In some cases, it is a dramatic change in responsibility. In others, it is merely a change of scenery.
Howie Roseman won't be sitting in a corner, watching as the primary decision-makers for the Philadelphia Eagles call the shots during the NFL Draft. Roseman will be among those making the decisions.
The same goes for Trent Baalke in San Francisco, and Buddy Nix in Buffalo.
John Schneider no longer will be in the support role he previously filled with the Green Bay Packers. He's going to be the new man in charge of the Seattle Seahawks' draft.
Mike Holmgren, Tom Heckert and Bruce Allen have plenty of experience running drafts. But this year they'll be doing so from new locations: Holmgren and Heckert in Cleveland, Allen in Washington.
After another offseason of shakeups involving front offices, coaching staffs, or both, there are six impacted teams that will command some additional attention for what they do during the three-day selection process that begins Thursday (starting at 7 p.m. ET).
Here is a closer look at them, in the order of their choices:
Washington Redskins
The Redskins have been touted as making two of their best hires in a long time in Allen, their new general manager, and Mike Shanahan, their new coach. They have already made huge headlines by trading with NFC East rival Philadelphia for quarterback Donovan McNabb. Now, all eyes are on them to see what they might do with disgruntled defensive tackle Albert Haynesworth.
With only four picks (including three on Saturday), the Redskins could try to make a deal to add to that total. There also is plenty of speculation about what they might do with the fourth overall choice: Use it for an offensive tackle, such as Russell Okung of Oklahoma State? Use it for a quarterback, such as Jimmy Clausen of Notre Dame or (presuming they would need to trade their way to the top of the draft) Sam Bradford of Oklahoma?
Seattle Seahawks
Schneider, a former player-personnel executive with the Packers, has two first-round picks that will likely go a long way toward determining the success of the new regime that he and coach Pete Carroll were hired to lead. With the sixth and 14th overall choices, the Seahawks should be in position to address at least two of the many pressing needs reflected by their 9-23 record over the past two seasons. The positions that will be under the strongest consideration figure to be offensive tackle, defensive end, running back, and safety. Of course, coming from Green Bay, Schneider has been well schooled on the art of trading down, and has told reporters that he is very willing to do so if the right deal or deals come along.
Cleveland Browns
Holmgren, the Browns' new president, and Heckert, their new GM, have 10 picks with which to continue their efforts to make this struggling franchise relevant again. With the seventh overall pick, they find themselves possibly just out of range of one of the truly elite players in the draft. That could lead to their trading to the top spot to land Bradford, giving them the franchise quarterback of the future to groom while getting by this season with Jake Delhomme as their starter. They also could do the same by staying put and taking Clausen if he's still there. Otherwise, the Browns are probably going to be giving strong consideration to a defensive back, such as Tennessee safety Eric Berry or Florida cornerback Joe Haden.
Buffalo Bills
The Bills promoted Nix, their former national scout, to GM and hired Chan Gailey as their new coach to lead the monumental task of ending a 10-year playoff drought. They have multiple desperate needs, beginning at quarterback. They could take one at No. 9, if Clausen is still on the board. They also are likely to try and trade down and get one later in the first round. Offensive tackle is another priority, although the Bills might not love the idea of taking what probably will be the third-best player at the position (after Okung and Trent Williams of Oklahoma) at such a high spot. Another consideration is finding players who will fit their new 3-4 defensive scheme.
San Francisco 49ers
Baalke, the 49ers' director of player-personnel, found himself with a much larger role than he could have ever imagined for this week after last month's sudden departure of GM Scott McCloughan. Although Baalke has publicly stressed that there would be no major changes to the team's philosophical approach, there has been speculation that some of his opinions on talent matters differ from McCloughan's.
Baalke already has drawn attention by trading a fifth-round choice to the Miami Dolphins to acquire wide receiver/return specialist Ted Ginn Jr. Like their NFC West rivals in Seattle, the Niners have two first-round picks (13th and 17th overall). If they hang onto them, they will likely look to upgrade their offensive line and perhaps address their secondary.
Philadelphia Eagles
When Roseman joined the Eagles 10 years ago as a 24-year-old salary-cap adviser, he made a point of being a good learner. During each draft, he would take notes while manning the telephone and relaying each pick to the team representative in New York who turned in the selection card. Earlier this year, after Heckert left Philadelphia to join the Browns, Roseman moved up to GM. And he has had a great deal of influence on the moves being made by a team whose football decisions once were tightly controlled by coach Andy Reid. Roseman clearly had a big hand in the McNabb trade, as well as in this week's three-day deal that saw linebacker Ernie Sims go from the Lions to the Eagles. He also will have a major say in what the Eagles do with the 24th overall pick (defensive end and safety are considered priorities) and their other choices.
