Redskins hire Scot McCloughan as general manager

The Washington Redskins were intent on upgrading their front office this offseason, and they now have signed one of the NFL's stronger talent evaluators to be their next general manager.

According to NFL Network, McCloughan will take over the GM role for the Redskins after his successful talent hauls with the San Francisco 49ers and Seattle Seahawks.

McCloughan stepped down last April from his post with the Seahawks because of some personal issues, and did the same previously with the 49ers. He spent five years with the 49ers from 2005-2009 and three with the Seahawks from 2010.

In a piece on ESPN.com, McCloughan's battles with alcohol abuse were well detailed, as was his desire to get back into the NFL this year.

Now McCloughan takes over the scouting department in Washington for a team that desperately needs to reinforce the roster. It's expected that Bruce Allen will move closer to the president role he currently holds and away from the GM hat he has worn the past few seasons. McCloughan’s father, Kent, played for the Oakland Raiders and was on the scouting staff when Allen was with the Raiders from 1995-2003.

McCloughan spoke to the New York Jets, Raiders and Redskins about a position but felt the Redskins were his best landing spot.

The foundation of the 49ers' and Seahawks' strong rosters have McCloughan's fingerprints all over them, as he helped draft players such as Vernon Davis, Frank Gore and Patrick Willis in San Francisco and Earl Thomas, Richard Sherman, Russell Wilson and Bobby Wagner in Seattle.

Allen spoke to the media last week and foreshadowed some changes to the Redskins' organization — including looking at himself and reevaluating how the team approaches the draft and free agency.

"Holding those people accountable, and that includes myself, and making sure that if there is a way we can do things to help this organization win, to get back to the basics of this great franchise, that's what we're going to do," Allen said. "That's my job to help figure out that puzzle."

And it appears that McCloughan, assuming he has overcome some of his demons, will be a big part of that puzzle.