The Los Angeles Chargers interviewed NFL chief football administrative officer Dawn Aponte for their general manager position, the team announced Monday. The Chargers are looking to replace Tom Telesco, who was fired in December.
If hired the Chargers would make history appointing the first woman general manager in the history of the league. Aponte has been in her current role as Chief Football Administrative Officer for the NFL since 2017 but has been working within the league since 1991 when she joined the New York Jets as an account intern.
In 2001 Aponte was promoted from her position as a staff accountant to salary cap analyst and pro personnel assistant. She left the Jets in 2006 to work in the league office as the vice president of labor finance with the NFL Management Council.
She also spent time with the Cleveland Browns as vice president of football administration and the Miami Dolphins as senior vice president of football operations working with Bill Parcels
Aponte has a sterling academic background earning a bachelor’s degree from the University of Delaware in accounting, a master’s degree in Finance and Management from Wagner College, and a Juris Doctorate from New York Law School. Aponte is also a member of the New York State Bar.
She was also appointed to a key role in the league’s COVID-19 pandemic action plan in 2020. The NFL’s response has been largely viewed as the most successful in professional sports.
Los Angeles Chargers Plan At GM
Most of the media hype is focused on will the Los Angeles Chargers land Jim Harbaugh as head coach. It was announced today that they are planning a second interview with the Wolverines head coach in the foreseeable future. Chargers brass has gone so far as to say they are open to hiring a coach before finding a GM. The numbers bear that out. The coaching candidate interviews are nearly double that of general managers.
Aponte may be the most qualified candidate for the position, but will that be superseded by a coach like Harbaugh, who will likely want to bring in his own candidate?
