2022 NFL front office rankings

General managers get all the glory when things go right and all the blame when things go wrong. In reality, while the GM is the face of many teams, entire front offices contribute to a club’s outcomes.

Plus, head coaches have outsized roster sway in some organizations, while owners exercise heightened authority in others. As such, we’re ranking NFL front offices and power structures, not necessarily individual general managers.

1) Buffalo Bills

General manager: Brandon Beane

Alongside head coach Sean McDermott, Beane spent the past five seasons turning the Bills into the preeminent franchise in the NFL. Although they’ve yet to capture a Super Bowl trophy, Buffalo’s decision-makers are the most astute in the league.

 

Beane took two years to get the Bills’ salary cap in order before attacking free agency and the draft with targeted, positional-value-centric strikes. He acquired Stefon Diggs at a discounted rate, and even Diggs’ new extension is cheap compared to the rest of the now-exploded WR market. Beane will have the next decade to add complementary pieces around Josh Allen. Buffalo is the model for every NFL front office.

2) Baltimore Ravens

General manager: Eric DeCosta

Baltimore’s 2019 transition from legendary GM Ozzie Newsome to longtime assistant DeCosta has been as seamless as the club’s move from Joe Flacco to Lamar Jackson under center. The Ravens are seemingly never pressured into any one course of action — they let value come to them.

DeCosta’s 2020 heist of Calais Campbell from the Jaguars was a masterstroke, and Baltimore remains among the league’s best at gaming the compensatory pick system. Additionally, the Ravens’ analytically-inclined approach should give them an edge on the field and in transactions for years to come.

 

3) Philadelphia Eagles

General manager: Howie Roseman

Sticking it out in Philadelphia (with various titles and responsibilities) through the Andy Reid, Chip Kelly, Doug Pederson, and now Nick Sirianni eras, Roseman is the NFL’s most creative general manager from a salary cap perspective. The optionality he creates through various financial levers gives the Eagles maximum roster flexibility.

Roseman is clearly conscious of positional value. He drafted Jalen Hurts in the second round, with Carson Wentz still on Philadelphia’s roster. And you’ll hardly ever see him invest significant cap space or draft capital in non-critical positions like linebacker, safety, or running back. This offseason, Roseman managed to acquire 24-year-old A.J. Brown at a cheaper cost than rival teams paid for older receivers like Davante Adams and Tyreek Hill.

4) Los Angeles Rams

General manager: Les Snead

 

The Rams are the reigning Super Bowl champions, but their ranking at No. 4 is more about process than results. And LA’s process is certainly unique among an NFL front office cohort that can fall victim to groupthink.

Snead and head coach Sean McVay are dedicated to a "stars and scrubs” approach — except their "scrubs” are actually competent role players asked to handle specific (and manageable) tasks. As long as the Rams continue to hit on mid- and late-round d

The Bills stuck it to the Panthers pretty good when they hired Brandon Beane as the GM away from the Panthers.  I suspect that it was more Beane and not Dave Gettlemen who was responsible for that 15-1 Panther team that lost to Denver in the SB.