The general manager role may just be the toughest role in professional sports – with influence, power, and billions of dollars at stake, every move is scrutinized by players, fans, owners, and the media relentlessly.
Photo: Trevor Ruszkowski/USA TODAY SportsOnlinebetting.com have analyzed the performance of hundreds of GMs across the four major North American professional leagues—Major League Baseball, the National Football League, the National Basketball Association, and the National Hockey League.
Crunching the numbers on winning improvement by each GM and cross-referencing their cost-per-win index, the sports analysts can reveal the best – and worst GMs in the world of sports.
The 10 Worst GMs in US Sports
Dave Gettleman of the New York Giants and Jets’ Joe Douglas find themselves at the bottom of the bottom of the table and as the worst GMs with a low score of 211.5 and 211.8.
Gettleman’s his time with the Giant will be remembered mostly for questionable drafting choice, a lack of progression, and 14 wins over three seasons. Joe Douglas of the Jets has been in post since 2019 and results have been below-average to bad, maxing out at seven wins in 2019 and falling to two wins in 2020.
| General Manager | League | Team | Winning Improvement | Cost per win Index | Final Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dave Gettleman | NFL | New York Giants | 71.7 | 68.1 | 211.5 |
| Brian Wright | NBA | San Antonio Spurs | 67.0 | 77.8 | 211.8 |
| Joe Douglas | NFL | New York Jets | 75.8 | 64.8 | 216.4 |
| Steve Yzerman | NHL | Detroit Red Wings | 75.0 | 76.4 | 226.5 |
| Travis Schlenk | NBA | Atlanta Hawks | 74.3 | 78.7 | 227.4 |
| Al Avila | MLB | Detroit Tigers | 77.5 | 75.7 | 230.6 |
| Tommy Sheppard | NBA | Washington Wizards | 79.9 | 76.0 | 235.8 |
| Ben Cherington | MLB | Pittsburgh Pirates | 75.7 | 85.5 | 236.9 |
| Ryan Pace | NFL | Chicago Bears | 81.8 | 77.1 | 240.7 |
| Chris Ballard | NFL | Indianapolis Colts | 82.7 | 79.5 | 244.9 |
The Top 10 GMs in US Sports
Despite losing his opening game, Les Snead of defending champions LA Ram’s is the number one best GM with a final score of 668.8, followed by two NBA GMs – Jones from the Suns and 76ers’ Elton Brand in positions two and three.
Half of the top 10 GMs come from the NBA, and three each from the NFL and NHL.
| General Manager | League | Team | Winning Improvement | Cost per win Index | Final Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Les Snead | NFL | Los Angeles Rams | 293.3 | 82.1 | 668.8 |
| James Jones | NBA | Phoenix Suns | 211.1 | 85.5 | 507.8 |
| Elton Brand | NBA | Philadelphia 76ers | 195.1 | 82.6 | 472.8 |
| Jon Robinson | NFL | Tennessee Titans | 176.6 | 82.5 | 435.8 |
| Rob Pelinka | NBA | Los Angeles Lakers | 173.5 | 80.8 | 427.7 |
| Bob Myers | NBA | Golden State Warriors | 162.9 | 82.6 | 408.4 |
| Jon Horst | NBA | Milwaukee Bucks | 160.2 | 83.3 | 403.8 |
| Mickey Loomis | NFL | New Orleans Saints | 144.1 | 82.8 | 371.0 |
| Don Waddell | NHL | Carolina Hurricanes | 139.7 | 83.1 | 362.4 |
| Doug Armstrong | NHL | St. Louis Blues | 136.9 | 81.7 | 355.5 |
Full Ranking
| Position | General Manager | League | Team | Winning Improvement | Cost per win Index | Final Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Les Snead | NFL | Los Angeles Rams | 293.3 | 82.1 | 668.8 |
| 2 | James Jones | NBA | Phoenix Suns | 211.1 | 85.5 | 507.8 |
| 3 | Elton Brand | NBA | Philadelphia 76ers | 195.1 | 82.6 | 472.8 |
