https://chargerswire.usatoday.com/lists/chargers-general-manager-candidates-adam-peters-ed-dodds/

Alex Katson
December 15, 2023 1:33 pm PT

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.