The Field: The Giants GM Candidates and Their Likely Head Coach Choice
Fans already love the Giants General Manager Candidates. They’re young, proven, and are working for teams that have recently turned ships around or are consistently winning and acquiring talent. Here’s everything you need to know about all 9 candidates, along with their most likely head coach choice.
Adam Peters
49ers – Assistant GM
Age: 42
Resume: Peters had various scouting roles with the Patriots from 2003 until 2009. He then spent 8 seasons in elevated scouting roles with the Broncos between 2009 and 2016. In 2016, he was elevated to Director of College Scouting with the team. He has since been an executive with the 49ers in 2017.
Pros: We like candidates that were a part of a franchise that had to rebuild. We absolutely love when they are part of two. Each team he was a part of at least participated in one Super Bowl and has overseen 5 AFC/NFC Championship teams. His draft picks since 2017 have been loaded with talent (George Kittle, Fred Warner, Nick Bosa, Deebo Samuel). Even more impressive, he is able to find talent past round 1, which the Giants have struggled to do. His thorough analysis of George Kittle has impressed many.
Head Coach Pick: Doug Pederson
Adrian Wilson
Cardinals – VP of Pro Personnel
Age: 42
Resume: Regional Scout from 2015 until 2018, Director of Pro Scouting from 2019 until 2020, and spent 2021 as the Cardinals VP of Pro Scouting. Wilson also was a 5x Pro-Bowl Safety for the Arizona Cardinals.
Pros: Has played and scouted with three relatively successful coaches in Arizona. He rose through the ranks extremely quickly, showing that the Cardinals have found him to be extraordinary in the scouting department. He was a part of a front office that oversaw a quick transition away from Josh Rosen, which most teams would not have done (He might have to do that in NY as well soon). Successfully secured a franchise Quarterback for the Cardinals. Plenty of other quality players were added to the Cardinals during his tenure. He will likely have a stronger understanding of player interests since he is a former player himself.
Head Coach Pick: Doug Peterson
Joe Hortiz
Ravens – Director of Player Personnel
Age: 46
Resume: Ravens, various scouting roles since 1998 leading up to his promotion to Director of Player Personnel
Pros: Heck, if the Giants could just triple the entire Ravens front office salaries to do their same jobs in New York, I think we’d all be very happy. Seriously, have they ever had a draft bust? On a serious note, any disciple of Ozzie Newsome is an intriguing candidate. Hortiz has slowly worked up the ranks over the course of 24 years with Baltimore. Baltimore consistently drafts great football talent. The Ravens have drafted 28 Pro-Bowlers since 1998, which is incredible. Hortiz has also overseen at a high level the drafting of Lamar Jackson in a year with a multitude of high-profile Quarterback busts.
Head Coach Pick: Jim Harbaugh (I really think he is going to make an attempt at this)
Joe Schoen
Bills – Assistant GM
Age: 42
Resume: Started as a Panther’s ticket office intern in 2001 before becoming a scout. Dolphins scout from 2008 until 2016, Assistant GM for the Bills from 2017 until the present.
Pros: Joe Schoen has been an assistant GM and has overseen much of the Bills resurgence. Acquired Diggs. The Bills were awful for 17 years prior to his arrival. Has overseen major talent acquisitions in both the draft and free agency, such as Tre’Davious White, Josh Allen, Tremaine Edmunds, and Stefon Diggs. Schoen looks to be the most well-rounded, as he has played a role in talent evaluation and commanding the front office. The Bill Parcells connection will also go a long way in Mara’s ear. If he is hired, he will also most certainly come with Brian Daboll as the new head coach.
Head Coach Pick: Brian Daboll
Monti Ossenfort
Titans – Director of Player Personnel
Age: 43
Resume: Spent 15 seasons with the Patriots in various scouting roles, joined the Titans in 2020
Pros: Ossenfort joined the Titans in 2020, and they are one of the only successful Patriots break-offs. He supposedly has an excellent reputation around the league for his work. It’s unlikely the Giants go this route under the current circumstances, simply because the Giants may be weary of touching recent Patriots personnel. However, if Joe Judge were not fired, I believe this Ossenfort would be the most likely candidate for the GM position.
Head Coach Pick: Brian Flores
Quentin Harris
Cardinals – VP of Player Personnel
Age: 44
Resume: Cardinals Scout 2008-2012, Director of Pro Scouting from 2013 until 2019, and is currently the VP of Player Personnel since then. Also played in the NFL from 2002 until 2007 (including one stint with the Giants in 2006)
Pros: Harris oversees both pro and college scouting of the Arizona Cardinals. Similar to Wilson, he has overseen much of the Cardinals’ talent acquisition of the past decade. This spans three different coaching eras. However, the talent Arizona acquired glued the transitioning away from what could have been an ugly ordeal. Now, due to successful talent acquisitions, the Cardinals are a fierce team again, and it took very little time to do so. Much of the Giants losing has surrounded the fact that they are slow to move on from unproven players. The Cardinals are a much more cutthroat organization, which has led to quick and successful talent turnovers. Expect Harris to move on from Daniel Jones this draft if hired.
Head Coach Pick: Byron Leftwich
Ran Carthon
49ers – Director of Player Personnel
Age: 40
Resume: Pro Scout for the Falcons from 2008-2011, Director of Player Personnel for the Rams from 2012-2016, Director of 49ers Player Personnel from 2017-Present
Pros: Giants fans, do not discount Ran Carthon. The fact that he works under an already ideal candidate overshadows Carthon for sure. However, if you look back at his resume, it is actually pretty impressive how good some of the teams became during or after his presence in the front office. He helped scout formidable players in Atlanta that turned the team around. He has partaken in successful Quarterback scouting with Matt Ryan early in his career, and Jared Goff in his final year with the Rams. There were many other talented players acquired by the teams he was a part of during his tenures. He certainly does not appear to be the favorite for the Giants right now, but any team that lands him in the future would be lucky to have him.
Head Coach Pick: Doug Peterson
Ryan Cowden
Titans – VP of Player Personnel
Age: 43
Resume: Scouting roles with the Carolina Panthers from 2000 until 2015, joined Tennessee in 2016 as an Assistant College Scout, VP of Player Personnel from 2018 until now
Pros: Worked under Gettleman in Carolina. Good. Now that we got that out of the way, let’s get into the details. After Carolina, he found success with Tennessee. He oversaw much of the Titans recent turnaround. He oversees both college scouting and free agent evaluations. The Titans have heavily relied upon Cowden’s evaluations for the talent acquisitions that have made Tennessee such an elite team. He also oversaw the career resurgence of Ryan Tannehill’s career and focused on equipping him with the right assets to succeed. The Giants would certainly love to see the same results for Daniel Jones in the next year.
Head Coach Pick: Eric Bieniemy
Ryan Poles
Chiefs – Executive Director of Player Personnel
Age: 36
Resume: Has been with the Chiefs since the late-2000s, Assistant Director of Player Personnel from 2018-2020
Pros: Poles has overseen the Chiefs transition from a mediocre football team to a Super Bowl-winning franchise, with constant championship expectations. His talent acquisition in the draft that he oversaw in the mid-2010’s has led the Chiefs to become dominant. From Patrick Mahomes to Travis Kelce, Poles was assisting and learning college scouting from the best. Now overseeing free-agent acquisitions as well, he did an incredible job in turning over the Chiefs offensive line in one season. If he can do that with the Giants in 2022, he deserves to be in the Ring of Honor. His talent assessment, free-agent decision-making, and youth make him an all-around spectacular candidate.
Head Coach Pick: Eric Bieniemy