While the Chicago Bears run it back with GM Ryan Poles, a pair of general managers elsewhere in the NFL were shown the door this week.
The Tennessee Titans parted ways with Ran Carthon after two seasons, which may open the door for Bears Assistant GM Ian Cunningham to interview his way into a promotion. And after just one season in Las Vegas, the Raiders parted ways with Tom Telesco. The move happened just one day after the team dismissed Antonio Pierce as its head coach. Unlike the send-off Pierce got from the team in a statement, the announcement of the split between Vegas and Telesco was pretty bland:
pic.twitter.com/bI3Z5UyX50
— Las Vegas Raiders (@Raiders) January 9, 2025Getting fired stinks. But getting fired and then learning one day later that your first draft pick as the general manager of the team that just dumped you was named first-team All-Pro as a rookie must sting. Nevertheless, the Raiders are looking for a new head coach *AND* general manager. And as someone who is obsessively monitoring the Bears’ search for a head coach, some alarm bells went off when this news crossed the wire.
Watch out for the Raiders as a fit for Ben Johnson
It feels obvious that the Raiders cut ties with Tom Telesco as their general manager to clear the way for the franchise to have its top front office official and its head coach aligned. Perhaps doing this opens the door for a head coach to arrive in Vegas and pick their general manager. There is no other logical explanation behind sending Telesco off into the sunset shortly after he was in on the decision-making process that led to removing the head coach.
With that in mind, it is easy to make the jump and wonder if the Raiders are creating a path to hire Detroit Lions Head Coach Ben Johnson and a hand-picked general manager of his choosing to lead the franchise. It is early in the process, to be sure. But there is no denying that the Raiders are a threat to pull this off. I am not an oddsmaker, so I won’t put a number on it. But it sure as heck isn’t zero, which is what it was before the powers that be in Vegas cleaned house.
(Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images)Ben Johnson has made it clear through media pushes that he values organizational alignment. I’m not sure it could get any more aligned than getting to pick your own GM. There is also an expectation that Tom Brady, who has a minority ownership share in the Raiders, will be an influential figure in the search for a new GM and coach. I am curious if Brady has major allure and pull in this situation. Maybe we’ll find out in due time.
As of Friday, Ben Johnson is one of the handful of candidates that Vegas has sent out requests to interview. The others are Lions Defensive Coordinator Aaron Glenn, Chiefs Defensive Coordinator Steve Spagnuolo, Ravens Offensive Coordinator Todd Monken, former Jets Head Coach Robert Saleh, and former Seahawks Head Coach Pete Carroll. For what it’s worth, there is some notable crossover between Bears and Raiders candidates. Carroll, Monken, Glenn, and Johnson have all been reported to have been requested for an interview for the Bears. heck, Carroll’s interview is already in the books, while Glenn and Johnson will get their time via a virtual interview this weekend.
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I am doing my best not to overreact to this news. However, I can’t ignore that the Raiders are lurking as a possible candidate to swoop in and swipe a Bears target. Maybe Vegas has other plans with other candidates. In any case, I’ll continue to monitor this situation as developments come around.
Dec 14, 2023; Paradise, Nevada, USA; General view before the game between the Los Angeles Chargers and the Las Vegas Raiders at Allegiant Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Stephen R. Sylvanie-USA TODAY Sports Read More Details
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