The Jets have completed an interview with Thomas Dimitroff for the team's general manager position.
Dimitroff, who served as the Patriots' director of college scouting from 2003 to 2007, was general manager of the Atlanta Falcons from 2008 to 2020. Dimitroff, a 28-year NFL veteran, was recognized as NFL Executive of the Year in 2008 and 2010.
In his first draft with the Falcons, he nabbed Boston College quarterback Matt Ryan with the third overall selection. From 2008 to 2012, the Falcons had five straight winning seasons and advanced to the playoffs four times while winning the NFC South division title twice. Then, after changing coaches from Mike Smith to Dan Quinn, the Falcons advanced to the Super Bowl at the end of the 2016 NFL season and to the divisional round of the playoffs in January 2016 and 2017.
Dimitroff's tenure in Atlanta included a blockbuster trade in 2011 when he dealt five draft picks to the Cleveland Browns to select Alabama WR Julio Jones with the No. 6 overall pick. When Jones left Atlanta in 2021 in a trade with the Titans, the future Hall of Famer left as the leader in receptions (848) and receiving yards (12,896) and is n #2 in TD receptions (63). His 99.5 receiving yards per game at that time was the best per game average in NFL history.
Born in Ohio, Dimitroff, 58, grew up in Canada and played defensive back at the University of Guelph in Ontario. He began his scouting career with the Saskatchewan Roughriders of the CFL as a scouting coordinator in 1990-91, then served as an NFL scout for the World League of American Football in 1992. He eventually became a scout at part-time with the Chiefs in 1993 and became a full-time regional scout with the Lions from 1994 to 1997. He joined the Browns from 1998 to 2001, then joined the Patriots as a national scout in 2002 under Scott Pioli and Bill Belichick. After one season, he was promoted to director of college scouting in 2003 and was part of two Super Bowl-winning teams with the Patriots.
In January 2022, Dimitroff helped found a football analytics company named SumerSports. The company says its goal is to provide “best-in-class quantitative analysis aimed at creating precision in player acquisition and roster management in the NFL.”
Jets president Woody Johnson is leading the search for a general manager and head coach. He hired The 33rd Team in a support role to help identify and screen candidates in addition to coordinating interviews. Jeff Ulbrich and Phil Savage are the team's interim head coach and general manager, respectively.
2024-12-16 22:15:00
