Scot McCloughan has been a shadowy figure skulking behind the NFL’s scenes for much of his career.
For the past few months, McCloughan has been self-employed, running his own scouting business from a secluded farmhouse in a remote corner of Washington state.
It’s quite a distance from where he was seven years ago, after being named the San Francisco 49ers’ 36-year-old general manager.
Soon, he’ll be thrust back into the spotlight as the new general manager of the Washington Redskins.
Recycled goods may not sound too enticing, however, the risk with McCloughan has absolutely nothing to do with his intellect, football IQ, organization skills or anything related to the gridiron.
It was the 2007 Draft haul of Patrick Willis, Joe Staley, Dashon Goldson, Tarell Brown and the recently-exiled Ray McDonald that contributed to is growing rep as the best talent evaluator in football and his promotion with the Niners. It was alcoholism that led owner Jed York to ask McCloughan to leave the organization two years later.
Between 2010 and the summer of 2014, McCloughan was an executive with the Seahawks, helping to stockpile the late round picks, which carried the Seahawks to a Super Bowl.
Essentially, McCloughan will arrive in Washington, D.C. with the Obama Initiative—turning around the malaise which has permeated throughout the Redskins organization.
He’ll have his work cut out, succeeding where Bruce Allen and Vinny Cerrato failed. McCloughlan and the Redskins are a redemption story that need one another.
Former Seahawks fullback Michael Robinson and current NFL Media analyst Michael Robinson was one of the first to break the news and gushed over how McCloughan operates on his Tuesdy radio appearance.
"He would tell me, 'Mike, I know all you guys can play, but I'm looking to see the chemistry, looking to see how you guys deal with each other,'" Robinson said. "He understands how to build a quality locker room. He's not just looking for your attributes on the field, he's looking for, 'How can I infuse you into this locker room to make it a place where it's conducive to winning?'"
