There have been many successful young NFL general managers in recent years, such as Thomas Dimitroff of the Falcons and Les Snead of the Rams, a trend expected to continue.
"You have to be able to manage people, to trust people, and to trust the relationships you've built," said one NFC GM. "If you make everyone feel like they have a legitimate voice, you've got the best shot to make it work. If you start locking people out of the room, you make it difficult for them to buy in."
The next crop of GM candidates include:
Nick Caserio, New England Patriots director of player personnel
David Caldwell, Atlanta Falcons director of player personnel
Eric DeCosta, Baltimore Ravens assistant GM
Brian Gaine, Miami Dolphins assistant GM
Tom Gamble, San Francisco 49ers director of player personnel
Dennis Hickey, Tampa Bay Buccaneers director of player personnel
John Idzik, Seattle Seahawks vice president of football administration
George Paton, Minnesota Vikings assistant GM
Steve Keim, Arizona Cardinals vice president of player personnel
Omar Khan, Pittsburgh Steelers director of football and business administration
Jason Licht, Arizona Cardinals director of player personnel
Jimmy Raye, San Diego Chargers director of player personnel
Marc Ross, New York Giants director of college scouting
Tom Telesco, Indianapolis Colts vice president of football operations