Tag: front office

Chiefs, Panthers fans react to Carolina hiring Brandt Tillis as Executive VP of Football Operations

Fans on Twitter reacted to the #Panthers’ hiring of former #Chiefs executive Brandt Tillis on Wednesday afternoon.

On Wednesday, the Kansas City Chiefs lost a key piece of their front office staff when the Carolina Panthers hired long-time executive Brandt Tillis to be their Executive Vice President of Football Operations.

Offseason departures like this are common, especially for teams that have found as much success as the Chiefs have in recent seasons. The Panthers are in the midst of what seems to be a never-ending rebuild and brought in Tillis for his expertise and championship pedigree as Carolina looks to get its franchise back on the right track.

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While the move may not prove to be a crushing blow for Kansas City, it may prove instrumental in the Panthers’ rebuild in the coming years.

Fans on social media were quick to offer their take on the news of Tillis’ move shortly after Carolina announced his signing on Wednesday afternoon.

Check out some of Twitter’s top reactions to the Panthers’ signing below:

Panthers name Chiefs executive Brandt Tilis as their new Executive VP of Football Operations

The Carolina #Panthers named former Kansas City #Chiefs executive Brandt Tilis as their new Executive VP of Football Operations.

The Carolina Panthers are hiring former Kansas City Chiefs front office executive Brandt Tilis as their next Executive VP of Football Operations.

According to a new report from ESPN’s Adam Schefter, the Panthers are officially finalizing a deal to hire Tilis. He was linked to Carolina in 2021 when the franchise searched for a new general manager. The veteran executive has earned the salary cap expert title from many around the league for his exceptional insight into the team’s roster finances.

Tilis has spent the last 14 seasons with the Chiefs and the last three as vice president of football operations. He has been notably the lead contract negotiator since 2017, working to develop a structure enabling Kansas City to give quarterback Patrick Mahomes his record-breaking 10-year, $450 million contract extension in 2020.

In his new role, Tilis is expected to be responsible for all football administration and non-coaching matters related to operations, equipment, video, and analytics, among other areas. According to the Panthers press release, He will also lead player contract negotiations, compliance with the NFL Collective Bargaining Agreement and league rules, salary cap management, and maintenance and labor administration.

The Chiefs continue to see many of their executives move on to new opportunities, showing the ongoing development of the front office tree. Teams around the league are watching Kansas City’s success, hoping to take a piece of their talent to spark their franchises.

Saints announce staff changes, promote Khai Harley to assistant GM

New Orleans Saints announce staff changes for 2023 season, promote salary cap specialist Khai Harley to assistant general manager:

This is cool: the New Orleans Saints announced a couple of staff changes and additions on Tuesday, with the most notable news being a promotion for Khai Harley. The salary cap specialist still retains his title as vice president of football operations — but he’s now pulling double-duty as their assistant general manager.

Mickey Loomis is still on top of the organizational chart as general manager and executive vice president, but Harley now shares a title with Jeff Ireland as assistant GM to Loomis. Ireland’s main focus remains on the college scouting department, but now both he and Harley carry the assistant GM title.

Loomis is the longest-tenured general manager in the league. He’ll turn 67 this year. He won’t be around forever, and it’s very possible that the Saints are setting up someone like Harley to succeed him in a couple of years. Ireland also has experience at the top of the organization from his six-year run with the Miami Dolphins. Either way, this promotion is a well-deserved recognition for a key member of the front office. Harley has done a great job navigating the salary cap and the CBA to keep the Saints competitive year in and year out.

What about the other moves? For the most part, the Saints confirmed additions who were previously reported during the summer like defensive assistant coach Matt Giordano, analytics director Zach Stuart, and football administration director Scott Kuhn. They also shuffled the scouting department with Matt Phillips becoming an area scout and Will Martinez taking over as NFL combine scout.

But a couple of other new hires stand out. Former Louisiana Tech assistant to the head coach and NFL liaison Ziad Qubti is joining the team as their new college scouting coordinator under Ireland, with Rishi Desai (former Ole Miss director of scouting and an LSU graduate) also joining the scouting department. It’s good to see minority candidates getting these opportunities, especially with the NFL awarding compensatory draft picks when they’re hired to executive positions. If they help the organization find good players and develop into sought-after GM candidates in their own right, them leaving someday would bring back valuable draft assets to New Orleans. It’s a win-win.

