NFL general managers ranked based on leaked NFLPA report cards

If you’ve ever wondered how NFL players feel about their general manager, we now have answers thanks to the latest set of NFLPA report card grades. This the fourth year that the NFLPA did grades, but the first time that players were asked to rate their general manager. 

The grades on the report cards are based on a survey handed out to players each year. For the most recent season, the NFLPA had 1,759 players rate their team in 17 different categories. In 2024, the NFLPA added a category where players could rate their head coach and another category where players could rate their owner, but until now, there was no option for general managers. 

The NFLPA report cards weren’t supposed to be available to the public this year, but they got leaked out anyway, so we’re going to break them down by taking a look at the individual grade for each general manager. The highest grade handed out was an A, which went to seven different general managers. On the other hand, the lowest grade handed out was a D+, which went to exactly one guy. 

With free agency right around the corner, now seems like a good time to see how each general manager is perceived to be doing by the players that he signed. 

Here are the grades for each general manager (Remember, these grades are based on the 2025 season, so there are several general managers on this list who ended up getting fired): 

Grade: A

Teams: Panthers (Dan Morgan), Broncos (George Paton), Colts (Chris Ballard), Rams (Les Snead), Vikings (Kwesi Adofo-Mensah), Seahawks (John Schneider), Commanders (Adam Peters)

Notes: The most surprising name on here is probably Adofo-Mensah. The players in Minnesota clearly felt he was doing a good job, but the VIkings still decided to fire him in a move that came back in January. Adofo-Mensah could never quite get the QB situation figured out and he misfired on several draft picks, which played a part in Minnesota’s decision to  ultimately cut ties with him. 

As for the other six general managers who earned an ‘A,’ five of them have built a team that has been to the playoffs at least once in the past two years. Ballard is the only GM who earned ‘A’ without making the playoffs at least once since the start of the 2024 season. 

Grade: A-

Teams: Ravens (Eric DeCosta), Bills (Brandon Beane), Bears (Ryan Poles), Lions (Brad Holmes), Texans (Nick Caserio), Jaguars (James Gladstone), Raiders (John Spytek), Dolphins (Chris Grier), Jets (Darren Mougey), 49ers (John Lynch), Buccaneers (Jason Licht)

Notes: Of the 11 general managers in this group, eight of them made the playoffs at least once since the start of the 2024 season, which means they helped build contenders. However, like the previous group, we do have one guy (Grier) who got fired despite earning a high grade from his players. 

The Raiders and Jets both went 3-14 in 2025, but Mougey and Spytek still graded out well after just one year on the job, which tells you that their players seem to like where those two franchises are headed. 

Grade: B+

Teams: Falcons (Terry Fontenot), Packers (Brian Gutekunst), Chiefs (Brett Veach), Chargers (Joe Hortiz), Patriots (Elliott Wolf), Titans (Mike Borgonzi)

Notes: The most interesting name in this group is probably Borgonzi. As a whole, it seems that most players approved of the job that each first-year general manager pulled off. Not only did Spytek and Mougey score in the ‘A’ range, but Borgonzi earned a ‘B+’ despite the fact that the Titans went 3-14. In Atlanta, Fontenot earned a decent grade, but Arthur Blank clearly didn’t think he was doing a ‘B+’ job because the Falcons owner fired Fontenot at the end of the season. 

In Kansas City, Veach has built a team that has been to five of the past seven Super Bowls, but he wasn’t able to earn an ‘A.’ 

One thing that should be noted here is that this survey was taken between Nov. 2 and Dec. 11, according to ESPN, so someone like Wolf might score higher next year after building a Super Bowl team, but that wouldn’t have helped him in this year’s grades. 

Grade: B

Teams: Cardinals (Monti Ossenfort), Cowboys (Jerry Jones), Saints (Micky Loomis), Eagles (Howie Roseman)

Notes: This might be the most interesting set of grades because and that’s mostly that Jones and Roseman both earned a ‘B.’ Jones’ team hasn’t been to a Super Bowl in 30 years and Cowboys fans usually find themselves a little bit frustrated with the team’s roster building process. On the other hand, Roseman has built a team that’s been to the Super Bowl three times in the past nine seasons, including two wins, but he still earned the same grade as Jones. 

Worst grades

And now, this is where things get ugly. There were four general managers who graded all graded out in the C range or lower, so we’re going to lump them all together. 

• C+: Steelers (Omar Khan)
• C: Bengals (Duke Tobin), Browns (Andrew Berry)
• D+: Giants (Joe Schoen)

It was a mild surprise that Schoen kept his job this offseason. Not only have the Giants struggled under his watch, but based on his grade, it’s pretty clear that the players in New York don’t necessarily have a positive view of him. As for the other three teams in this group, the AFC North clearly needs to get its act together. 

The Steelers haven’t won a playoff game in nine years and although Mike Tomlin took a lot of the blame for that, it’s Khan’s job to build the roster, so he’s certainly not blameless. Khan has been the general manager in Pittsburghfor four seasons. 

In Cleveland, Berry has been with the team since 2016 and he eventually took over as general manager in 2020. Berry made some smart draft moves (Just check out Cleveland’s 2025 class) but the team struggled to find a quarterback, and overall, he hasn’t built a strong enough roster to regularly compete in the AFC North. As for the Bengals, Tobin is the de facto general manager and his team hasn’t been able to capitalize on having Joe Burrow in recent years. Due to several draft misses — with most coming on defensive side of the ball — the Bengals have gone three straight seasons without making the playoffs and they’ve only been to the postseason twice over the past 10 years. 

One thing we don’t know when it comes to these report cards is the criteria for the general manager grades. Owners are graded on their ability to build a positive team culture and whether they provide top notch facilities. Coaches are graded on how receptive they are to locker room feedback and how efficient they are with each player’s time, among other things. We know the criteria for those two categories because the report cards were publicly released in the past so the information was widely available. 

The general managers were graded for the first time this year, but the exact criteria for their grade wasnt’ released. The big reason for that is because the report cards almost didn’t come out at all this year. The NFL filed a grievance against the NFLPA over the report cards back in August and the league actually won. Due to victory, the ruling stated that the results of the report cards would no longer be made public, but they still leaked out anyway.