Jeff Scott (exec)

Eagles Announce Front Office Changes; Rod Streater, Ben Ijalana Join Scouting Staff

June 3rd, 2022 at 3:53pm CST by Sam Robinson

After seeing one of the more offseason significant brain drains in recent memory take place, the Eagles announced how they will move forward without the front office talent they lost.

Philadelphia saw four executives become assistant general managers elsewhere — Ian Cunningham (Bears), Brandon Brown (Giants), Catherine Raiche (Browns) and Andy Weidl (Steelers) — and have moved forward without former GM Tom Donahoe and director of scouting operations Casey Weidl. Had the Steelers not hired Andy Weidl as their assistant GM, the Eagles would have aimed to retain him — despite his brother’s firing — according to The Athletic’s Zach Berman (subscription required). But the team announced Friday its revamped front office.

Jon Ferrari and Alec Halaby are indeed Howie Roseman‘s assistant GMs. The Eagles have not used that title in recent years, but offering it certainly aids in retaining key staffers. The team hired longtime Steelers pro scouting director Brandon Hunt to accompany the in-house risers as a top Roseman lieutenant. Joining Andy Weidl, Omar Khan and others as a finalist for the Pittsburgh GM job, Hunt is now Philadelphia’s director of scouting. The Eagles were interested in adding Hunt back in 2016, and the veteran Steelers staffer will now play a key role in the NFC East franchise’s reconstructed front office.

Connor Barwin, who joined the Eagles during the 2020 offseason, will be the team’s player development director. Fellow recent retirees are among Philly’s new hires. Former Raiders wide receiver Rod Streater will join the Eagles as their northeast area scout. Streater, who played in the NFL from 2012-18, went to college in Philadelphia (Temple). Streater, 34, spent time as a Browns scout, working under former Eagles exec Andrew Berry, since retiring. The Eagles also hired ex-Jets and Colts tackle Ben Ijalana, 32, as a scouting assistant. Ijalana, who also went to college in Philly (Villanova), played from 2011-19.

Fellow recent hires Matt Russell and Jordan Dizon will serve as a senior personnel advisor and a national scout, respectively. The Eagles also hired Jeremy Gray as their assistant director of pro personnel. Gray previously worked at the University of Arizona. He is the son of longtime NFL assistant Jerry Gray. Let go from Washington’s staff last year, Jeff Scott also received a promotion with the Eagles; he is now their director of football operations. Scott was with Washington for nine years.

The Eagles also promoted Alan Wolking from college scouting director to director of player personnel and gave former Jaguars GM Dave Caldwell a more official title. Caldwell, who joined Roseman’s staff last year, will now serve as a senior personnel director and an advisor to the GM. Previously, Caldwell simply carried a “personnel executive” title. Max Gruder will rise from assistant pro scouting director to the top of that department, while Ryan Myers will move from an area-scout gig to the assistant scouting director post. An eight-year Eagles staffer, Phil Bhaya will climb from the area-scout level to the team’s director of draft management.

Washington Adds Chris Polian To Front Office

February 15th, 2021 at 2:16pm CST by Sam Robinson

After not employing a general manager in 2020, Washington now has three ex-GMs in its front office. The team hired former Colts GM Chris Polian on Monday.

Joining Martin Mayhew and Marty Hurney in Washington’s new-look front office, Polian will serve as the team’s director of pro personnel. The former Colts GM was out of the league last season but was with the Jaguars from 2013-19.

The son of Hall of Fame executive Bill Polian, Chris served as Indianapolis’ GM from 2009-11 and has been an NFL staffer since 1994 — when the yet-to-debut Panthers, run by Bill Polian, hired him. Chris Polian has not worked with Mayhew or Hurney previously, despite Hurney’s 1998 Carolina arrival. The Polians were in Indianapolis by then. But the younger Polian was connected to the Lions’ GM search to replace Mayhew in 2015. He also was in the mix for the Titans’ GM job that went to Jon Robinson in 2016.

Chris Polian will succeed Eric Stokes as Washington’s pro personnel director, but Stokes is still with the team. The GM candidate is now serving as Washington’s senior director of player personnel. Ron Rivera and Kyle Smith served as Washington’s top personnel execs last year. Smith is now with the Falcons, while Rivera will remain a key presence on this front. In addition to Smith, Washington parted ways with assistant director of pro scouting Jeff Scott, per John Keim of ESPN.com. Scott received a promotion just last summer.

Redskins To Face League Discipline?

July 19th, 2020 at 10:30am CST by Rory Parks

TODAY: Any punishment the Redskins face is likely to be limited to fines, Maske writes in a full-length story. Because Snyder himself was not directly involved in any harassment, this situation is different from the one that culminated in former Panthers owner Jerry Richardson selling his team several years ago. It’s also why the league is likely to defer to Wilkinson’s findings rather than conduct a separate investigation.

So unless there are new developments with respect to Snyder’s role, it seems he will keep his team and his draft picks. Snyder and his wife, Tanya, emailed an apology letter to every member of the organization on Friday night (via Schefter on Twitter).

JULY 17: The much-ballyhooed story concerning the Redskins’ organizational culture broke last night via a Washington Post article that details sexual abuse allegations made by 15 former female employees of the team. As a preemptive strike, the club hired DC-based attorney Beth Wilkinson to conduct a thorough review of its protocols, and depending on what Wilkinson finds, the Redskins could be subject to league discipline.

The NFL released the following statement in response to the story (via Ian Rapoport of NFL.com on Twitter):

“These matters as reported are serious, disturbing and contrary to the NFL’s values. Everyone in the NFL has the right to work in an environment free from any and all forms of harassment. Washington has engaged outside counsel to conduct a thorough investigation into these allegations. The club has pledged that it will give its full cooperation to the investigator and we expect the club and all employees to do so. We will meet with the attorneys upon the conclusion of their investigation and take any action based on the findings.”

So it certainly sounds as if a fine and/or draft pick forfeiture could be in the cards. And while owner Dan Snyder was not accused of harassment himself, this report will doubtlessly intensify the already loud cries for him to sell the team.

It will also be interesting to see if the NFL undertakes its own investigation once Wilkinson’s is complete. After all, the Redskins are Wilkinson’s client, so her duty is to them. As Ralph Vacchiano of SNY.tv suggests, it would be a bad look for the league to allow the organizational review to be handled exclusively by a person hand-picked by the organization (Twitter link). Virginia Governor Ralph Northam has also called on commissioner Roger Goodell to get to the bottom of the matter, as Mark Maske of the Washington Post tweets.

Snyder, meanwhile, issued the following statement (via Adam Schefter of ESPN.com on Twitter):

“The behavior described in yesterday’s Washington Post article has no place in our franchise or society. This story has strengthened my commitment to setting a new culture and standard for our team, a process that began with the hiring of Coach [Ron] Rivera earlier this year. Beth Wilkinson and her firm are empowered to do a full, unbiased investigation and make any and all requisite recommendations. Upon completion of her work, we will institute new policies and procedures and strengthen our human resources infrastructure to not only avoid these issues in the future but most importantly create a team culture that is respectful and inclusive of all.”

In other Redskins news, the team announced that it has promoted Jeff Scott to the role of assistant director of pro scouting/advance coordinator. Scott will oversee advance scouting of opponents and evaluate potential talent in NFL free agency and all other pro leagues. He will still assist with the evaluation of trade scenarios during the draft (Twitter links via NFL Insider Adam Caplan).