose contract expires after the 2017 season, has Chicago’s defense at 14th in DVOA (with arguably less talent than the Packers possess).
Capers isn’t the only Packers staffer who could leave the team this offseason, as director of football operations Eliot Wolf is once again drawing general manager interest. While Wolf has long been viewed as an in-house replacement for current GM Ted Thompson, Wolf is reportedly growing impatient and is ready to “branch out,” sources tell Matt Miller of Bleacher Report. Wolf, who was tied to the 49ers and Colts general manager vacancies a year ago, was most recently linked to the Giants GM gig.
Although Vikings long snapper Kevin McDermott‘s dislocated shoulder is likely to sideline him for the final game of the regular season, he’s expected to be available for the playoffs, per Chris Tomasson of the Pioneer Press (Twitter links). McDermott, who will not require surgery, had his shoulder popped back in place last night. Meanwhile, Minnesota will need a long snapper for their Week 17 contest against the Bears, and the club plans to audition free agent Justin Drescher on Tuesday, per Tomasson. Drescher has appeared in 110 career games, including eight with the Cardinals earlier this year.

Giants Eyeing Eliot Wolf, Nick Caserio For GM

December 13th, 2017 at 6:40pm CST by Dallas Robinson

Although former Panthers general manager Dave Gettleman is considered the favorite for the Giants’ GM position, the club also has other candidates in mind. Packers director of football operations Eliot Wolf and Patriots vice president of player personnel Nick Caserio are on New York’s radar as it seeks to replace Jerry Reese, according to Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk.

Wolf, 35, has long been considered a future general manager, but never actually interviewed for an opening until this year (partially because Green Bay denied permission for him to meet with Philadelphia and Detroit in recent hiring cycles). Although he was viewed as a strong contender for the 49ers’ GM job this offseason, Wolf ultimately accepted a new contract with the Packers. He subsequently interviewed with the Colts.

Caserio, who has spent the entirety of his 17-year NFL career in New England, has been linked to other vacancies in the past, but has never shown much willingness to leave Foxborough. Since 2014, he’s declined an offer from the Dolphins and an interview from the 49ers in order to remain with the Patriots. However, Albert Breer of TheMMQB.com recently indicated Caserio is “willing to listen” to general manager proposals, and noted the Giants job could hold particular interest.

Each of the candidates for the New York gig could have potential head coaches in mind: a source tells Florio that Gettleman or Wolf could attempt to hire Eagles defensive coordinator Jim Schwartz, while Caserio could unsurprisingly look at Patriots offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels.

East Notes: Cowboys, Giants, Hackenberg, Jets

December 8th, 2017 at 2:21pm CST by Zachary Links

Jerry Jones offered a measured response to Roger Goodell‘s new extension when asked about it on Friday morning.

“No, I don’t really [have any comment],” Jones said on 105.3 The Fan (transcript via Jon Machota of the Dallas Morning News). “We’re having a very important [owners] meeting here in Dallas next week beginning Wednesday. That’s very meaningful. I’m looking forward to that. That’ll be very meaningful as we go forward. One of the things that I think that has been mentioned is any role that I might have had in the extension of Roger. As you know, I’ve been on both ends of it as far as any criticism. It’s been my experience in 30 years in the NFL that to make change and to make positive change — every time we all strive to make the NFL better, I include every owner with that — it’s hard. It’s very, very hard. If you really want to make some changes, you usually end up getting a lot of criticism along the way. It’s happened every time with me when we’ve had meaningful change. … We’ll see how it goes forward, but there’s nothing that has surprised me here.”

While Jones seethes behind closed doors, let’s take a look at the latest from the East divisions:

Jordan Raanan of ESPN.com spoke with people around the league to size up some potential candidates for the Giants‘ GM vacancy. The names he’s hearing include Eliot Wolf (Packers), Nick Caserio (Patriots), Scott Pioli (Falcons), Trent Kirchner (Seahawks), Dave Gettleman (ex-Panthers GM), Louis Riddick (currently with ESPN), and internal candidates Kevin Abrams and Marc Ross.
Can Christian Hackenberg still be the Jets‘ quarterback of the future? The former second round pick has yet to see the field, but Manish Mehta of the New York Daily News won’t rule out the possibility that he could be in the mix next season. For his part, Hackenberg admits that he is anxious to take an NFL snap. “In order to grow and learn, you need to get hit in your mouth,” Hackenberg said. “You need to fail. Then you grow from that. There’s really no intimidation. I got to experience things. I felt like I experienced a lot of really good things this preseason and some things I need to learn from. That’s all part of the process. If you don’t experience both ends of the spectrum, you’re not getting everything out of the adventure.”

