Key Points
- The Washington Commanders are hiring San Francisco 49ers area scout Ryan Kessenich as their new director of college scouting.
- The move reunites Kessenich with Commanders general manager Adam Peters, who worked with him in San Francisco before taking the Washington job in 2024.
- Kessenich began his scouting career with Washington in 2005.
- He spent time with the Kansas City Chiefs, Chicago Bears, Northwestern University and the Senior Bowl before joining the 49ers in 2019.
- Tim Gribble, who had served as Washington’s director of college scouting for six years and spent nearly 25 years with the organisation, left about three months ago to join the Pittsburgh Steelers.
- The hire comes after the NFL draft, as Washington continues shaping its front office for future draft cycles.
Washington (Evening Washington News) May 8, 2026 – Commanders hire Ryan Kessenich as new director of college scouting, with the move reported on Wednesday, May 7, 2026, and coming after Tim Gribble’s departure from the role three months earlier.
Who is Ryan Kessenich?
As reported by Ben Standig of Last Man Standig, the Commanders are bringing in Ryan Kessenich from the 49ers, where he had been working as an area scout.
Kessenich’s background gives Washington an experienced evaluator with a long route through NFL scouting and college personnel work.
His career began in Washington in 2005, before he later worked with the Chiefs and Bears, and had two separate spells with Northwestern University, including a consulting role in 2018.
Why does Adam Peters matter here?
The hire is notable because Kessenich previously worked with Adam Peters in San Francisco.
Peters was with the 49ers’ personnel department when Kessenich joined the club in 2019, and the two overlapped there before Peters was hired as Washington’s general manager in 2024.
That shared history suggests Peters is continuing to reshape Washington’s scouting structure with people he already knows and trusts.
What changes at Washington?
The Commanders’ scouting department has already seen changes since Peters arrived, and this hire is described as the most significant one so far.
Kessenich will now be responsible for a key part of Washington’s talent identification process, especially as the club builds towards future drafts.
According to the source material, Washington is moving into a phase where its full slate of draft picks should be available next year, and the team is expected to pick lower than No. 7 overall after a stronger season.
How was the move reported?
The reporting identifies Ben Standig as the first source to break the news, with Neil Stratton of ScoutSpeak also cited in the coverage.
Multiple outlets later repeated the report, saying Washington is hiring the 49ers scout to lead college scouting.
The repeated sourcing across outlets supports the core facts: Kessenich is leaving San Francisco for Washington, and he is returning to the franchise where he started.
Why is this hire important for the Commanders?
The director of college scouting role is central to how an NFL team builds its roster through the draft.
For Washington, hiring someone with cross-team experience and existing familiarity with Peters’ working style may help keep the scouting process aligned with the front office’s broader plan.
The timing also matters because the draft is complete, which usually gives clubs a period to reorganise and prepare for the next evaluation cycle.
Background of the development
This development follows a wider front-office transition in Washington under Adam Peters.
Kessenich’s career path is also relevant: he began with Washington in 2005, gained experience across several organisations, and then joined the 49ers in 2019, where he worked alongside Peters.
Tim Gribble’s exit created the vacancy, and Washington appears to have filled it with a scout who brings both continuity and familiarity with Peters’ personnel approach.
Prediction
For Washington fans, this move could mean a more streamlined scouting process and a front office that is better synchronised on draft decisions.
For the organisation, Kessenich’s appointment may improve continuity in college scouting as the team prepares for a more important draft position and attempts to add long-term talent.
The most immediate effect is likely to be internal rather than public: a revised scouting chain of command headed by someone with deep NFL experience and a direct link to the general manager.
