After firing head coach and general manager Bill Belichick, the New England Patriots immediately named his replacement by promoting Jerod Mayo to head coach. However, since cutting ties with the future Hall of Famer, the Patriots general manager seat has remained vacant.
New England opted not to hire a general manager before the 2024 NFL Draft, instead having team president Jonathan Kraft and director of player personnel Eliot Wolf oversee the process along with the assistant of the Patriots front office staff.
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With the 2024 NFL Draft in the rearview mirror, bringing in quarterback Drake Maye to be the new face of the franchise, Patriots owner Robert Kraft is now overseeing a search for a new general manager.
However, one of the top general manager candidates in the NFL has already rejected New England. According to Tom Pelissero of NFL Network, Cincinnati Bengals senior personnel executive Trey Brown rejected a request from the Patriots’ organization to meet for an interview. Brown is widely viewed as one of the top candidates to become a general manager next year.
Brown’s decision seems to reflect a sentiment that is shared around the league by other top NFL executives. As Ben Volin of the Boston Globe suggested, the Patriots are likely encountering difficulties getting external candidates to come in for interviews due to the perception that Wolf is guaranteed to get the job.
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Wolf has already served as the de-facto general manager in New England since Belichick was fired. He oversaw the pre-draft process and seemingly made the final decisions on turning down trade offers for the No. 3 overall pick and then choosing Maye over J.J. McCarthy.
The feeling around the league about the Patriots’ general manager search is also likely accurate. Phil Perry of NBC Sports Boston recently reported that the search is viewed as a “formality” with Wolf the overwhelming favorite to essentially serve as the Patriots general manager.
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“My understanding is this is an actual formality. There is a formal process that the Patriots have to go through to elevate Eliot Wolf to be their primary football executive. I don’t believe the title he’ll get eventually is general manager. That’s not a title that the Krafts have handed out since they’ve owned the team. But the expectation — in league circles and people I’ve spoken to just in the last few hours — is that Eliot Wolf will get the job. I would be stunned if he doesn’t get the job. He is the overwhelming favorite. So they have to go through this. They have to check this box to be able to elevate him to that position and name him that primary football executive, and that’s what they’re doing right now.”
Phil Perry of NBC Sports Boston on the New England Patriots general manager search
With New England having already complied with the NFL’s Rooney Rule, it should only be a matter of time before the team announces Wolf’s promotion. Fittingly, though, it seems Kraft doesn’t want anyone in the organization to have the title of general manager.
With Belichick out of the building and Wolf’s promotion imminent, Kraft’s son – team president Jonathan Kraft – is seemingly poised to have more control over football operations moving forward.