For 11 years, I’ve written a list of the NFL’s future GMs, and every year the feedback from people on that side of the industry varies. Sometimes there’s a recurring theme; other times, there isn’t. Last year, the resounding question was, Why is the list all scouts?
It’s a fair criticism. We’ve been very scout-heavy here over the last decade, partially because most general managers have that background, some as on-the-road college scouts, others as in-the-office pro scouts. Another reason is that their proficiency is easier to ascertain than that of someone on the cap/analytics side.