Mel Kiper, Jr. has to be wondering why his phone isn't ringing.
After the New York Jets hired Joe Douglas as their general manager on Friday night, ESPN draft analyst Todd McShay told, uh, ESPN he's a candidate to join Douglas's cabinet.
“Joe is considering multiple options and I’m one of the options,” McShay told Rich Cimini of ESPN.
Another one of those options, according to Cimini, is Phil Savage. Savage would be a more conventional choice to join an NFL front office. A former Alabama graduate assistant and TCU tight ends coach, Savage rose the ranks as a scout for the Cleveland Browns/Baltimore Ravens, eventually becoming the Ravens' director of player personnel (where he worked with Douglas) and the new Browns' GM from 2005-08. Perhaps best known for his 6-year run as executive director of the Senior Bowl, Savage left the organization to become GM of the AAF's Arizona Hotshots.
McShay, though, has never worked in an NFL organization. A former Richmond quarterback (and teammate of new Jets GM Douglas), McShay worked for Scouts, Inc., and, since 2006, at ESPN. Though he has no experience in an NFL front office, McShay's resume is literally on tape, as he's spent the last 13 years analyzing draft prospects for the Worldwide Leader.
Should he join the Douglas' staff, McShay would be the latest in a growing trend of NFL teams hiring executives straight from the broadcast booth. The San Francisco 49ers hired John Lynch away from FOX to become their GM despite no personnel or coaching experience, and the Oakland Raiders hired Mike Mayock as their GM after spending 18 years in a variety of TV roles, most prominently as NFL Network's lead draft analyst.
In the NBA, Steve Kerr left TNT to become the Phoenix Suns' GM and, later, left TNT again to become the Golden State Warriors' head coach, despite having no prior experience in either role.
As always, stay tuned to The Scoop for the latest.