Brian Xanders is in his seventh season with the Los Angeles Rams. Xanders works with all areas of the club's player personnel department, including college scouting, pro personnel, coaching research, and game management/strategy.
The 2023 season marks Xanders' 30th year in the NFL working in a variety of player personnel, scouting, football operations and coaching staff roles during his time at four different teams (Los Angeles, Detroit, Denver and Atlanta). He has direct experience in player evaluations with the last 28 NFL Draft classes and 22 free agency periods.
Xanders joined the Rams organization in 2017, following a four year stint with the Detroit Lions.
Prior to his Lions' tenure, he served four seasons with the Denver Broncos as the team's general manager.
During his tenure as the Broncos' general manager, he engineered the personnel transformation, where 85 percent of the team's roster was turned over through the draft, free agency or re-signed by the club. The Broncos executed high-producing NFL Draft classes from 2009-12, with twenty-seven players earning careers of 4+ years, and there were 22 primary starters (1+ year) on NFL teams. The group included six Pro Bowl players with 20 total appearances: LB Von Miller, WR Demaryius Thomas, CB Chris Harris, DT Malik Jackson, TE Julius Thomas and OG Zane Beadles. Other long-term core starters included WR Eric Decker, DT Derek Wolfe, LB Danny Trevathan, T Orlando Franklin, T Mike Remmers and DE Robert Ayers. There were also eight other Pro Bowl players who were acquired, signed or extended during his tenure: QB Peyton Manning, SS Brian Dawkins, WR Brandon Lloyd, RB Willis McGahee, CB Champ Bailey, DE Elvis Dumervil, WR Brandon Marshall, and OT Ryan Clady. Xanders also supervised the day-to-day operations of the Broncos' college scouting, pro scouting, labor operations/salary cap, equipment, medical, video, football systems and football operations departments. He served on the NFL College Advisory, NFL Combine Selection and the NFL Statistics Committees. Xanders was originally hired by Denver as assistant general manager in 2008.
Before joining the Broncos, Xanders worked 14 seasons (1994- 2008) with the Atlanta Falcons in various scouting, player personnel, football operations, coaching staff (defense/offense/ ST) and technology/systems roles. He was a member of the Falcons' defensive coaching staff on their 1998 team that became the first in franchise history to earn a Super Bowl appearance (XXXIII). Xanders was selected by the Falcons to attend Stanford University's NFL Program for Managers in 2005 and has given presentations at several universities on NFL player personnel issues.
A former linebacker who played for Bobby Bowden at Florida State University from 1989-92, Xanders was a member of four bowl-winning teams with the Seminoles that had a 42-7 combined record. He was an All-Atlantic Coast Conference academic team selection and graduated from FSU with a master's degree in business administration and a bachelor's degree in business management.
Xanders, Amy, Reid and Mary Claire and reside in Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida.
