The San Francisco 49ers added Terry McDonough to the list of confirmed interviews for the team's vacant general manager role.
McDonough met with 49ers CEO Jed York on Friday, making him the seventh confirmed candidate for the GM opening.
McDonough is the vice president of player personnel for the Arizona Cardinals. He just finished his fourth season in his current role, where he oversees both college and pro personnel departments in addition to assisting with player contracts.
Take a look at each potential general manager/head coach who has met with the 49ers, in order of when they took the interview.
Buffalo Bills interim head coach (Jan. 4) Update: Hired as the Chargers head coach (Jan. 12)
Green Bay Packers director of football operations (Jan. 5)
Green Bay Packers director of player personnel (Jan. 5)
Minnesota Vikings assistant general manager (Jan. 6)
Atlanta Falcons offensive coordinator (Jan. 6)
New England Patriots offensive coordinator (Jan. 7)
Indianapolis Colts vice president of football operations (Jan. 8)
Washington Redskins offensive coordinator (Jan. 9) Update: Hired as the Los Angeles Rams head coach (Jan. 12)
Carolina Panthers assistant general manager (Jan. 9)
Carolina Panthers defensive coordinator (Jan. 10) Update: Hired as the Buffalo Bills head coach (Jan. 11)
ESPN NFL front office insider and former Philadelphia Eagles director of pro personnel (Jan. 10)
Arizona Cardinals VP of player personnel (Jan. 13)
Seattle Seahawks offensive line coach/assistant head coach (Jan. 15)
Seattle Seahawks co-director of player personnel (Jan. 16)
Seattle Seahawks co-director of player personnel (Jan. 16)
McDonough, a Boston native, comes from a well-known sports family. He is the son of the late, prominent Boston Globe football reporter Will McDonough. His older brother, Sean, is the play-by-play announcer on ESPN's telecasts of "Monday Night Football." Terry's younger brother, Ryan, is the general manager of the NBA's Phoenix Suns.
Terry McDonough has played a major role in Arizona's recent success, especially when it comes to finding gems in the NFL Draft.
Cardinals quarterback Carson Palmer sung his praises in an ESPN.com piece that ran on Sept. 9, 2016. The veteran signal-caller was asked what type of impact McDonough has had on Arizona's plethora of talent.
"Huge. Huge impact. I mean, just look at the late-round picks that he's worked his butt off to get here," said Palmer, before listing the names of cornerback Brandon Williams, receiver John Brown, running back David Johnson and defensive tackle Rodney Gunter.
"He's always asking questions," Palmer continued. "You see him at every single practice, bouncing around from position group to position group. He's just one of those personnel guru guys. He knows what can turn him off and not like a player, and he knows what to look for to excite him about players."
Arizona's star wide receiver Larry Fitzgerald also has the utmost respect for McDonough. Fitzgerald fired off the tweet below prior to Friday's interview.
In addition to his close ties with everyone in Arizona's organization, McDonough has a unique connection with the 49ers. He served as a scouting intern for the franchise in 1989, a year in which San Francisco went 14-2 in the regular season and won Super Bowl XXIV.
McDonough has 25 years of scouting experience in the NFL. He joined Arizona in 2013 as an eastern regional scout before his promotion to vice president of player personnel. Prior to working with the Cardinals, McDonough spent 10 seasons with the Jacksonville Jaguars, including four as the team's director of player personnel. McDonough has also held various scouting roles for the Cleveland Browns and Baltimore Ravens. McDonough began his full-time scouting career in 1992 with the Browns on Bill Belichick's staff.
