The Washington Commanders and Detroit Lions treated NFL fans to a thrilling NFC Divisional Round game Saturday, and the Las Vegas Raiders are reportedly interested in someone who helped construct both rosters for their vacant general manager role.
ESPN's Adam Schefter reported the AFC West team plans to interview former Lions executive and current Commanders assistant general manager Lance Newmark on Sunday. The Las Vegas G.M. role is open after the club fired Tom Telesco earlier this month.
The Raiders are also in the market for a new head coach after firing Antonio Pierce, which makes Newmark's connection with Lions offensive coordinator Ben Johnson all the more notable:
Johnson and Detroit defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn are two of the top candidates during the ongoing coaching carousel, and Schefter also highlighted Newmark's relationship with the two potential future head coaches.
While hiring him as G.M. could give the team an inside lane in the Johnson sweepstakes in particular considering the Detroit O.C. has also been linked to the Chicago Bears, there is also something to be said about establishing immediate familiarity between the two positions.
This offseason is something of a reset for the Raiders, and hiring a new head coach and general manager will put them on the same timeline and inevitably link them together as their tenures progress. Having a relationship that is already established between Newmark and Johnson or Glenn should lead to even more chemistry as they build the roster.
Yet Las Vegas may have competition for Newmark as well.
The New York Jets completed an interview with him for their G.M. spot earlier this season, indicating he is a name on the radar of multiple teams around the league.
Newmark began his NFL career as a staff assistant on the San Diego Chargers before joining the Lions for a 26-year tenure that saw him climb within the organization from area scout to national scout to director of college scouting all the way to senior director of player personnel.
While Detroit saw its Super Bowl hopes come to an end Saturday, it still went 15-2 and earned the NFC's No. 1 seed and the first-round bye that comes with it. It also reached the NFC Championship Game last season.
The 2024 season was Newmark's first with the Commanders as the assistant general manager.
All Washington did was select Jayden Daniels with the No. 2 overall pick and go from a team that hadn't finished with a winning record since 2016 into a 12-5 playoff squad that is now just one win away from reaching the Super Bowl.
The future is bright in both Detroit and Washington, and the Raiders have clearly taken notice of the roster construction for both if they are interviewing Newmark.
