By PAUL KUHARSKY
NASHVILLE, Tenn. – In adding Dave Gardi to their front office, the Titans effectively replace Chad Brinker with a lesser title and a hire who solidified Mike Borgonzi’s power, as Gardi will report to the general manager.
Brinker left the team on April 28, following a team release stating he wanted to return to a more personnel-focused position in the league. He has not resurfaced anywhere.
The hole created an interesting question as the team didn’t indicate if he would be replaced. The Titans had said the GM job had become too big for one person and that many non-personnel responsibilities needed to be assumed by someone else.
If they didn’t replace Brinker, that structure would have seemed more like as if it was a plan to cover for Ran Carthon in his second year as GM, in 2024, and to protect Borgonzi in his first year, 2025.
In hiring Gardi, though to a lesser title than Brinker’s president of football operations, the Titans show a commitment to the structure. While Borgonzi will oversee Gardi, the newcomer’s job description sounds similar to Brinker’s and should allow the GM to maintain a primary focus on assembling the best personnel for Robert Saleh and his staff.
This increases my confidence in their plan.
Like Borgonzi, Gardi went to Brown University in Providence, Rhode Island. Their football careers there did not overlap.
Gardi spent the last two seasons with the Washington Commanders as Senior Vice President of Football Initiatives, where he had in-game management duties, ensured compliance with league protocols, analyzed officiating trends and served as a key liaison to the league office.
“We’re thrilled to have Dave join us here in Nashville,” Borgonzi said in a statement. “He’s extremely respected around the NFL and brings a plethora of experience and valuable perspective, molded together by two decades at the league office, in addition to time on the club side of operations. Dave will make an immediate impact here with the Titans and we’re excited to welcome him and his family to Tennessee.”
As Senior Vice President of Football Operations with the NFL, Gardi helped construct and develop policies and procedures that ensured competitive balance and integrity of the game, while also overseeing the administration of league rules on game days.
In his earlier days with the league, Gardi advised clubs on matters related to the NFL Collective Bargaining Agreement, including player contracts, salary cap and league policies.
He’s a native of Sayville, N.Y., native, and played quarterback Gardi played quarterback for four years at Brown while earning a BA in political science. He also holds a Doctor of Law degree from Hofstra University.
