Another disappointing end to a season for Bills fans included watching the division-rival Patriots reach the Super Bowl.
Another disappointing end to a season for Bills fans included watching the division-rival Patriots reach the Super Bowl.Danielle Parhizkaran/Globe Staff
No one has to tell Bills general manager Brandon Beane he’s under pressure to win.
“Listen, no one’s more angry that we haven’t got it done at myself than me,” Beane recently told the website GoLongTD.com. “I don’t need outside motivation.”
Beane arguably emerged with more control this offseason when the Bills fired coach Sean McDermott and replaced him with first-time coach Joe Brady. But frustrations are clearly mounting in Buffalo, where the Bills have lost in the divisional playoff round in four of the past five years, haven’t reached a Super Bowl in eight seasons with Josh Allen, and were dethroned in the AFC East by the Patriots, who taunted the Bills by making yet another Super Bowl.
Beane may have more control in Buffalo, but it will also be easier to saddle him with the blame should things go awry again in 2026. Beane has spent the offseason rebuilding the defense, yet only made one real move to help Allen, trading a second-round pick for receiver DJ Moore.
Bills owner Terry Pegula proved a few months ago he’s not afraid to make a change.
“I internalize it as my chip is deeper, my hunger is burning even more,” Beane said.
Here’s a look at other general managers under the most pressure now that free agency and the draft are complete. This doesn’t include the Vikings, who fired previous GM Kwesi Adofo-Mensah in January and are undergoing their search now:
Chris Ballard, Colts: He got a mulligan for missing the playoffs in 2025 due to quarterback Daniel Jones tearing his Achilles. But the Colts have missed the playoffs for five straight years, and have only made them twice in Ballard’s nine seasons.
New owner Carlie Irsay-Gordon has been patient, but if the Colts miss the playoffs again in 2026, Ballard may not get a Year 10. Ballard re-signed Jones and receiver Alec Pierce to monster deals, traded Michael Pittman to the Steelers, and has overhauled the defense with new starters and several draft picks.
Les Snead, Rams: He does have one Super Bowl ring to show for the Matthew Stafford era, but the Rams have come up short four years in a row. Now with his quarterback at 38 years old and coming off an MVP season, Snead controversially used the 13th pick in the draft on a developmental quarterback instead of a player who likely would have a more immediate impact in 2026.
Snead will look like a genius if Stafford’s back injuries flare up and Ty Simpson can play. But coach Sean McVay didn’t look like he was fully on board with the decision to draft Simpson, and there will be a few raised eyebrows if Stafford plays well this year and the Rams come up short of a Super Bowl again.
Monti Ossenfort, Cardinals: He survived an offseason purging of coach Jonathan Gannon, and the Cardinals seemingly want to tank this year and play for the No. 1 pick in 2027. But owner Michael Bidwill has a notoriously itchy finger, and the Cardinals are 15-36 in Ossenfort’s three seasons. Ossenfort has to be wary of lining up the No. 1 pick for a new general manager.
Andrew Berry, Browns. Another GM who survived the offseason while the coach, Kevin Stefanski, got fired. Berry does deserve credit for making the playoffs twice in six seasons (it’s the Browns, after all), and he seemed to expertly maneuver the draft board in moving from No. 6 to 9, acquiring extra assets and still drafting the player he wanted, Utah offensive tackle Spencer Fano.
But the Browns are 8-26 the last two years, haven’t won a playoff game in six years, and will finally be done with Deshaun Watson’s franchise-crippling, $230 million contract after this season. If the Browns struggle again, perhaps they go for a clean sweep at quarterback and general manager.
John Lynch, 49ers. The Rams and Seahawks have won their Super Bowls, but the 49ers are 0 for 2. They are coming off a nice bounce-back year at 12-5, but they whimpered out of the playoffs, their top skill players are getting older, and in recent years Lynch has struggled to find consistent weapons for Brock Purdy.
It doesn’t seem as if Lynch and coach Kyle Shanahan are on the hot seat, but they must be feeling a lot of pressure to get the 49ers over the championship hump. Lynch’s moves this offseason weren’t conventional, either — he signed two older receivers in Mike Evans and Christian Kirk, and drafted running back Kaelon Black and receiver De’Zhaun Stribling several rounds before most analysts had predicted.
Eric DeCosta, Ravens. DeCosta is another GM who likely emerged with more power now that John Harbaugh is gone, replaced by first-year coach Jesse Minter. DeCosta’s job likely isn’t in jeopardy, but the pressure is on to maximize Lamar Jackson’s window — in seven seasons, Jackson has more MVP awards (two) than AFC Championship game appearances (one). The decision to cancel the Maxx Crosby trade and pivot to Trey Hendrickson also will remain under the spotlight.
Adam Peters, Commanders. Coach Dan Quinn’s seat is likely hotter, but Peters could use a strong turnaround in 2026 after building an expensive, 5-12 team last year. Peters signed and drafted at least seven new starters on offense but didn’t do much to help quarterback Jayden Daniels.
Mike Borgonzi, Titans. He also emerged with more power recently with the resignation of president of football operations Chad Brinker. But any Titans GM will be on the hot seat because owner Amy Adams Strunk fires people like it’s going out of style.
Brett Veach, Chiefs. His three Super Bowl rings serve as pretty solid job security. But the pressure is on Veach to rebuild the Chiefs back into a Super Bowl contender quickly following last year’s 6-11 disappointment.
Duke Tobin, Bengals. Three straight years of no playoffs seems to have coach Zac Taylor on the hot seat. Tobin, on the job since 1999, should be too, but it’s hard to know because owner Mike Brown never fires anyone.
The Eagles traded up to draft wide receiver Makai Lemon one spot ahead of the Steelers in the first round.
The Eagles traded up to draft wide receiver Makai Lemon one spot ahead of the Steelers in the first round.Gene J. Puskar/Associated Press
BREAKING THE RULES
Steelers’ Khan made bad call
Steelers GM Omar Khan may not be under a ton of job pressure since the Steelers have had a winning record in all four of his seasons, and owner Art Rooney also never fires anyone.
But Khan is coming off one of the more embarrassing performances in the NFL Draft from two weeks ago. On draft night, it was revealed that Khan called receiver Makai Lemon on the phone with plans of drafting him at No. 21, but got leapfrogged by the Eagles, who took Lemon at No. 20, forcing the Steelers to pivot (panic?) to offensive lineman Max Iheanachor.
But Khan didn’t just get outmaneuvered for a player, he got caught red-handed breaking the rules. As revealed on X by former Eagles executive Jake Rosenberg, teams can only call draft prospects when they’re not on the clock, “so long as these discussions do not interfere with discussions between a player and the club that is ‘on the clock.’ ”
It appears Khan was trying to do just that, as a video clip of the Eagles’ draft room reveals GM Howie Roseman asking, “Can we not get him on the phone?”
Behind the scenes of #Eagles GM Howie Roseman working to trade up with the #Cowboys to get WR Makai Lemon + how Philly struggled to get him on the phone because the Steelers were talking to him.
"Can we not get him on the phone?!"
(via @Eagles YT) pic.twitter.com/5Ulf2LgHXX
— Ari Meirov (@MySportsUpdate) May 7, 2026
“Discipline or not, it is a strange/rare breach of process for a club to put itself in this position,” Rosenberg tweeted. “It’s very easy to know when you’re on the clock and when the team in front of you trades its pick.”
This may not have been the first time Khan pulled this trick, as video from last year’s draft showed the Steelers on the phone with defensive tackle Derrick Harmon, their eventual pick, while the Buccaneers were on the clock.
An NFL spokesman said only, “The league reviews all aspects of the Draft the week after its conclusion.” Chalk it up as another case of, “Imagine the reaction if the Patriots did this?”
ETC.
Better to be undrafted for some
Once the sting of not getting drafted wears off, some NFL prospects realize that being an undrafted free agent is better than a seventh-round pick.
Seventh-rounders do get higher signing bonuses — $120,000 or more, compared with $50,000 (but usually less) for undrafted players.
But undrafted players often get to pick their destination among a few offers, rather than being forced to play for whomever drafts them. And the top undrafted players get a better safety net in case they don’t make the team.
A seventh-round pick is only guaranteed his signing bonus. But for the top undrafted players, this year’s trend is for teams to guarantee them $247,500 in base salary. I haven’t seen every undrafted rookie contract, but have counted 19 players with this guarantee.
Why $247,500? It’s the season-long practice squad rate ($13,750 per week). As a recruiting pitch, teams are telling the player they will guarantee him the equivalent of a spot on the practice squad for the season, with a chance to make the 53-man roster.
If the undrafted rookie does make the 53, he earns $49,000 per week, just like the drafted players. But that $247,500 guarantee (plus signing bonus) is what he earns in case he gets cut and doesn’t catch on elsewhere. It’s as much as double the guarantee for some seventh-round picks.
At least two undrafted rookies signed for even more than the practice squad salary. The Browns gave defensive end Logan Fano, older brother of their first-round pick, Spencer Fano, a guarantee of $275,000 in base salary and $35,000 signing bonus. The Commanders gave tight end Quentin Moore a guarantee of $250,000 base salary and $20,000 signing bonus.
Butterfly effect
The canceled trade between the Ravens and Raiders for Crosby didn’t just affect those franchises. Buccaneers GM Jason Licht believes it’s the reason Tampa Bay was able to draft pass rusher Rueben Bain with the 15th pick.
Had the trade gone through, the Raiders would have sat at No. 14 and would have had needed a new pass rusher after trading Crosby (they still might, given the condition of his knee). Plus, Raiders GM John Spytek knows Licht well, working with him for nine years in Tampa Bay before getting his current job.
Instead, the Ravens kept the 14th pick, took guard Vega Ioane, and Bain landed in Tampa.
“Spytek, he and I are very close. He was taunting me a little bit, ‘Hey, we’re sitting right in front of you, I know what you need,’” Licht told “The Pat McAfee Show”. “We’re all trying to help each other out here, especially the people that are good friends, so thanks, Spytek.”
The Jaguars plan to put more on the plate of two-way player Travis Hunter in his second season.
The Jaguars plan to put more on the plate of two-way player Travis Hunter in his second season.John Raoux/Associated Press
Two-way Travis
Travis Hunter’s rookie season was little short of disaster. The Jaguars put way too much on his plate — 324 snaps at receiver, 162 at cornerback — and he didn’t make much of an impact at either position before suffering a season-ending knee injury in practice in late October.
But the Jaguars will continue undeterred with the ironman experiment, with GM James Gladstone saying Hunter will play even more in 2027.
“He is set to play both sides of the ball,” Gladstone said on “The Rich Eisen Show”. “I think we can expect to see that corner percentile and count go up. That’s not to say anything impacts his availability and usage on offense. It just means that cornerback usage will increase.”
Super Bowl rotation
The greater Miami area has hosted 11 Super Bowls, tied for New Orleans for most ever, with everything the NFL could want from a host city — tropical weather, great nightlife, and abundant hotels. But Dolphins owner Stephen Ross revealed this past week at a conference that Hard Rock Stadium, which last hosted in February 2020, won’t be getting another game any time soon.
The reason is because the area outside the stadium, which Ross has developed for a F1 grand prix and Miami Open tennis tournament, doesn’t have adequate space for pregame hospitality.
As blasphemous as it may sound, I say good riddance to the Miami Super Bowl experience. The events are spread out too far between Fort Lauderdale, Miami Beach, and downtown Miami, the traffic is miserable, and the stadium is nothing special. The NFL’s new pet Super Bowl cities are Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Atlanta, and Phoenix, with a random sprinkling of New Orleans, Houston, and soon, Nashville.
Extra points
After months of squabbling that got heated at times, the NFL and NFL Referees Association agreed to a seven-year collective bargaining agreement on Friday that runs through the 2032 season. Details are scant but the referees approved the CBA by a 116-4 vote. … The Colts are trying to trade quarterback Anthony Richardson, but he showed up for voluntary offseason workouts, so they’re required to allow him to participate. “Shoot, we’re going to get some good work out of him and try to get him better,” Colts offensive coordinator Jim Bob Cooter said … A handful of undrafted rookies scored recent tryouts thanks to their famous last names. Presbyterian College running back Zach Switzer got a tryout with the Cowboys thanks to his grandfather, former Cowboys coach Barry Switzer. The Eagles and Bears gave a tryout to Northwestern kicker/punter Luke Akers, son of former longtime kicker David Akers. The Bears tried out Illinois center Josh Kreutz, son of team legend Olin Kreutz. And Fresno State quarterback E.J. Warner, son of Kurt, tried out with the Broncos and Chiefs … Jameis Winston is going to be all over your TV and phone screens this summer as a World Cup correspondent for Fox Sports. And if I’m Russell Wilson, it feels like a no-brainer to pick a TV job at CBS over backing up Geno Smith with the Jets … Drake Maye has had a fun spring on the links, attending The Masters with his wife, Ann Michael, and playing in the Truist Championship Pro-Am this past Wednesday at Quail Hollow Club in Charlotte. He was paired with Keegan Bradley and Gary Woodland … The Seahawks announced that 6-foot-5-inch practice squad receiver Tyrone Broden has switched to cornerback, making him the tallest cornerback in NFL history … The Bengals’ defensive additions of Dexter Lawrence, Boye Mafe, Jonathan Allen, Kyle Dugger, and others has quarterback Joe Burrow in a better mood after a grumpy end to 2025. “We need to get better, so it was exciting to see the initiative from everybody in the organization to realize that we’re in this exciting stage,” Burrow said before the Met Gala … In a first for the NFL, the Dolphins made single-game tickets available to the public this past week before the dates and times are set, partially as a test run for other teams … Happy retirement to former Boston College safety Justin Simmons, after eight seasons with the Broncos and one with the Falcons. With 32 career interceptions and four All-Pro selections, Simmons is the most accomplished NFL defensive back in BC history.
Ben Volin can be reached at ben.volin@globe.com.