When a new GM takes over, we try to get a feel for his personality and leadership style by asking those who know him, anonymously, to give us their respective takes. We’ve done that previously this cycle with Tennessee’s Mike Borgonzi, and in previous years with other hires. This week, our focus turns to new Raiders chief John Spytek, and despite perhaps the busiest week of the year when it comes to all-star play, we had several responses.

Before we get started, my own experience with John has been A+. I dealt with him when his Bucs won the 2020 Best Draft Award (the Wirfs/Winfield draft), and it seemed to me like Bucs GM Jason Licht wanted John to handle much of it, mainly because Jason believed in his work. Both Jason and John were professional and humbled, even though we had to work with really weird conditions (that year, the combine was canceled, so it was the only online ITL Seminar we’ve ever conducted). Check it out here, if you’re interested. You’ll hear John discuss the vagaries of having a draft from home, which I think is pretty interesting. 

But that’s enough from me. One source I reached in Mobile said the Raiders made a great choice because he’s “a hands-off manager” who “never micromanages” and “trusts them to do their jobs.” He also truly values what his scouts tell him, my friend told me.

Here are some other comments from people who’ve worked alongside John.

  • “Unique, avant-garde leadership approach. Not a micro manager. Will build through the draft and collect pieces in free agency.”
  • “He’s a very good listener. His door is always open to come in and talk about any concerns you may have. He does a good job stepping back and looking at the big picture. He’s strong in his convictions. He does a good job articulating what he sees.”
  • “John is a really good overall person and you know what you are getting with him each day, as he always has the same positive demeanor. He’s very appreciative and loyal to those around him. A very good evaluator who sees the big picture for players and what roles they can bring.”  

Given the nature of his leadership, based on what we were told about him, we’d expect him to make sure the Raiders staff has plenty of strong evaluators who can do their jobs without a lot of oversight. Generally speaking, that sounds like he’ll value veterans over the youth-is-king trend currently in fashion with a lot of teams. The Raiders did pretty good last April (they narrowly missed being a finalist for the Best Draft Award) and have plenty of holdovers from the previous regime that have lots of seasoning. That gives Spytek a real boost as he takes over and learns his staff. 

For more about front offices, hiring and the NFL offseason, make sure to read the Friday Wrap, which comes out this evening. You can register for it here.