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Saints add another member to Khai Harley’s front office department

The Saints added another member to Khai Harley’s department in the front office: former Vikings analytics director Scott Kuhn

Check the New Orleans Saints’ list of front office personnel and you’ll see just two people working in the department of football administration: vice president Khai Harley and director Scott Kuhn. Harley’s former assistant Tosan Eyetsemitan moved to the pro scouting department this offseason, opening a role for Kuhn. So who is he?

Kuhn was hired as a pro scout with the Minnesota Vikings back in 2007, where he worked under former Vikings general manager Rick Spielman. Last season he was promoted to Minnesota’s director of football quantitative methods while continuing to work in the pro scouting department, where his work took a more analytical focus. The Vikings didn’t retain him after the 2022 season while new GM Kwesi Adofo-Mensah restructures his front office.

Harley is known as New Orleans’ in-house salary cap expert, working to navigate the cap and maximize the team’s spending resources each year. But he won’t be around forever. It’s only a matter of time before other teams come sniffing around and seek to poach him for a general manager job of his own (ex-Saints executive Terry Fontenot tried to bring him to the Atlanta Falcons) and it’s worth investing in qualified candidates to replace Harley, if need be. Bringing in guys like Eyetsemitan and Kuhn could pay off in a big way.

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Chargers’ Austin Ekeler sounds off on running backs being regarded as ‘discardable widgets’

Austin Ekeler expressed his frustration with running backs being regarded as “discardable widgets.”

Running backs around the NFL are taking to social media to decry the devaluation of their position amidst the league’s turn away from the ground game, and  Chargers veteran Austin Ekeler is at the forefront of this newly formed movement.

A supremely productive piece of Los Angeles’ burgeoning offense in recent years, many thought Ekeler’s performance last season should have warranted a high-dollar extension. Still, their front office wasn’t so sure.

After initial speculation that a holdout could be on the horizon, Ekeler agreed to a revised contract with the Chargers back in May but expressed his displeasure with the state of affairs relative to his situation via a Twitter post on Monday.

In response to a tweet about the modern “rent-a-back” philosophy of NFL roster building, Ekeler made it clear that he and his running back brethren are worth more than the media gives them credit for.

“This is the kind of trash that has artificially devalued one of the most important positions in the game,” Ekeler wrote. “Everyone knows it’s tough to win without a top RB and yet they act like we are discardable widgets. I support any RB doing whatever it takes to get his bag.”

While the brewing firestorm on social media is unlikely to advance Ekeler’s cause in the near term, some of the league’s top rushers chimed in with similar input, frustrated with the diminished leverage that they have in contract discussions.

It is unclear whether these posts constitute a larger effort going on behind the scenes. However, what has become abundantly obvious is that the discourse surrounding the value of the running back position has turned a corner with some of the NFL’s biggest stars, including Ekeler, pushing the dialogue forward.

Report: New Orleans Saints hiring Jets’ Zach Stuart as director of analytics

ESPN reports former New York Jets coordinator of football analytics Zach Stuart is headed to the New Orleans Saints in a similar role | @crissy_froyd

The New Orleans Saints are hiring the former New York Jets coordinator of football analytics in Zach Stuart as the team’s new director of analytics, as was first reported by Seth Walder of ESPN.

Stuart had been with the Jets since 2020. Before entering the professional sports sphere, he worked as a mathematics R&D for Sandra National Laboratories (2017-2020) and actuarial analyst for Mountain States Insurance Group (2014-2016).

Stuart comes to New Orleans after the departure of Ryan Herman, who spent six years with the team, at the end of May. The NFL has shown more prioritization of analytics, something that has helped the game a lot over recent years, and the way things have only continued to trend only indicates that the usage of data in more expanded ways is only going to be something that gets bigger.

Since taking over for heralded longtime head coach Sean Payton, how Dennis Allen continues to grow his team in this area with people like Stuart will be something to keep an eye on.

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Reports: Saints part ways with longtime analytics chief in mutual split

Reports: Saints part ways with longtime analytics chief Ryan Herman in ‘cordial, mutual’ split

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Here’s a change to the New Orleans Saints’ front office, as first reported by Nola.com’s Jeff Duncan and confirmed by NewOrleans.Football’s Mike Triplett: analytics chief Ryan Herman is not returning after a six-year run with the team. Triplett adds that it was a “cordial, mutual” decision to go in a different direction once Herman’s contract ended, giving him an opportunity to devote more time to his family.

