The Chargers ended the Tom Telesco era on Friday, firing their general manager after a decade in charge.
Here are 12 candidates from around the league they could consider as his replacement.
1
Ed Dodds
Current position: Colts assistant general manager
Dodds has been the second-in-command in Indianapolis since 2017 and is viewed as one of the league’s foremost talent evaluators. He has interviewed for a number of general manager jobs over the past few seasons but has yet to be pried away from Indianapolis.
2
Adam Peters
Current position: 49ers assistant general manager
A California native, Peters has won at every stop during his 21-year NFL career. He started as a scouting assistant with the Super Bowl-winning Patriots in the mid-2000s, climbed the ranks in the Broncos scouting department during the Peyton Manning era and followed John Lynch to San Francisco when Lynch was hired as GM. As assistant general manager for the 49ers, Peters has received a good chunk of the credit for building them into an NFC contender.
3
Brandon Brown
Current position: Eagles director of player personnel
A rising star in front-office circles, Brown has only been working in the NFL since 2015. He was fast-tracked from advance scout in Indianapolis in 2016 to assistant director of pro scouting for the Eagles in 2017. Previously Philadelphia’s director of pro scouting, Brown is in touch with both the college and pro sides of the game.
4
Chris Shea
Current position: Chiefs vice president of football operations
Shea has been in the NFL since 1995 in various capacities, including a stint on the NFL Management Council and as an Instant Replay Communicator for the NFL Officiating department. A licensed attorney, Shea has experience as a scout, legal counsel, salary cap manager, and in the analytics department.
5
Ian Cunningham
Current position: Bears assistant general manager
A former offensive lineman, Cunningham had a cup of coffee with the Chiefs before joining the vaunted Ravens front office as a player personnel assistant in 2008. After cutting his teeth as an area scout, Philadelphia hired him as their director of college scouting in 2017. In 2022, the Bears assigned him the role of assistant general manager.
6
Matt Berry
Current position: Seahawks senior director of player personnel.
Promoted from director of college scouting this February, Berry is now involved in pro scouting with Seattle. During his eight years as the director of college scouting, Berry was heavily involved in the Seahawks’ draft process. Seattle has routinely found contributors late in the draft.
7
Terrance Gray
Current position: Bills director of player personnel
Elevated to director of player personnel prior to the 2022 season, Gray has worked in the NFL for twenty years across the Chiefs, Vikings, and Bills. His background is as a college scout, a job he held for eleven seasons in Minnesota.
8
Lake Dawson
Current position: Bills senior executive
A third-round pick at wide receiver in 1994, Dawson joined the front office ranks in 2001 with the Seahawks. He’s also worked for the Titans, Browns, and Bills. After serving as assistant director of college scouting for six seasons, he was elevated to a senior executive role before 2023 to expand his role on the pro scouting side.
9
Mike Borgonzi
Current position: Chiefs assistant general manager
A Brown alum who spent a handful of years working in finance in Boston, Borgonzi joined the Chiefs in 2009 and has not looked back since. He’s been promoted seven times in those 14 seasons and currently supervises both the college and pro scouting operations for Kansas City.
10
John Spytek
Current position: Buccaneers assistant general manager
A former linebacker at Michigan, Spytek has been in the NFL since 2004. He’s credited with drafting six All-Rookie team honorees during his time in Cleveland, as well as the Devin White, Tristan Wirfs, and Antoine Winfield Jr. draft picks in Tampa Bay. He also has experience navigating salary cap fiascos, such as the one in Tampa coming into this season.
11
Joe Hortiz
Current position: Ravens director of player personnel
A Ravens lifer cut from the same cloth as general manager Eric DeCosta and Jets GM Joe Douglas, Hortiz was nearly hired as Giants GM before they gave the job to Joe Schoen. In Baltimore since 1998, Hortiz is widely regarded as one of the best college scouts in the NFL.
12
JoJo Wooden
Current position: Chargers interim general manager
Telesco’s right-hand man from beginning to end, Wooden was announced as Los Angeles’ interim general manager on Friday afternoon. He spent 15 years in the Jets organization in various pro scouting roles before joining the Chargers as director of player personnel when Telesco was hired in 2013. He’ll likely get an interview to pitch a smooth transition and continuity.