Browns Eyeing Ex-Chiefs GM John Dorsey

December 7th, 2017 at 11:12am CST by Zachary Links

The Browns’ GM search is underway and we already have word on a potential frontrunner for the job. The Browns are eyeing former Chiefs GM John Dorsey and he is expected to emerge as a leading contender for the job, sources tell ESPN.com’s Adam Schefter and Dianna Russini.

Owner Jimmy Haslam and his wife Dee Haslam are expected to interview candidates as early as this week, sources tell the duo. The early interviews may also include Seahawks executive Trent Kirchner and Packers executive Eliot Wolf, Tom Pelissero of NFL.com reports (on Twitter).

In his statement announcing the firing of Sashi Brown, Haslam said that he would be looking for “someone with strong experience and success in drafting and building consistently winning football teams.” Dorsey fits the bill, though he is not without his critics. Dorsey was canned by Kansas City late last offseason, reportedly because of his overly loose management style. The Chiefs also did a poor job of managing the salary cap, though that supposedly did not factor heavily into Clark Hunt’s decision fire him.

Because of the team is making experience a requirement, it sounds like former NFL quarterback Peyton Manning will not be considered for the job. Throughout the year, there were rumblings of Haslam working to lure Manning, potentially by offering a small stake in the team. Instead, it appears that the Browns will be making a more traditional hire.

Whoever takes over for Brown in Cleveland will have a lot going for them (in theory). In the 2018 draft, the Brows have an enviable stockpile including an extra first-round pick, two additional second round picks, a fourth-round choice, and a fifth-round selection. They could also have nearly $100MM in cap space, though it’s not a given that Haslam will spend it all.

NFC East Notes: Giants, Redskins, Jones

December 4th, 2017 at 9:15pm CST by GregGoldstein

Now that the Giants front office and coaching staff is set to go through a number of changes after the firing of Jerry Reese and Ben McAdoo, there’s a ton of speculation of who could be the person put in charge to bring the franchise back to perennial success.

While many people think the hire will come outside the organization, Mike Garafolo of the NFL Network thinks interim GM Kevin Abrams should not be overlooked as the Giants begin their search.

Garafolo notes that Abrams is a “cap guy by trade”, but has worked on his scouting ability in recent years and has “attended multiple NFL seminars” to prepare to lead a football operations department. A number of names are likely to be floated for the job given that the team will likely have a high pick and has a track record of winning, but Abrams seems like he might get a realistic shot at turning his interim tag into a full-time position.

Here’s more from around the NFC East:

Apart from Abrams, Mike Sando of ESPN.com speculated a few candidates from outside the organization who could be contenders for the Giants general manager and head coaching gigs. Sando names front office guys like Nick Caserio from the Patriots, former Panthers GM Dave Gettleman and former Colts President Bill Polian. He also highlights many well known up-and-comers such as Eric DeCosta (Ravens), George Paton (Vikings), Eliot Wolf (Packers) and Terry McDonough (Cardinals) among many others. Sando added that former GM’s Scott Pioli (Falcons) and John Dorsey (free agent) could be intriguing hires as well. In terms of potential head coaching candidates, Sando names guys who were on the teams original list back before they hired McAdoo prior the 2016-17 season. This would include current coordinators like Teryl Austin (Lions) and Mike Smith (Buccaneers). An under-the-radar name to watch is Texans defensive coordinator, Mike Vrabel, who is best known for his time leading the Patriots defense to Super Bowl titles.
While the Redskins are out of the NFC playoff race after losing to the Cowboys last Thursday, that doesn’t mean that team will start resting their players, states John Keim of ESPN.com. He passes along that Head coach Jay Gruden said that he wouldn’t rest some of their injured starters just because the games don’t have postseason implications for the team. “They’re all trying to get back in the lineup,” Gruden said. “They’re going to play hard because they want to win and want to do well. That’s the reason they’re all here. We try to target guys that love football, are passionate about the game and are going to play hard no matter what. For the most part, we’ve got that here. So whether you are on one year left or five years left, doesn’t really matter.” Starters like left tackle Trent Williams, right tackle Morgan Moses and tight end Jordan Reed have all dealt with nagging injuries this season, but it appears that the Redskins won’t just solely be resting key players hoping that could lead to a better draft pick.
Eagles cornerback Sidney Jones has not played in a game this season as he’s continued to rehab the achilles that he had torn back in March. However, the rookie has yet to participate in practice, reports Zach Berman of the Philadelphia Inquirer (Twitter link). Jones has been eligible to start practicing since the beginning of Week 7, but has just a 21 day time period to be activated to the roster once he does begin to take part in practice. It’s important to note that Berman explains in a follow-up tweet, Jones could just use the last three weeks of the regular season to get extra reps and get a head start on his offseason training. The Eagles currently have corners Jalen Mills, Patrick Robinson, Ronald Darby and Rasul Douglas patrolling the defensive backfield.

