Written By Adam Aniba
Washington's season hasn't gone as fans planned. This team has been floating around the .500 range since Ron Rivera became the head coach in 2020.
Rivera was also the defacto GM with general manager Martin Mayhew more of a figure head. It's a foregone conclusion that the Harris group will clean house at seasons end and their first step after firing Rivera and Mayhew will be bringing in a new General Manger.
There are multiple hot names for potential general mangers that will be discussed in the coming months. The following should be in strong consideration for the next Commanders GM, with the first two as my top choices.
Louis Riddick
Older Washington fans might remember ESPN analyst Louis Riddick from his days as the Redskins pro scout (2001-2004) and was elevated to Director of Pro Personnel in 2005 and held the position through 2007.
After his time in Washington, Riddick was a pro scout for the Philadelphia Eagles from 2008-2010, before being promoted to Director of Pro Personnel.
It's well dcomented Riddick has been a valuable asset on Monday Night Football and as an ESPN analyst. Despite not being employed by an NFL team for over a decade, that hasn't detered teams like the Texans, Lions and the Steelers from interviewing Riddick for the GM openings.
Riddick is well respected around league circles. His background in scouting and the inner workings of pro personnel are desirable traits for GM.
The Harris group will certainly look for their next GM to be open to an analytics based approach, when it comes to roster building that is.
As somebody that has attended seminars hosted by RIddick, I can attest that the former Redskins pro scout takes an innovative approach to roster building. He's also bulit valuable reltionships during his time in the league, which will be imperative when selecting the next Commanders head coach.
Adam Peters
Peters was hired as the 49ers assistant general manager (spent 4 seasons as VP of player personnel) and is in his 21st season in the NFL.
Peters arived in San Francisco in 2017 after spending the previous 7 seasons in Denver as the Broncos Director of College Scouting. He also held titles as assistant director of college scouting, prior to that he was their regional scout when he joined the team in '09.
Peters was a key cog that helped Denver aquire 27 players through the draft and free agency that were vital to the Broncos Super Bowl L.
Prior to arriving in Denver, Peters was a scouting assistant with the New England Patriots from 2003-2008. He was part of the Patriots staff that won two Super Bowls (XXXVIII in '03 and XXXIX in '04).
Prior to arriving in the NFL, Peters spent time as a graduate assistant at UCLA (played defensive end for UCLA '99-'01).
Peters spent one season (2002) as a football operations graduate assistant at UCLA, after playing defensive end for the Bruins from 1999-2001.
He worked hand-in-hand with GM John Lynch in building a competitive roster, that is now a Super Bowl favoirte heading into the final weeks of the regular season.
His time working with Lynch has brought out the best in Peters and his energy is infectious per comments by his peers and players.
Washington needs their next GM to have experience with roster construction and a winning track record, Peters checks both boxes.
Other Notable Names
Ed Dodds (Asst. GM IND)
Mike Borgonzi (Asst. GM KC)
JoJo Wooden (Director of Player Personnel LAC)
Andy Weidl (Asst. GM PIT)
Brandt Tilis (VP/Football Operations KC)
Ian Cunningham (Asst. GM CHI)
Alex Halaby (Asst. GM PHI)
Catherine Raiche (Asst. GM CLE)