The NFL’s general manager carousel is spinning, and Louis Riddick is once again emerging as a candidate. What does Riddick bring to the table, and where might he end up?
What NFL teams did Louis Riddick play for?
Riddick began his journey to the top of an NFL front office back in 1991. He was selected in the ninth round of the NFL draft by the San Francisco 49ers. Riddick spent his first season on the practice squad before heading to Atlanta.
With the Falcons, Riddick saw his first live NFL action. He played in all 16 games in his first season in Atlanta, starting four of them. He recorded 74 tackles and one sack. After that, Riddick found his way to Cleveland for a three-year stint with the Browns under head coach Bill Belichick. In 1996, Riddick once again found his way to Atlanta, playing one more season with the Falcons.
He was out of football for the 1997 season and finished his playing career just down the road from where it all started, in Oakland.
All told, Riddick spent parts of six seasons in the NFL, playing for four different teams along the way — including two stints with the Atlanta Falcons. Over the course of his career, Riddick tallied 155 tackles. He also notched two sacks, one fumble recovery, and one safety.
Riddick’s prior experience working in the NFL
After his playing days were over, Louis Riddick joined the world of player personnel. This is where Riddick really began to make a name for himself. In 2001, he joined Washington as a pro scout. After four seasons, he was promoted to Washington’s director of pro personnel.
Riddick spent three seasons in this role before leaving for the Philadelphia Eagles organization in 2008. There, Riddick spent one season as a scout. Then, another season as the assistant director of pro personnel before again being promoted to the director spot.
Riddick spent four seasons as the Eagles’ director of pro personnel before leaving to join ESPN. Thanks to a wealth of knowledge and an accessible way of presenting it, Louis Riddick quickly became a fixture on ESPN’s NFL programming. His work included appearances on ESPN’s First Take, frequent spots with Ryan Clark and others on ESPN’s flagship program, SportsCenter, and a spot on the NFL Live crew.
Today, Riddick can be heard alongside Steve Levy and Brian Griese as part of the three-man crew heading up the booth for Monday Night Football. Would Riddick leave the booth and the media side to get back into an NFL front office? The life of the talking head and the life of the NFL front office starkly contrast, though both are consumed with football.
Media vs. front office, which role will suit him better?
There’s also the matter of his stint with ESPN. His time there could create a stumbling block for Riddick and any team looking to hire him on a couple of fronts. On the one hand, would any team interested in Louis Riddick bring enough to the table for him to leave the Monday Night Football booth?
It’s unclear just how much Riddick is making for his spot in the MNF booth. Surely it’s pennies on the dollar compared to what he’d make as an NFL GM. However, with the GM role comes a world of pressure and scrutiny. After being out of the NFL for so long, would Riddick want to give up the relative ease of the booth for the daily rigors and grind of life in an NFL front office?
Therein lies the enigma from the perspective of any team interviewing Riddick: the gap of time between his last experience and now. It has been more than seven years since he was last employed by an NFL team. A lot has changed in the NFL in that short amount of time. That may be enough to make some teams think twice. According to sources close to PFN, the chances of Louis Riddick landing a GM position are remote.