Photo by Michael Zagaris/San Francisco 49ers/Getty Images With Belichick out, the Patriots need more than just a head coach. As the New England Patriots and head coach Bill Belichick have officially parted ways, a new head coaching search will take place in Foxboro for the first time in a quarter century. But, the team will also need to fill Belichick’s shoes as general manager, a role he’s also held since his arrival. Here are eight candidates for New England’s general manager position. Eliot Wolf, Patriots director of scouting If the Patriots want to keep things in-house, Wolfe may be the top option available to them. Wolfe, son of Pro Football Hall of Fame scout and executive Ron Wolfe, has been a front office consultant in New England since 2020 where he then became the team’s director of scouting in 2022. What may be most appealing, however, is he also brings external perspective as he spent 14 seasons in the Green Bay Packers’ organization and two years as the Cleveland Browns’ assistant general manager. Matt Groh, Patriots director of player personnel The other favorite from the in-house candidates is Matt Groh, who has served as Belichick’s No. 2 man the past two years as the director of player personnel. In total, Groh has spent 13 years in the organization in numerous scouting roles. Other lower-level in-house names to watch also include senior personnel advisor Pat Stewart and director of college scouting Camren Williams. Adam Peters, 49ers assistant general manager There may not be a better external candidate than Peters, who has been a key cog in building one of the best rosters in football in San Franciso. Peters also brings familiarity to the organization, as he got his start in the NFL in Foxboro serving as a scouting assistant on the Patriots’ 2003 and 2004 Super Bowl teams. Peters then handled pro scouting duties for the team in 2005 before becoming an area scout in his final three seasons (2006-08) with the Patriots. Dave Ziegler, ex-Raiders general manager Ziegler spent nine total years in the Patriots’ front office, holding the role of director of player personnel in 2021. He then departed to Las Vegas with Josh McDaniels to serve as the general manager, but barely lasted two seasons. NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport mentioned Ziegler as someone who could potentially return with Belichick, but perhaps Kraft looks to add the former executive anyway. Jon Robinson, ex-Titans general manager Similar to Ziegler, Robinson also has Patriots ties as his first NFL job came in Foxboro as an area scout in 2002. He spent just over a decade in the organization before he departed to Tampa Bay to become the Buccaneers’ director of player personnel. Robinson then was named the Titans general manager job in 2016, a job he held until he was fired in 2022. Robinson’s named was also mentioned by Rapoport. Trey Brown, Bengals senior personnel executive Brown is another executive who broke into the NFL with the Patriots as he spent his first three seasons in New England’s scouting department (2010-12). He then moving on to the Philadelphia Eagles (2013 to 2018) and now resides in Cincinnati. The 38-year is a popular commodity around the league and reportedly has a strong connection with Jerod Mayo from there time together in Foxboro. Mike Borgonzi, Chiefs assistant general manager While Borgonzi does not have any experience in the organization, he is an Everett, MA. native and has spent the last 15 seasons with the Chiefs — most recently being promoted to assistant GM in 2021. Based off the success the Chiefs have had in recent years, Borgonzi will likely find general manager interviews coming his way. Mike Vrabel, ex-Titans head coach Here's one wild card. Could New England opt to hand Jerod Mayo the head coaching duties and still look to bring Vrabel back into the organization? The former Titans coach will have several head coaching opportunities, but perhaps a return to Foxboro in the football operations department would interest him. Source: https://www.patspulpit.com/2024/1/11/24 ... placements
