Cincy Jungle
Ever since the homerun that was Joe Burrow, Tee Higgins, and Logan Wilson in the first, second, and third rounds, the Cincinnati Bengals have drafted poorly. This not only puts de facto GM Duke Tobin on the hot seat, but it also puts the whole setup of the front office on the hot seat.
So, what are the Bengals to do?
Should they make a subtle change, sweeping changes, or stay on the path?
It is tough to judge who will be a good head coach, because what makes you a good coordinator doesn’t always make you a good head coach.
It is even harder to determine who will be a good general manager because we see next to nothing of what these people do. Their work is behind the scenes.
It is even more confusing when you consider how different the Bengals are. I mean, are we even talking about a real general manager position here? Then there is the size of the scouting department and the involvement of coaches.
It’s not for everyone.
Maybe it is for one of these guys. They all come from NFL organizations that have consistently put talented groups on the field year in and year out.
Alexander has 26 years of NFL experience, coming up through the Baltimore Ravens organization as a scout and later director of player personnel. He moved to the New York Jets, where he had the same title and was involved in some excellent moves, including the selection of Sauce Gardner and Garrett Wilson. He then headed to Los Angeles to work with another Harbaugh.
Alexander’s father, Hubbard, was a coach for over 40 years. He had some big-time college assistant jobs as well as roles with the Cowboys, Vikings, Saints, and the Cincinnati Marshals of the NIFL
Alec Halaby started as an intern with the Eagles in 2007 and consistently climbed up the ranks. He spent 6 years as the Vice President of Football Operations and Strategy before being named Assistant General Manager in 2022.
In his 16 years with the Eagles, Halaby has been credited with merging analytical evaluation with scouting reports to predict outcomes.
He’s a Harvard grad, but I am sure the family of Dartmouth grads who own the Bengals could overlook that.
Mike Greenberg’s career mirrors Halaby’s pretty closely.
He started out with the Buccaneers as a Player Personnel Assistant in 2010. He quickly moved up to the Coordinator of Football Administration, then, after 8 years as the Director of Football Administration, he became the Vice President of Football Administration.
In 2023, he was named Assistant General Manager and specializes in salary cap management.
Zac Taylor was Duke Tobin’s guy. What if the next “GM” is Taylor’s guy?
McKay started with the...
