NFL General Manager Rankings: Belichick, Roseman and Ballard top list

8. Mickey Loomis – New Orleans Saints

Mickey Loomis’ tenure as the team’s president/general manager will always end on a positive note thanks to his acquisition of Drew Brees. The Saints were a play away from clinching a berth to Super Bowl LIII. Then a blind ref got in the way, and the Saints were sent home packing. Loomis had one goal in mind heading into the 2019 season— go the distance.

That was easier said than done since New Orleans couldn’t be players in free agency this offseason. The team had limited cap space and wouldn’t be able to add a player on day 1 of April’s draft after trading up last season to select Marcus Davenport with No.14 selection.

Then again, how many holes did the Saints actually have after the NFC Championship? Perhaps tight end, and the team addressed that with veteran Jared Cook. With Max Unger calling it a career, New Orleans elected to trade up and find their center of the future in Erik McCoy. Chauncey Gardner-Robinson was a perfect late-round addition that should be effective on special teams and dime formations while Alize Mack could be the long-term answer at tight end.

Loomis was able to re-sign Teddy Bridgewater, setting up the future once Brees calls it a career. The Saints are in prime position now to take home another Lombardi Trophy, but that window could close fast with other teams on the rise. Still, without Loomis, who knows where the Saints might be right now.

7. Les Snead – Los Angeles Rams

The Rams were perhaps the NFL’s top team last season—up until the final two games. They got away with an iffy call in the NFC Championship and then disappointed during the Super Bowl. Thanks to that and an unsettled cap situation, Les Snead was forced to make tough decisions heading into the offseason.

Offensive guard Roger Saffold left for Tennessee while LaMarcus Joyner took a lucrative contract from Oakland a year after being franchise tagged. Ndamukong Suh wasn’t retained, nor was CJ Anderson after an impressive playoff run. Still, Snead found a way to keep the Rams a winner once more.

The Rams signed Pro Bowl safety Eric Weddle to replace Joyner while also adding a pass-rushing presence in Clay Matthews. Both came in on team friendly contracts and should be immediate contributors for Wade Phillips’ defense.

Snead wasted little time turning his first round draft pick into a pair of quality day 2 selections. Taylor Rapp has the skills to play both safeties shortly while Darrell Henderson should be a nice insurance move for Todd Gurley if anything happens to his knee in the future. Bobby Evans also could end up becoming the long-term replacement for Saffold as early as preseason.

Snead took some time to figure out this GM job but consider this: the team was once the most average unit in the NFL under ole 7-9 Jeff Fisher. Thanks to his moves in the offseason, the Rams are looking like one of the NFC’s most complete teams once again.

6. Thomas Dimitroff – Atlanta Falcons 

Maybe I’m just a Falcons homer, but people continue to sleep on Atlanta heading into the upcoming season. Still, the only reason the Dirty Birds even can contend for a Super Bowl each year is due to Dimitroff’s track record of strong drafts.

The Falcons finished below .500 for the first time since 2014. Part of the blame can be placed on poor play calling and, of course, injuries. Key losses such as Keanu Neal, Ricardo Allen, and Deion Jones will destroy a defensive unit. But how could that be Dimitroff’s fault? Even with an injured group, the Falcons still had a top 10 offense, finishing top five in passing.

Atlanta had one of the league’s most quiet offseasons. The moves that were made (the firings of Steve Sarkisian and Marquand Manuel) were much needed. Dimitroff planned for the loss of Tevin Coleman with the selection of Ito Smith, who could see his role expand if Devonta Freeman can’t remain healthy. The rebuilding of the right side with 2019 first-round picks of Chris Lindstrom and Kaleb McGary could pay off early on.

Dimitroff will need to make some difficult decisions if Vic Beasley and Takk McKinley underperform this season. He will also have to try to find the money to sign Grady Jarrett to a long-term extension. Still, the Falcons are too talented to finish below .500 in back to back seasons. That can mainly be attributed to their GM and his success finding talent in the draft.

5. Kevin Colbert – Pittsburgh Steelers

Kevin Colbert is still ranked high mainly because of his track record but is slowly starting to fall down the board. His seat isn’t hot just yet, but he’ll need to hope that the Steelers’ offseason won’t come back to haunt him.

The Le’Veon Bell drama is finally over after nearly two years. The former franchise running back elected to sit out last season and is now in the Big Apple with the dysfunctional Jets. Meanwhile, Antonio Brown’s relationship in the Steel City imploded and he was shipped off to Oakland for a pair of mid-round picks.

The Steelers somewhat addressed the need at wide receiver by signing Donte Moncrief, who only collected three touchdowns in his lone season in Jacksonville. The moves now make former 2017 picks JuJu Smith-Schuster and James Conner a focal point of the offense. That could go either way following last season’s breakout performances.

The draft class came with average results. Colbert finally admitted that there’s a strong chance Ryan Shazier will never play another snap by trading up to select Devin Bush. Justin Layne was a superb addition to a mediocre secondary and perhaps the best cornerback on the board. But slot receiver Diontae Johnson might have been a reach in the third round. Benny Snell Jr. might be a quality contributor as Conner’s backup this season.

Colbert lost a considerable portion of the firepower that made Pittsburgh’s offense so dynamic. Hopefully, the drama is the only thing that left Big Ben’s arsenal this offseason.