John Dorsey Unlikely To Return To Packers?

June 22nd, 2017 at 8:01pm CST by Dallas Robinson

After being fired as the Chiefs’ general manager earlier today, John Dorsey is unlikely to return to the Packers, with whom he’s the spent the majority of his professional career, according to Charles Robinson of Yahoo! Sports (Twitter links: 1, 2, 3, 4).

Dorsey has been mentioned as a candidate to succeed Green Bay GM Ted Thompson since January, when a report indicated Dorsey could head to Green Bay when his Kansas City contract expired after 2017. Dorsey helped to build the Packers into a consistent contender, first as a college scout from 1991-97 and then as director of college scouting in 1998. After a one-year stint as the Seahawks’ director of player personnel in 1999, Dorsey returned to the Packers, where he served as the team’s director of college scouting from 2000-11 and as the director of football operations in 2012.

However, the next Packers general manager is more likely to be one of director of football operations Eliot Wolf, director of player personnel Brian Gutekunst, or vice president of football administration Russ Ball, per Robinson. Wolf and Gutekunst, specifically, have turned down opportunities to interview elsewhere (including San Francisco earlier this year) in order to remain in Green Bay, while Ball has been “working to broaden his knowledge base” in order to be prepared for a jump to GM.

That’s not to say Dorsey doesn’t have interest in returning to the Packers, as Robinson reports Dorsey has “overwhelming respect” for Thomspson and is “very fond” of the Packers organization. But his presence on Green Bay’s personnel staff could “ruffle some feathers,” per Robinson, especially because the trio of Wolf, Gutekunst, and Ball have remained on board instead of pursuing other jobs.

Packers Have No GM Succession Plan In Place

February 2nd, 2017 at 10:34am CST by Zachary Links

Packers execs Eliot Wolf and Brian Gutekunst were both considered for GM jobs this offseason and it stands to reason that they will continue to be in the mix for those gigs going forward. Despite the fact that they are in high demand, neither man has been told that they will succeed GM Ted Thompson (link via Rob Demovsky of ESPN.com).

“I don’t think you can make promises,” team president Mark Murphy said with regards to the two young scouts and cap guru Russ Ball. “Especially [because] the league changes so much year to year.”

Murphy says that he has an idea of how long Thompson, 64, will stay on the job, but he declined to disclose that timetable publicly. It’s also not immediately clear whether Thompson’s contract runs out after the 2018 season or following the 2019 draft.

On the field, the Packers have built a winning team by building talent from within. That philosophy extends to the front office, where they have multiple young candidates who are ostensibly ready to run the show. Interestingly, the Packers could reportedly change course this offseason and be active on the open market.

Latest On Colts’ General Manager Search

January 27th, 2017 at 6:41pm CST by Dallas Robinson

The Colts aren’t rushing through their hunt for a new general manager, and have identified “no specific timetable” during which they will make a decision on their next personnel chief, according to Stephen Holder of the Indianapolis Star. The process isn’t expected to reach a conclusion for at least another week to 10 days, tweets Mike Garafolo of NFL.com.

[RELATED: 2017 GM Search Tracker]

Indianapolis and owner Jim Irsay finished up its first round of interviews, and follow-up meetings are to be scheduled, per Holder. Chiefs director of player personnel Chris Ballard and Packers director of football operations Eliot Wolf are considered the favorites for the position, reports Jason Cole of Bleacher Report (video link), although incumbent candidate Jimmy Raye III — currently acting as the Colts’ interim GM — has also been mentioned as the leader in the clubhouse.

The six contenders — a list that includes the Seahawks’ Scott Fitterer and Trent Kirchner, the Vikings’ George Paton, and those listed above — are meeting with Indianapolis head coach Chuck Pagano as part of the interview exercise, tweets Garafolo, rightly noting that the “dynamic” between Pagano and the next general manager will be critical. The mandatory retaining of Pagano is a small barrier for some candidates, per Holder, but the vacancy is still viewed as highly attractive.

“What a great situation,” one of six contenders anonymously told Holder. “But you’ve got to fix that defense. It’s old.”