Front Office Remodel
May 28, 2024
By Noonefromtampa
What happens when an office is old, outdated and no longer functional? You remodel it. When the new ownership took over last year, it was too late in the offseason to make any substantive changes in the front office or coaching staff. What a difference a year makes! The results last season were abysmal and that led to the many changes that have happened since the ownership change.
Front Office Changes from 2023 to 2024
| Position | 2023 | Position | 2024 |
| General Manager | Adam Peters (49ers) | ||
| General Manager | Martin Mayhew | Senior Personnel Executive/Adviser to the GM | Martin Mayhew |
| Assistant General Manager | Lance Newmark (Lions) | ||
| Executive Vice President of Football/Player Personnel | Marty Hurney | Player Personnel Advisor | Marty Hurney |
| Senior Vice President of Football Operations | Brandon Sosna (Lions) | ||
| Senior Vice President of Football Administration | Rob Rogers | Senior Vice President of Football Administration | Rob Rogers |
| Senior Vice President of Football Strategy | Eugene Shen | Senior Vice President of Football Strategy | Eugene Shen |
| Senior Vice President of Football Initiatives | Dave Gardi (League Office) | ||
| Senior Director of Player Personnel | Eric Stokes | Director of Player Personnel | David Blackburn (Ravens) |
| Director of Pro Personnel | Chris Polian | ||
| Director of College Personnel | Tim Gribble | Director of College Personnel | Tim Gribble |
| National Scout | David Whittington | National Scout | Dwaune Jones (Saints) |
Six Key Changes
Eugene Shen was the first hired back last November. He was the beginning of a move towards the franchise’s analytical era. Shen is well-respected for his knowledge of analytics and is a frequent presenter at the MIT Sloan Sports Analytics Conference. Analytics will be used more extensively in both draft preparation and in-game situational decisions than under previous regimes. Analytics probably influenced decisions on the team drafting Jer’Zhan Newton and Ben Sinnott at the spots at which they were taken. Another area that analytics has likely had influence was the length of contracts given to certain free agents signed by the team.
After the offseason purge, Adam Peters was hired to be the new general manager. The former co-GMs Martin Mayhew and Marty Hurney were assigned to different roles. Mayhew, who worked previously with Peters in San Francisco, became Peters’ key advisor for now. Hurney is focused more on player personnel evaluations. Both came onboard in 2021 and will probably be gone once their contracts expire around the end of the 2025 season.
Lance Newmark was hired from the Lions in February of this year, having been in Detroit’s front office since 1999. Having worked his way up from scouting to director of player personnel, he has had his hand in pro and college scouting, plus the analytics and technology departments. He will be a strong asset for Peters to rely on and another reason why Mayhew and Hurney will not be in the long-term plans for the team.
Dave Gardi, hired in April, spent 21 years in the NFL league office in a variety of roles. For the Commanders, Gardi will handle several in-game management duties and will support the coaching staff and front office on compliance with League protocols, officiating trends plus health and safety guidelines. This is a new position and reflects the ownership’s desire to bring a holistic approach to running the franchise with various subject matter experts advising team leadership on key issues.
Brandon Sosna, who also came over from the Lions, is a fast-rising NFL executive and was the Lions’ Senior Director of Football Administration. While Rob Rogers continues to hold his current title and position, it does seem like his contract will not be renewed once it expires. Sosna will be in charge of multiple departments, including analytics and data solutions, player wellness and athletic performance and football operations and administration which covers salary cap management.
David Blackburn spent 17 years with the Ravens, rising through the organization to become their Director of College Scouting. In Washington, he replaces Eric Stokes as head of the personnel department which runs the pro and college scouting groups. Tim Gribble who remains Director of College Personnel will report into him. The Ravens have an excellent reputation for drafting and developing players started under Ozzie Newsome’s tutelage, so bringing Blackburn onboard hopefully strengthens that aspect for the Commanders. Chris Polian, Director of Pro Personnel, was not retained and moved over to the Browns front office. It is not currently known if the Commanders plan to replace that position with someone externally or internally,
Wrap-Up
What can be made from all these changes is that the days of just one or two key people making all the decisions are over. The ownership is committed to bringing in top front office talent and building a strong team around Peters to make sure every facet of football operations and administration is covered. Also, people being brought in are competent professionals, not just tied to the owner or some period of franchise history. In football, most front offices and coaching staff are built through relationships and we certainly see that here. But the approach now is less nepotistic, and more focused on people coming from teams that have a history of success.
As someone who has followed this team for over 50 plus years, in my view, this dynamic between the front office and the coaching staff is the best since the days of Bobby Beathard and Joe Gibbs back in the early 1980s. Fans can only hope right now that this translates to success on the field in future seasons.
The Washington fanbase and national media have become so jaded about this team from the Daniel Snyder era that you see it reflected in podcasts and on social media. Fans are calling for Peters to be fired because he did not trade back up into the first round and draft a left tackle. Media people have already speculated that Dan Quinn will be fired after one season, because he was not the “real” choice for head coach. A lot of useless speculation for a team that has not even had one full contact practice with the pads on yet.
Personally, I would like to see a 7-to-9-win season in 2024. The oddsmakers right now have the Commanders at 6.5 wins, better only than the Broncos, Patriots and Panthers, and tied with the Cardinals, Raiders, Vikings, Giants and Titans. Most likely with all the roster turnover, the 2025 season will have the better chance for success, but I would like for the team to finish at least ahead of the Giants in 2024 in the NFC East and to beat a couple of our division rivals. If the Commanders can do that, we might see that 7-to-9 win season in 2024.