| 4 | Jon Robinson | NFL | Tennessee Titans | 176.6 | 82.5 | 435.8 |
| 5 | Rob Pelinka | NBA | Los Angeles Lakers | 173.5 | 80.8 | 427.7 |
| 6 | Bob Myers | NBA | Golden State Warriors | 162.9 | 82.6 | 408.4 |
| 7 | Jon Horst | NBA | Milwaukee Bucks | 160.2 | 83.3 | 403.8 |
| 8 | Mickey Loomis | NFL | New Orleans Saints | 144.1 | 82.8 | 371.0 |
| 9 | Don Waddell | NHL | Carolina Hurricanes | 139.7 | 83.1 | 362.4 |
| 10 | Doug Armstrong | NHL | St. Louis Blues | 136.9 | 81.7 | 355.5 |
| 11 | Bill Belichick | NFL | New England Patriots | 131.6 | 86.4 | 349.5 |
| 12 | Brandon Beane | NFL | Buffalo Bills | 131.3 | 83.5 | 346.1 |
| 13 | Brett Veach | NFL | Kansas City Chiefs | 130.2 | 85.7 | 346.0 |
| 14 | Jason Licht | NFL | Tampa Bay Buccaneers | 133.3 | 77.3 | 344.0 |
| 15 | Ken Holland | NHL | Edmonton Oilers | 131.1 | 80.9 | 343.2 |
| 16 | David Poile | NHL | Nashville Predators | 128.5 | 81.9 | 338.8 |
| 17 | Eric DeCosta | NFL | Baltimore Ravens | 126.2 | 85.1 | 337.5 |
| 18 | Kyle Dubas | NHL | Toronto Maple Leafs | 127.6 | 79.5 | 334.6 |
| 19 | Mike Mayock | NFL | Las Vegas Raiders | 126.6 | 79.7 | 332.8 |
| 20 | Thad Levine | MLB | Minnesota Twins | 123.5 | 82.3 | 329.4 |
| 21 | Jerry Jones | NFL | Dallas Cowboys | 121.7 | 81.7 | 325.1 |
| 22 | Scott Harris | MLB | San Francisco Giants | 121.4 | 80.6 | 323.5 |
| 23 | Alex Anthopoulos | MLB | Atlanta Braves | 120.7 | 81.7 | 323.0 |
| 24 | John Schneider | NFL | Seattle Seahawks | 119.2 | 83.9 | 322.3 |
| 25 | Zachary Kleiman | NBA | Memphis Grizzlies | 117.5 | 83.7 | 318.7 |
| 26 | Brian Gutekunst | NFL | Green Bay Packers | 116.3 | 84.6 | 317.2 |
| 27 | Jarmo Kekäläinen | NHL | Columbus Blue Jackets | 117.3 | 80.5 | 315.1 |
| 28 | Justin Zanik | NBA | Utah Jazz | 115.1 | 83.2 | 313.3 |
| 29 | Kevin Colbert | NFL | Pittsburgh Steelers | 114.2 | 84.0 | 312.4 |
| 30 | Kevin Cheveldayoff | NHL | Winnipeg Jets | 114.9 | 81.3 | 311.1 |
| 31 | Mike Rizzo | MLB | Washington Nationals | 116.2 | 78.3 | 310.6 |
| 32 | Mike Chernoff | MLB | Cleveland Guardians | 111.4 | 87.1 | 309.9 |
| 33 | Sam Presti | NBA | Oklahoma City Thunder | 112.9 | 82.1 | 307.9 |
| 34 | Bill Guerin | NHL | Minnesota Wild | 112.6 | 81.9 | 307.1 |
| 35 | Brad Treliving | NHL | Calgary Flames | 112.6 | 80.1 | 305.3 |
| 36 | Steve Keim | NFL | Arizona Cardinals | 111.3 | 81.0 | 303.6 |
| 37 | Bobby Webster | NBA | Toronto Raptors | 109.9 | 83.3 | 303.1 |
| 38 | Rick Spielman | NFL | Minnesota Vikings | 111.2 | 79.3 | 301.6 |
| 39 | Nick Krall | MLB | Cincinnati Reds | 111.0 | 79.5 | 301.4 |
| 40 | Joe Sakic | NHL | Colorado Avalanche | 109.4 | 81.8 | 300.5 |
| 41 | Jerry Dipoto | MLB | Seattle Mariners | 109.2 | 81.5 | 299.9 |
| 42 | Chris Grier | NFL | Miami Dolphins | 109.6 | 80.4 | 299.6 |
| 43 | Doug Wilson | NHL | San Jose Sharks | 109.1 | 80.6 | 298.8 |
| 44 | John Hammond | NBA | Orlando Magic | 112.3 | 73.7 | 298.4 |
| 45 | Brian MacLellan | NHL | Washington Capitals | 108.2 | 81.1 | 297.4 |
| 46 | Lou Lamoriello | NHL | New York Islanders | 108.9 | 79.7 | 297.4 |
| 47 | Kim Ng | MLB | Miami Marlins | 103.7 | 89.4 | 296.9 |
| 48 | Jim Nill | NHL | Dallas Stars | 107.1 | 79.9 | 294.1 |
| 49 | Julien BriseBois | NHL | Tampa Bay Lightning | 104.3 | 80.9 | 289.4 |
| 50 | Mike Hazen | MLB | Arizona Diamondbacks | 102.0 | 83.8 | 287.8 |
| 51 | Ross Atkins | MLB | Toronto Blue Jays | 103.4 | 79.4 | 286.3 |
| 52 | David Forst | MLB | Oakland Athletics | 98.6 | 88.8 | 286.0 |
