Who is Ran Carthon: New Tennessee Titans GM
The Tennessee Titans, according to multiple reports, are hiring San Francisco 49ers director of pro personnel Ran Carthon to replace Jon Robinson as the franchise's general manager. Carthon has worked for the 49ers as their director of pro personnel since 2017. Prior to his time in San Francisco, Carthon was the director of player personnel […]
The Tennessee Titans, according to multiple reports, are hiring San Francisco 49ers director of pro personnel Ran Carthon to replace Jon Robinson as the franchise's general manager.
Carthon has worked for the 49ers as their director of pro personnel since 2017. Prior to his time in San Francisco, Carthon was the director of player personnel for the St. Louis/Los Angeles Rams for five seasons. He was a scout for the Atlanta Falcons for four seasons before landing in Los Angeles.
Before his time in NFL front offices, Carthon was a player. He spent three seasons in the NFL. Most of that time was spent with the Indianapolis Colts where he was teammates with Peyton Manning (he also had brief stints with the Dallas Cowboys and Detroit Lions).
Carthon played college football at Florida so naturally, he gave Peyton a hard time about the Tennessee Vols.
At one point during their time together in Indy, Carthon attempted to make a bet on the Florida/Tennessee game with Peyton.
And apparently, Peyton wasn't confident the Vols could beat the Gators. Because, according to Carthon, he refused the terms of the bet.
"I remember my second year, I asked him if he wanted to make a bet on the game," said Carthon to Only Gators in 2012. "He said yeah and asked what I wanted to do. I said, ‘If Tennessee loses, then you have to wear a Florida shirt during your interviews.’ He’s like, ‘Hell no, I will never do that.’ We always found comedic ways to come up with a bet on the game."
"One year I remember it was a night game, probably in 2006 but I’m not sure. I remember walking down the hallway and it was past curfew. I knocked on his door, he opened it, and I just stood there in his doorway and sang the fight song. He closed the door in my face and I stood there until I was done singing the fight song.”
That was a good call by Peyton considering those were the Tim Tebow years at Florida.
Ran Carthon has been preparing since childhood to be a general manager
Despite playing college football at Florida and playing three seasons in the NFL, Carthon was always preparing, perhaps unknowingly, to work in an NFL front office.
Carthon, who grew up in Key West and played high school football at Key West High School, told the Associated Press early last year that he would try to predict who each NFL team would draft as a kid.
“I’ve always just been a fan of the draft, especially when I was younger,” said Carthon. “I used to record every draft and buy all the draft magazines and follow along. I didn’t realize what I was doing at the time. I was just more so trying to predict which team was going to take which player.”
Carthon's dad, Maurice (who won two Super Bowls with the New York Giants as a player), saw the front-office potential in his son as well.
“I always felt like he was going to go that direction,” said Maurice to Associated Press last year. “I’ve enjoyed watching him do that. I thought it was something that he really wanted to do and he got after it. I didn’t have much to do with that. It’s him and his want to.”
Carthon, who has his roots in the Bill Parcells scouting/coaching system thanks to his dad, seems like a guy who is the total package when it comes to being a general manager. He has experience from his playing days, he's served in various front-office roles, and he's even been selected twice to participate in the NFL Career Development Symposium at the Wharton School of Business.
It doesn't get more qualified than that.
Obviously, time will tell how this hire pans out for the Titans in the coming years, but fans should be thrilled that this was the hire made by Tennessee.
Featured image via Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports
