NFL Notes: General Managers, Broncos, Colts, Packers, Redskins

General Managers

Albert Breer of NFL Media wonders why we don’t see more retread general managers secure second opportunities like head coaches have.

Breer lists former Chiefs GM Scott Pioli, former Jets GM Mike Tannenbaum, former Broncos GM Brian Xanders and former 49ers GM Scot McCloughan as executives that have had success in the past, but haven’t received a second opportunity to run an NFL team.

Broncos

• WR Emmanuel Sanders (concussion) returned to practice on Friday. (Mike Klis)
• TE Julius Thomas was at practice, but he was without his helmet and wasn’t participating in the session. (Mike Klis)

Colts

• HC Chuck Pagano announced that OT Gosder Cherilus, CB Greg Toler, and TE Dwayne Allen are all out for Sunday’s game. (Mike Chappell)

Packers

• The Packers have ruled out TE Brandon Bostick for Week 12’s game against the Vikings. (Paul Imig)

Redskins

HC Jay Gruden offered an honest assessment of QB Robert Griffin III this week.

“His biggest thing, he’s been coddled for so long. It’s not a negative, he’s just been so good, he just hasn’t had a lot of negative publicity,” Gruden told Albert Breer of NFL Media. “Everybody’s loved him. Some adversity is striking hard at him now, and how he reacts to that off the field, his mental state of mind, how it affects his confidence, hopefully it’s not in a negative way. I read Drew Brees said after a couple interceptions, ‘I’m never gonna lose confidence, I’m gonna come out firing all the time.‘ “

He’s auditioned long enough,” Gruden said. “Clock’s ticking. He’s gotta play. We’ll see. … We want Robert to excel, we really do. But the last two games, it hasn’t been very good, anywhere. We gotta play better around him. And the biggest thing for us as play-callers, and for him, we just have to come together and jell with plays he’s comfortable with. That takes time. But we don’t have a lot of time.“