At a time when some want to delay the hiring of coaches until after the Super Bowl, four teams have proposed delaying the hiring of some front-office personnel until after the draft.
The Ravens, Bills, Eagles, and Buccaneers have proposed an amendment to the tampering policy that allows teams to decline permission for so-called “Secondary Football Executive” positions (e.g., assistant G.M.) until the draft has come and gone. After the draft and through June 30, the employer club would be required to grant permission for another club to interview and hire a non-high-level executive or non-secondary football executive for a secondary football executive position.
In the formal proposal, the teams that submitted it explain that it will allow “the employer club the choice to retain its player personnel staff” through the draft, and that after the draft “the employer club is required to grant permission for another club to interview and hire a non-high-level executive or non-secondary football executive for a secondary football executive position.”
The goal is to strike the balance between promoting opportunities and ensuring competitive integrity, given that employees who take jobs with new teams in January or February take with them a significant amount of institutional knowledge as to free agency and the draft.
Along with the various proposals to revise overtime, these are the only new rules proposed by any of the NFL’s teams in advance of the league meetings to be held later this month. The Competition Committee likely will have other proposals for ownership.