Super Bowl runs rely on astute GMs hitting HRs as much as top QBs tossing touchdowns.
With conference championships coming up, the last four teams succeed both on the field and in the front office.
Eight key reasons why the Chiefs, Ravens, Lions, and 49ers are one win away from Super Bowl LVIII:
The roster includes Patrick Mahomes, Lamar Jackson, Jared Goff, Brock Purdy, Brett Veach, Eric DeCosta, Brad Holmes, and John Lynch.
The first four are elite quarterbacks (all under 30) who score touchdowns on the big stage. The final four are considerably more critical.
They are general managers who hit home runs and limit organizational strikeouts behind the scenes.
Three of these general managers were long-time sco
Veach, 46, began as an Eagles coach under Andy Reid, then moved into scouting, following Andy to Kansas City in 2013 and becoming Chiefs general manager in 2017. He’s won two Super Bowls, appeared in three, and will travel to Baltimore on Sunday for his sixth straight AFC title game in seven years as GM.
DeCosta, 52, began as a 25-year-old personnel intern under Ozzie Newsome’s wing, who constructed two Super Bowl champions in Baltimore while nurturing DeCosta as an area scout, scouting director, player personnel director, assistant general manager, and eventual successor in 2019. DeCosta’s team has the league’s second-best record since 2018 (68-37,.648), trailing only Kansas City (88-27,.765), and the 27-year-old Jackson is likely to be the league MVP.
ts. Proverbial football-breathing lifers. The other person is a Hall of Famer.
The players on the field are impressive, but the four remaining general managers in the running to win the Super Bowl have done an equally admirable job.
The players on the field are impressive, but the four remaining general managers in the running to win the Super Bowl have done an equally admirable job.Eight key reasons why the Chiefs, Ravens, Lions, and 49ers are one win away from Super Bowl LVIII:
The roster includes Patrick Mahomes, Lamar Jackson, Jared Goff, Brock Purdy, Brett Veach, Eric DeCosta, Brad Holmes, and John Lynch.
The first four are elite quarterbacks (all under 30) who score touchdowns on the big stage. The final four are considerably more critical.
They’re general managers who hit home runs and limit organizational strikeouts.
In 2017, Veach reportedly pounded the table for Mahomes hard enough for Reid to agree to trade up from 27th overall to 10th, at a time when far too many people (see: Chicago Bears) saw Mahomes as a hazardous system quarterback with unusual mechanics and poor feet. Reid already had a quarterback he loved, Alex Smith, but he acquired the foundation of the NFL’s current dynasty. And it only cost a third-rounder in 2017 and a first-rounder (16th overall) in 2018.
DeCosta was in his final year as Newsome’s assistant when the Ravens moved back into the first round with Philadelphia, selecting Jackson 32nd overall. It only cost them second-round picks in 2018 and 2019, and an exchange of fourth-round picks.
Lynch took two quarterback swings: a big one in 2021 that failed (Trey Lance) and a little one in 2022 (Purdy) that saved his franchise, reputation, and most likely his job in the long run. He missed out on the native Minnesotan Lance when he used three first-round picks and a third-round pick to move up nine spots to take him third overall. Lance appeared in only eight games, going 2-2 as a starter, before being traded to Dallas for a fourth-round selection. But Purdy, the 262nd and final choice in the 2021 draft, has made the Lance gaffe meaningless with one of the most surprising beginnings to a career in NFL history.
When Holmes came in Detroit, he played a key role in one of the most significant deals in recent memory. He traded Matthew Stafford to the Rams for a third-round pick in 2021, first-round picks in 2022 and 2023, and Jared Goff. Stafford won the Super Bowl right away, but the Lions are catching up thanks to Goff’s comeback and Holmes’ astute decisions. He turned his three draft picks into four starters: safety Ifeatu Melifonwu, receiver Jameson Williams, running back Jahmyr Gibbs, and tight end Sam LaPorta.
Regarding draft picks and strategic plays…
• Veach has picked fourteen of the Chiefs’ starters since taking over as general manager in 2017. Eight of them play on a defense that ranks second in terms of points allowed (17.3) and sacks (57).
• Eleven of the Lions’ starters last week are from Holmes’ first three picks. Amon-Ra St. Brown and Penei Sewell are both first-team players. All-Pro
The players on the field are impressive, but the four remaining general managers in the running to win the Super Bowl have done an equally admirable job.
The players on the field are impressive, but the four remaining general managers in the running to win the Super Bowl have done an equally admirable job.Eight key reasons why the Chiefs, Ravens, Lions, and 49ers are one win away from Super Bowl LVIII:
The roster includes Patrick Mahomes, Lamar Jackson, Jared Goff, Brock Purdy, Brett Veach, Eric DeCosta, Brad Holmes, and John Lynch.
The first four are elite quarterbacks (all under 30) who score touchdowns on the big stage. The final four are considerably more critical.
They are general managers who hit home runs and limit organizational strikeouts behind the scenes.
Three of these.
Lynch drafted eleven of last week’s 49ers starters. Five of them were picked in the fifth round or later, owing to Lynch’s eyeballs and a respected analytics department, which set Kwesi Adofo-Mensah on track to become the Vikings’ general manager by 2022. Lynch also made a pair of home run trades to get ageless All-Pro left tackle Trent Williams for a fifth and two thirds in 2020, as well as MVP finalist Christian McCaffrey for a second, third, fourth, and fifth last season.