Herman worked in the player personnel department in football research and strategy, primarily focusing on weekly in-season studies on developing trends around the league as well as advanced scouting on future opponents. He wore a couple of different hats, also assisting Khai Harley in managing the salary cap, and the Saints will need to replace him and his contributions to the team.

Maybe they’ll more fully embrace the analytical side of the game and build a more robust advanced-stats team, as has become more popular around the league. Ex-Saints head coach Sean Payton talked up the resources available to him now with the Denver Broncos compared to those in New Orleans, and it’s an area the team could improve upon. They left a lot of meat on the bone last year with conservative in-game decisions on fourth down, and Dennis Allen could benefit from stronger information to help him out in that phase.

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Seahawks announce 2 front office leadership staff promotions

The Seattle Seahawks announced two members of the front office leadership staff have been promoted.

The Seattle Seahawks organization announced a couple of promotions to the front office leadership staff on Thursday afternoon via the team website.

First, Jeff Dunn has been named Chief Strategy Officer and will report to Seahawks President, Chuck Arnold. Dunn originally joined the organization in 2013 and was quickly promoted to Vice President of Business Strategy & Analytics in June 2014.

In addition, Seattle elevated Kenton Olson to Vice President of Digital & Emerging Media. In his new capacity, Olson will report to Seahawks Chief Communications Officer, Dave Pearson. Olson has been with the Seahawks since 2007 and most recently served as Seattle’s Director of Digital & Emerging Media from 2010-2023.

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Andy Reid credits Chiefs’ front office for 2022 success

Reid told reporters on Monday that the exceptional work of the #Chiefs front office put the team in a position to get to the Super Bowl. | from @TheJohnDillon

The Kansas City Chiefs punched their ticket to the most important game of the season with their win over the Cincinnati Bengals on Sunday.

In a season where they traded their top receiver and drafted a slew of rookies to fill important holes on their roster, Andy Reid has managed to exceed all expectations in the loaded AFC. They’ve put together an incredible 2022 campaign that will be talked about for years to come.

In comments to the media on Monday, when Reid was asked how he managed to get his team into a position to compete for a Super Bowl after so much change in the offseason, he deferred praise to the Chiefs’ front office.

“Yeah so, I would start with (General Manager) Brett Veach and the way that he and his guys have gone about putting this thing together for the coaches,” Reid said. “Giving the coaches an opportunity to coach good players. It includes everybody. It includes (President) Mark (Donovan), it includes (Chairman & CEO) Clark (Hunt).

“I mean they’re all part of that – giving us the opportunity to do what Brett can do by bringing these guys in. But his process, the process that he goes through you guys have gotten to know him now – the process that he goes through – he’s relentless, he’s committed, he’s got a great eye for talent. He’s fearless when it comes to trades and drafts and all those things. It’s been fun for me to watch and watch him grow.”

Reid’s professionalism has never wavered during his time in Kansas City, and his penchant for crediting all members of the operation proves that he is in this for more than just the money and glory. As much as the talk will be centered on Reid and Philadelphia this week, Brett Veach also got his start with the Eagles. The Chiefs playing in this game is only further proof of Veach’s heightened expertise as a talent evaluator and roster builder.

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Broncos buzz: Denver making changes to roster and front office

The #Broncos signed DL Jordan Jackson to a reserve/future contract on Tuesday. Denver also had a front office executive resign.

The Denver Broncos are making moves on and off the field this week.

As it relates to the on-field roster, the Broncos added defensive lineman Jordan Jackson to a reserve/future contract on Tuesday. Jackson joins the nine other players who have already signed reserve/future deals this offseason.

Meanwhile, in the front office, senior vice president of corporate partnerships Brady Kellogg has resigned, KUSA-TV’s Mike Klis reported Tuesday. Kellogg was the “right-hand man” of former executive Mac Freeman, who stepped down last summer.

Klis reported that the team will now begin searching for a new chief commercial officer. The Broncos previously hired Hailey Sullivan as their new chief marketing officer last week.

Back to Jackson — he played college football with the Air Force Falcons before being selected by the New Orleans Saints in the sixth round of the 2022 NFL draft. Jackson (6-4, 294 pounds) spent his rookie season on the Saints’ practice squad and he is now set to join Denver’s 90-man offseason roster in March.

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