The Miami Dolphins general manager job technically opened last week, after the team’s mutual parting with Chris Grier.
Champ Kelly, the interim general manager, is clearly not immobile for the remainder of the season. He was active before Tuesday’s trade deadline, moving pass rusher Jaelan Phillips to the Eagles. If Kelly and head coach Mike McDaniel work well together through the rest of the season, could owner Stephen Ross consider keeping the pair intact?
What about just keeping McDaniel? The head coach is under contract through 2028 and would be an asset as an assistant for other teams should Ross let him go — factors to keep in mind.
It’s most likely that Ross hires a new general manager, and the organization makes further decisions from there. Here are some possible executive candidates to watch for the Dolphins’ opening and any other upcoming vacancies around the NFL:
Alec Halaby (assistant GM, Philadelphia Eagles)
Halaby is the longtime right-hand of general manager Howie Roseman. A Harvard graduate, Halaby worked his way up from an entry-level role in football operations with the Eagles in 2007 to leading multiple areas within the organization, including talent identification and player evaluation, roster and resource management and overall organizational strategy. Halaby was a finalist for the Jets GM vacancy last offseason.
Ed Dodds (assistant GM, Indianapolis Colts)
Dodds interviewed for the Tennessee Titans’ GM job in January and the Los Angeles Chargers’ GM vacancy in 2024. Dodds has more than two decades of scouting, personnel and roster-building experience between his decade with Seattle and current tenure with the Colts (including seven seasons as assistant GM under Chris Ballard). Dodds has been a key voice in the Colts’ resurgence and has helped to modernize their technology and its role in the franchise’s football strategies.
Josh Williams (director of scouting and football operations, San Francisco 49ers)
Williams, a Columbia graduate and former Ivy League receiver, was a finalist in the Jacksonville Jaguars’ general manager search last spring. Williams’ finance and 15-year scouting background (college and pro) has expanded into work on the 49ers’ contract negotiations with general manager John Lynch and team president Paraag Marathe. Williams has overseen the talent identification and development process of a better-than-expected 2025 49ers team, despite their injuries.
Ian Cunningham (assistant GM, Chicago Bears)
Chicago Bears assistant GM Ian Cunningham has worked with GM Ryan Poles to reshape the franchise. (Aaron M. Sprecher / via AP)
Cunningham was a finalist for the Jacksonville Jaguars’ GM opening last spring and also interviewed for the Tennessee Titans’ GM position. In collaboration with Bears GM Ryan Poles, Cunningham helped draft quarterback Caleb Williams and recruit now-head coach Ben Johnson to Chicago and has advised Poles on the Bears’ free agency rebuild and draft investment into the offensive line, receivers room, running backs room and beyond. Cunningham has also worked in a scouting/executive role for the Eagles and Ravens.
Ryan Cowden (vice president of player personnel, New England Patriots)
Cowden, who has served as an interim general manager in Tennessee while also undergoing multiple GM interviews over the last eight seasons, has an extensive scouting and personnel executive background with the Panthers (2001-14), Titans (2016-22) and Giants (executive advisor, 2023-24). Cowden, Patriots executive VP of personnel Eliot Wolf and Patriots head coach Mike Vrabel have rebuilt the flailing Patriots into a 7-2 team in less than one season together.
Nolan Teasley (assistant GM, Seattle Seahawks)
With the Seahawks in the national spotlight as one of the NFL’s best teams (and frequently among its most consistent), so too should be the front office under longtime GM John Schneider. One of his top deputies is Teasley, who worked his way up from his arrival to the team in 2013 as a scouting intern. Teasley has executive-level experience in pro and college scouting and pro personnel roles at one of the more technologically advanced teams in the league.
Jon-Eric Sullivan (vice president of player personnel, Green Bay Packers)
In over two decades with the Packers, Sullivan (a former collegiate player and assistant coach at Gardner-Webb) worked his way up through the scouting, personnel executive and football operations departments to his highly placed current role. Sullivan interviewed for the Jets, Titans and Raiders jobs last offseason.
Chad Alexander (assistant GM, Los Angeles Chargers)
Alexander has helped oversee a roster and cultural rebuild for the Chargers as GM Joe Hortiz’s top executive starting in 2024, following five years with the Jets and 20 with the Baltimore Ravens. He also interviewed for the recent Jaguars and Raiders GM openings. Alexander has a long-time scouting and personnel executive background across his three pro franchises.
Mike Greenberg (assistant GM, Tampa Bay Buccaneers)
Greenberg, who has been with the team since 2010, has assisted Bucs GM Jason Licht on all things during multiple team-building pivots, including a Super Bowl roster built around Tom Brady and a continual postseason contender built around Baker Mayfield, Tampa’s receiver and running back factory and a perennially respectable defense led by head coach Todd Bowles. Greenberg interviewed for the Jets GM job in January.
Ray Agnew (assistant GM, Detroit Lions)
Agnew moved from a senior position with the L.A. Rams to Detroit in 2021, to help general manager Brad Holmes and head coach Dan Campbell rebuild the organization’s roster, team construction processes and culture. Agnew, a former NFL defensive lineman who helped the 1999 Rams win a Super Bowl, had almost two decades of experience as a scout and scouting director for the Rams before Holmes brought him to Detroit.
Other names to know: John McKay (assistant GM, Los Angeles Rams); Matt Bazirgan (director of college scouting, Buffalo Bills); Kevin Rogers (director of player personnel, Indianapolis Colts); Jeff King (senior director of player personnel, Chicago Bears); John Park (director of strategic football operations, Dallas Cowboys); Adam Berry (vice president of football operations and strategy, Philadelphia Eagles); Brandon Brown (assistant GM, New York Giants); Demitrius Washington (assistant GM, Minnesota Vikings); Andrew Healy (vice president of research and strategy, Cleveland Browns); Chris Shea (assistant GM, Kansas City Chiefs); Mike Bradway (assistant GM, Kansas City Chiefs); Tariq Ahmad (vice president of pro personnel, San Francisco 49ers); Jeff Scott (vice president of football operations, Philadelphia Eagles); Reed Burckhardt (assistant general manager, Denver Broncos); Jon Shaw (director of pro personnel, Indianapolis Colts); Willie Schneider (director of pro personnel, Seattle Seahawks).