Thomas Dimitroff Thomas George Dimitroff , Jr . ( born 1966 ) is the current general manager for the Atlanta Falcons of the National Football League . Before joining the Falcons in 2008 , Dimitroff was with the New England Patriots for six years . He joined the Patriots in 2002 as a national scout and then was named director of college scouting a year later . Early years . Dimitroff grew up in Canada , where his father , Tom Dimitroff , Sr . was a football coach with the Ottawa Rough Riders , Hamilton Tiger - Cats , and the University of Guelph in Ontario . In 1983 , Dimitroff served as an equipment manager for the Guelph football team . From 1985 – 1990 , he played a defensive back for the Gryphons football team and was team captain from 1988 – 1990 . Dimitroff graduated from Guelph with a Bachelor of Arts degree in 1990 . His brother Randy played quarterback for Guelph from 1982 – 1985 and the two were teammates in 1985 . Professional career . Early career . After graduating from college , Dimitroff joined the Saskatchewan Roughriders of the Canadian Football League as their Canadian scouting coordinator , but worked in many areas of the team ' s operations for the two seasons he was there . In 1992 , he worked in the Dallas , Texas office of the World League of American Football , tracking NFL player transactions and rosters . When the league folded later that year , Dimitroff moved to Japan , where he helped coach a friend ' s corporate American football team . Dimitroff then considered leaving the football world for business , but instead he went back to the United States , where he joined the Cleveland Browns ' grounds crew ; his father was a scout for the team at the time . There he worked under then - head coach Bill Belichick and then - pro personnel assistant Scott Pioli . At the same time , he worked as a part - time scout for the Kansas City Chiefs in 1993 . In 1994 , Dimitroff became a full - time area scout for the Detroit Lions , a position he held through 1997 . He then held a similar college scouting position with the Browns from 1998 through 2001 . New England Patriots . In 2002 , Dimitroff re - joined Belichick and Pioli with the New England Patriots as a national scout . He spent the season reporting on the nation ' s top prospects before being promoted to director of college scouting on June 11 , 2003 . He oversaw the team ' s college scouting operations through the 2007 season . Atlanta Falcons . After six seasons with the Patriots , Dimitroff was hired as the Falcons ' general manager on January 13 , 2008 . In the 2008 NFL Draft , Dimitroff and the Falcons drafted both quarterback Matt Ryan and offensive lineman Sam Baker in the first round . The Falcons also signed free agent running back Michael Turner from the San Diego Chargers , who was selected to the 2009 Pro Bowl in his first year with the team . The Falcons , under first - year head coach Mike Smith , reached the playoffs in 2008 for the first time in four seasons , but lost to the Arizona Cardinals in the opening round . Soon after , Sporting News named Dimitroff their 2008 NFL Executive of the Year . The Falcons finished 9 – 7 in 2009 , missing the playoffs . In 2010 , the Falcons finished 13 – 3 , earning homefield advantage for the duration of the playoffs ; however , they lost to the Green Bay Packers in the Divisional round . He was named the 2010 NFL Executive of the Year by the Sporting News , his second time receiving the award .