Ask any successful sports team about the secret to its success, and chances are you’ll hear about teamwork, practice, talent, preparation – and good leadership. For some of the most successful sports teams of the last decade, it’s been the off-field leadership that’s made the difference between winning and losing. These behind-the-scenes heroes may not get a lot of attention or have household name recognition, but they deserve a lot of the credit for their teams’ successes.

Theo Epstein

Anyone who knows anything about baseball knows about “The Curse:” the 86-year Boston Red Sox World Series winless streak. Theo Epstein, at one time the youngest GM in the Major Leagues, is given a great deal of credit for ending that drought. Currently GM of the Cubs, the Yale grad’s tenure with the Red Sox is the stuff legends are made of. He acquired (some say stole) David Ortiz, Kevin Millar and Curt Schilling in the historic 2004 season and went on to recruit some of the best young talent in baseball. Epstein’s genius is his ability to combine fresh talent with experienced leadership, a skill that brought the Sox to the world championship again in 2007. Consider The Curse not only broken, but obliterated.

Mickey Loomis

The New Orleans Saints have long been the underdogs in the NFL. Coming off a disastrous 3-13 season in 2009, the beleaguered team was much like its battered home city – pretty much in need of a miracle. GM Mickey Loomis took a big risk and signed free agent QB Drew Brees, who by many accounts was a washed-up disappointment. But Loomis saw the signing of Brees, along with a cadre of lesser-known free agents and late-round draft picks, as a chance to bring pride back to N’awlins. It worked. The Saints took it all in 2010 in a feel-good story that gave the people of New Orleans something to be proud of again.

Scott Pioli

By 2006, the word “dynasty” was regularly thrown about when describing the New England Patriots. With three Super Bowl wins between 2001 and 2005 and the only perfect regular season in NFL history, it was hard not to. Part of the credit goes to former Pats GM Scott Pioli, a disciple of legendary head coach Bill Belichick. Now the general manager of the Kansas City Chiefs, Pioli has brought the Belichick/Patriots philosophy to KC. The players may not be the most talented or athletic, but they are committed, tough and willing to play as a team and follow the club philosophy. Time will tell if Pioli has the same level of success in his new role.

Ken Holland

As GM of the Detroit Red Wings, Holland makes the list of great managers simply by virtue of his record. Detroit has won more hockey games than any other team since 1997 – 493 in the regular season and 67 in the playoffs. The Red Wings have also taken the Central Division eight times and won three Stanley Cups since Holland started his tenure as GM.

Billy Beane

Thanks to the Oscar-nominated film “Moneyball,” Billy Beane might have the most name-recognition of any GM in any sport. Using sabermetrics, a complicated formula that evaluates players on a wide range of factors, Beane was able to put together one of the most cost-effective teams in baseball history. In 2006, the Oakland A’s had the lowest player salaries and the fifth best season average in all of Major League Baseball. Beane’s genius lies in the numbers – he seeks young, inexperienced players with great potential, based on the numbers, who don’t command the astronomical salaries of the big names. While the A’s have not yet matched the success of the 2006 season, Beane continues to adjust his formula to improve the team.

Bill Polian

Much like Billy Beane, Bill Polian of the Indianapolis Colts has mastered the art of building a successful team without breaking the bank. He started his career with the Buffalo Bills in 1985, and his combination of draft picks and acquisitions took the team to three Super Bowls by 1993. He left the Bills to take over the Carolina Panthers expansion team – which surprised everyone by making it to the NFC title game in 1995. Polian has been the most effective with the Colts, though. The team payroll is the fifth lowest in the NFL – and before the disastrous, Peyton Manning-less 2011 season, the Colts had gone 39-3 in the regular season and brought home the Vince Lombardi trophy. Even with Manning still a question mark going forward, there’s no doubt that Polian has a plan to bring Indy back to glory.
These are just a few of the top team GMs; others have certainly been as (or even more) successful in their own sports and deserve recognition as well. Yet GMs in any sport can learn from these genius leaders – and improve their team records in the process.

 
This post was written and contributed by Kellen Hunter. Kellen has been a sports fan his entire life and now writes about fantasy sports, sports news, NBA basketball odds and MLB odds for a variety of online publications.