The St. Louis Rams fired Steve Spagnuolo and Billy Devaney on Monday morning. Since then, the most-talked about replacement has been Jeff Fisher, who is a candidate to be the team's next head coach. The rumor mill was much quieter with regards to the Rams' search for a general manager, until Wednesday. Les Snead of the Falcons, Eric DeCosta of the Ravens and Brian Gaine of the Dolphins were all reported as candidates for the Rams' vacancy on Wednesday.
So who are these guys? Let's get to know a little bit more about the names being mentioned so far, confirmed and rumored.
A quick recap of the candidates after the jump.
Confirmed Candidates
Eric DeCosta, Baltimore Ravens Director of Player Personnel
Reported on Wednesday afternoon, this is one people are pretty excited about given the Ravens' track record in the draft. DeCosta has been with the team since 1996, their inaugural year.
Les Snead, Atlanta Falcons Director of Player Personnel
Snead's name was also confirmed on Wednesday afternoon by several sources, including the Post-Dispatch, which usually guarantees that it's been confirmed at Rams Park. This was Snead's third year in his current job, a position he assumed one year after Billy Devaney left for St. Louis. He interviewed for the 49ers GM job last year. The Falcons haven't been afraid to take some risks on the personnel side, most notably trading a bundle of picks for Julio Jones in last year's draft.
Brian Gaine, Miami Dolphins Director of Player Personnel
Jason LaCanfora reported on Wednesday that the Rams have already talked to Gaine. He was one of the Parcells crew brought over from Dallas, joining the Phins four years ago. He was promoted to his current position last year after serving as an assistant in that role in the three years prior.
Speculative Candidates
Jeff Foster, National Football Scouting President
Adam Schefter reported on Tuesday morning that Foster is expected to be a candidate for the Rams' job. Foster's name won't jump off the page to most people, but many are familiar with his work, especially if you follow the NFL Draft. As President of the NFS, Foster runs the annual NFL Combine and oversees the tremendous amount of work that goes into, including running his own scouting staff, analyzing prospects for most NFL teams using NFS, deciding which players to invite to the Combine
Lake Dawson, Tennessee Titans Vice President of Football Operations
Dawson has been with the Titans for five years, and knows Jeff Fisher well from his time there. He was promoted to his current position last year, promoted from Director of Pro Scouting. Pro scouting is still his role in Tennessee, where he oversees every aspect of it. Dawson would satisfy the Rooney Rule, but his connection to Fisher is perhaps more notable, as Jason LaCanfora points out.