NFL Decision-Makers with Most at Stake in 2016 NFL Draft

The 2016 NFL draft is now less than a week away, and while every team is hoping to land the next future star, some decision-makers may be a little more nervous than others. 

Every team enters the draft hoping to land the best player for its system, but the stakes are always slightly higher for certain general managers and coaches—and in some cases that added pressure can influence the decision. 

It's possible we've already seen some of that effect in this year's draft, as two teams desperate for a franchise quarterback have traded up in the draft. 

With the recent trades in mind, here's a look at five teams whose NFL draft decision-makers are facing the most pressure to land impact players with their early selections in next week's draft. 

These GMs and coaches are under scrutiny for a variety of reasons. Some are in the midst of a long playoff drought, some need to prove that their controversial trades were worth the price, and others are in the midst of a transition period for their franchise and need to smoothly lead their team into a new era. And some even fit into multiple categories, further ratcheting up the pressure. 

This will be the fifth draft the Los Angeles Rams duo of head coach Jeff Fisher and general manager Les Snead oversees. The previous four have yielded a few solid picks, most notably defensive lineman Aaron Donald, but they have yet to produce a winning season on the field. 

Snead and Fisher's seats were scorching hot even before their trade up to No. 1, but their latest gamble raised the stakes to another level. 

With just one pick in the top 100, Fisher and Snead are essentially betting their jobs on the quarterback they select No. 1 overall. 

The Rams have been competitive under Fisher, but without a franchise quarterback they haven't taken the next step to reach the playoffs. And since there were no other meaningful additions this offseason, they appear to be putting all their chips on the No. 1 pick. 

Taking a quarterback early in the draft almost always buys decision-makers some time. In fact, this past season the Tennessee Titans' Ken Whisenhunt and Tampa Bay Buccaneers' Lovie Smith were the first coaches fired after spending just one season with a quarterback selected in the top three since the Detroit Lions fired Marty Mornhinweg after Joey Harrington's rookie season in 2002.

So the Rams duo likely won't be fired in 2016, even if they miss the playoffs. But there's a very small margin for error for these two over the next two years as they watch the top pick develop. 

How Colts general manager Ryan Grigson is still employed is one of the bigger mysteries in the NFL today. 

This is the guy who drafted Bjoern Werner in the first round in 2013—and released him just three years later. He also traded a first-round pick for legendary bust Trent Richardson. 

In 2015, when the Colts needed to address just about any position other than wide receiver, he spent a first-round pick on Phillip Dorsett.

Grigson's approach to the draft can best be described as a game of blindfolded darts.

As he enters his fifth year as Colts general manager, the pressure to land an instant-impact prospect is at a critical level. 

Despite employing Andrew Luck, one of the most highly touted young quarterbacks in the league, Grigson has supported him with one of the shakiest offensive lines in the NFL. And after failing to land a single impact offensive lineman in free agency, Grigson must now turn to the draft to fill the remaining holes. 

If Grigson can't turn things around for Indy with this draft class, it's hard to imagine his tenure with the Colts lasting beyond 2016. 

The Atlanta Falcons have an interesting structure in their front office, featuring two of the most recognizable executives in the league. 

Thomas Dimitroff has been the Falcons general manager since 2008. But in 2014 the team brought in Scott Pioli—former Chiefs GM and Patriots executive—to help end the team's struggles on draft day. 

Through two years of the Pioli-Dimitroff brain trust running the Falcons draft room, the results have been mostly disappointing and haven't led to any substantial improvements on the field. 

The immediate goal for this duo is to address the team's anemic pass rush, which ranked last in the NFL in 2015 with just 19 sacks. 

Atlanta selected Clemson pass-rusher Vic Beasley in the first round in 2015, and he showed some promise as a rookie, but the rebuilding on defense must continue. 

In a broader sense, Dimitroff and Pioli simply need to find a way to build this team around their 30-year-old quarterback Matt Ryan. 

Even if Ryan isn't among the elite quarterbacks in the league, at least half the teams in the NFL would gladly swap quarterback situations with the Falcons. To miss the playoffs three years in a row with a quarterback of Ryan's talent is borderline inexcusable, and both Dimitroff and Pioli may not survive if the streak stretches any further. 

Jerry Reese has been among the most successful general managers in the NFL for the past decade, helping to build two Super Bowl winners. But the franchise has struggled in recent years, and the decision to cut ties with longtime coach Tom Coughlin puts even more pressure on Reese to prove it was Coughlin's coaching, and not Reese's front-office moves, that led to the downfall. 

It's unrealistic to think Reese' future rests solely on this draft class, but since this has been his first offseason without Coughlin, he's starting to lay the foundation for the second act of his career in New York. 

Reese has a unique challenge ahead of him as he tries to rebuild a franchise that's missed the playoffs for four straight years, but also try to speed up the process to win again within 35-year-old Eli Manning's window of opportunity. 

How Reese balances the desire to win immediately with Manning and lay a foundation for long-term success beyond Manning will determine his future with the franchise. 

Eagles executive vice president of football operations Howie Roseman doesn't perfectly fit on this list, but his situation is worth dissecting in the wake of the Eagles' trade up to No. 2. 

Roseman has spent his entire career in pro football with the Eagles, working his way up through the front office since 2000. He seems to have the trust of owner Jeffery Lurie, so there's no reason to believe he's on the verge of losing his job. 

That said, the Eagles' recent trade with the Cleveland Browns has put Roseman in position to be the scapegoat if the move doesn't work out. 

Parting with a package of first-round picks for a quarterback is risky business. One way or another, it's a franchise-altering decision and Roseman is in position to receive all of the credit or all of the blame. 

Further complicating Roseman's position are some of his comments in the wake of the trade. 

He has acknowledged that the dim outlook of future quarterback classes inflated the value of the No. 2 pick. 

The idea that Roseman, or anyone, can predict the outlook of future quarterback classes is absurd. 

If Wentz or Goff fail and other quarterbacks in future years inevitably find success, his comments will be remembered and further undermine his credibility. 

Since this is Roseman's first year as the primary decision-maker in Philly, it's far too early to put him on the hot seat. But his career is now tied directly to Wentz (or whoever the Eagles take at No. 2).