As a young boy, Jacksonville Jaguars Director of Player Personnel Terry McDonough followed his father to New England Patriots events.
His father, Will McDonough, was a reporter and columnist with The Boston Globe and also worked at CBS Sports and NBC Sports.
“I’ve been around the NFL my whole life. My dad was a sports writer for the Boston Globe who covered the Patriots and as a kid I used to go with him to training camp. From an early age, I always knew I wanted to (work in the NFL),” said McDonough.
The start of his scouting career received a boost when he interned with the San Francisco 49ers in 1989. The 49ers won the Super Bowl 55-10 against the Denver Broncos that season.
“The 49ers had me write a lot of college reports that year. The director of college scouting at the time, Tony Razzano, he and Bill Walsh built the early 49ers dynasty, told me I had a lot of talent at it,” McDonough said.
“He gave me confidence. Here is a guy who helped build a team that won a bunch of Super Bowls and he’s telling me I could be good at it,” he said.
That confidence has guided him through nearly 23 years of working in the NFL. He was named director of player personnel in 2009 by Jaguars General Manager Gene Smith.
McDonough spends a majority of 11 months each year on the road evaluating college and free agent players. He also manages the scouting staff and continues to evaluate players after they make the Jaguars’ roster, helping to grade players after each practice and game.
The travel comes with some rewards. The hotel stays at Marriott properties allowed him to redeem points for vacations to the company’s hotel in Myrtle Beach, S.C., with the family during the one month a year staff has off.
The days and hours might be long, but McDonough is thankful for an occupation he loves. He smiles when he talks about his family and football, but not when he refers to the hardest part of the job.
“Losing.”
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