| 53 | Sean Marks | NBA | Brooklyn Nets | 103.1 | 76.7 | 282.9 |
| 54 | Don Sweeney | NHL | Boston Bruins | 98.2 | 82.4 | 278.8 |
| 55 | John Lynch | NFL | San Francisco 49ers | 98.9 | 79.2 | 276.9 |
| 56 | Brian Cashman | MLB | New York Yankees | 102.8 | 67.7 | 273.2 |
| 57 | Mitch Kupchak | NBA | Charlotte Hornets | 96.1 | 80.7 | 272.8 |
| 58 | James Click | MLB | Houston Astros | 98.6 | 75.3 | 272.6 |
| 59 | Mike Girsch | MLB | St. Louis Cardinals | 97.0 | 77.7 | 271.7 |
| 60 | A.J. Preller | MLB | San Diego Padres | 95.1 | 79.6 | 269.9 |
| 61 | Chuck Fletcher | NHL | Philadelphia Flyers | 95.1 | 78.2 | 268.5 |
| 62 | Howie Roseman | NFL | Philadelphia Eagles | 93.0 | 81.0 | 267.0 |
| 63 | Trajan Langdon | NBA | New Orleans Pelicans | 92.6 | 76.5 | 261.6 |
| 64 | Michael Winger | NBA | Los Angeles Clippers | 89.8 | 81.1 | 260.7 |
| 65 | Brian O’Halloran | MLB | Boston Red Sox | 91.6 | 75.1 | 258.4 |
| 66 | Rick Hahn | MLB | Chicago White Sox | 88.8 | 80.2 | 257.8 |
| 67 | Mike Brown | NFL | Cincinnati Bengals | 90.0 | 75.8 | 255.9 |
| 68 | Chad Buchanan | NBA | Indiana Pacers | 87.5 | 79.8 | 254.7 |
| 69 | Tom Telesco | NFL | Los Angeles Chargers | 86.0 | 78.3 | 250.3 |
| 70 | Andy Elisburg | NBA | Miami Heat | 85.0 | 80.1 | 250.0 |
| 71 | Rob Blake | NHL | Los Angeles Kings | 84.9 | 79.5 | 249.4 |
| 72 | Pierre Dorion | NHL | Ottawa Senators | 83.7 | 80.6 | 248.1 |
| 73 | Mike Elias | MLB | Baltimore Orioles | 78.3 | 88.6 | 245.3 |
| 74 | Chris Ballard | NFL | Indianapolis Colts | 82.7 | 79.5 | 244.9 |
| 75 | Ryan Pace | NFL | Chicago Bears | 81.8 | 77.1 | 240.7 |
| 76 | Ben Cherington | MLB | Pittsburgh Pirates | 75.7 | 85.5 | 236.9 |
| 77 | Tommy Sheppard | NBA | Washington Wizards | 79.9 | 76.0 | 235.8 |
| 78 | Al Avila | MLB | Detroit Tigers | 77.5 | 75.7 | 230.6 |
| 79 | Travis Schlenk | NBA | Atlanta Hawks | 74.3 | 78.7 | 227.4 |
| 80 | Steve Yzerman | NHL | Detroit Red Wings | 75.0 | 76.4 | 226.5 |
| 81 | Joe Douglas | NFL | New York Jets | 75.8 | 64.8 | 216.4 |
| 82 | Brian Wright | NBA | San Antonio Spurs | 67.0 | 77.8 | 211.8 |
| 83 | Dave Gettleman | NFL | New York Giants | 71.7 | 68.1 | 211.5 |
Methodology
OnlineBetting.com’s experts compared the win/loss percentage of the team’s current GM with the previous five years before his tenure.
Calculating the financial performance of GMs across different sports is far more complicated. The finances of the NFL, NHL, and NBA are largely controlled by a salary cap in each sport, with some flexibility in the NBA. In the MLB there is a salary figure over which teams must pay a luxury tax on top of any money they spend on paying players.
This diversity means it’s hard to evaluate teams from different sports, particularly where some sports teams are encouraged and in fact, required to pay a minimum amount to players (in the NFL teams must spend at least 95% of the salary cap), and in others, they are incredibly frugal and try to spend as little as possible (take for example the Baltimore Orioles who will spend less than $50mil for their total payroll in 2022, less than 20% of the top spending MLB team, the Los Angeles Dodgers).
With this in mind: teams were measured by how much they spent as a percentage of their league’s average spend, divided by their win/loss percentage.
This gives us a reliable and versatile metric that can be used to evaluate the effective spending of a GM in any major sport.
Featured Image: Trevor Ruszkowski/USA TODAY Sports
