A handful of talent evaluators in the player personnel department are receiving new titles.
The Baltimore Ravens have had a lot of turnover in every aspect of the organization this offseason, from the roster to the coaching staff and even including the front office. On the same day that former Director of College Scouting David Blackburn was hired to be the new Director of Player Personnel for the Washington Commanders, general manager Eric DeCosta announced seven promotions within the team’s player personnel department Wednesday.
Here is the short list of those who are moving up in the team’s front office ranks.
- George Kokinis – Vice President of Player Personnel
- David McDonald – Vice President of Research and Development
- Mark Azevedo – Director of Player Personnel
- Andrew Raphael – Director of College Scouting
- Derrick Yam – Director of Data and Decision Science
- Joey Cleary – Assistant Director of College Scouting
- Corey Frazier – Assistant Director of Pro Personnel
Kokinis is entering his 34th season working in the NFL and has been with the Ravens in several capacities since the franchise’s inaugural 1996 offseason. He is one of the longest-tenured members of team’s personnel department and spent the past five years as the director of player personnel from 2019-23.
“George has been a stalwart of scouting since the beginning of the Ravens,” DeCosta stated. “He’s a tireless worker, an elite evaluator, and he’s adept at building relationships with coaches, players and agents in our industry. He will oversee all player personnel matters related to scouting and work closely with Nick [Matteo, vice president of football administration] and Mark [Azevedo, director of player personnel] on day-to-day football operations.”
McDonald is entering his 10th season with the Ravens, where he is in charge of every aspect of software and data development for the player personnel department. He originally joined the organization as a football systems developer in 2015 but spent the past five years (2019-23) as the director of research and development.
“‘D-Mac’ is the driver behind our scouting platform (BANE) and the leader of our entire player personnel analytics group,” DeCosta stated. “He’s a natural collaborator who is strategic, curious and thoughtful. David will work with George, Nick and Mark on all things scouting and salary cap-related, providing support and structure through development and analysis.”
Azevedo is entering his 20th season in Baltimore and is being promoted from the assistant director of player personnel, a title he held for the past two years (2022-23). Before that, he served six seasons as a Northeast scout, covering schools in the ACC, AAC, Big Ten, Big 12, Ivy League, MAC, MEAC and SEC. Azevedo originally joined the organization in 2005 as a player personnel assistant and has coordinated the Ravens’ post-draft rookie free agent signing process for several years.
“Mark does a great job collaborating with our analysts and scouts alike,” DeCosta stated. “He’s a skilled evaluator who has overseen our undrafted free agency and local pro days with great success. Innovative and well-versed in all areas of scouting, Mark will work with George directing both college and pro scouting.”
Raphael entering his 11th season with the franchise and previously served as a national scout for the past three seasons (2021-23). In the five seasons prior, he was the Ravens Southeast area scout from 2016-20. Raphael originally joined the front office as a player personnel intern from 2013-14 before being promoted to player personnel assistant in 2015.
“Andrew is a sharp evaluator who is both thoughtful and meticulous,” DeCosta stated. “He has great interpersonal skills, he’s highly organized, and he collaborates easily with others. Andrew will work seamlessly with Joey [Cleary, assistant director of college scouting], Mark and George, ensuring that our college scouting process will be the industry standard.”
Yam is entering his fifth season with the Ravens after serving in the role as the manager of data and decision science for the past two seasons (2022-23). He originally joined the organization in 2019 as a quantitative analyst following the earning of his master’s degree in biostatistics from Brown University.
“Derrick is an innovative analyst, a talented researcher and an emerging leader who does a great job finding value, charting course and attacking complex problems,” DeCosta stated. “He works well with everyone in our department; his positive approach and analytical skills make him an easy choice, working closely with David, to lead our data and decision science team.”
Cleary is entering his 10th year with the Ravens and spent the past three seasons (2021-23) as the team’s Southeast area scout. Prior to that, he has covered schools from different regions including the West area scout in 2020 and a Northeast area scout in 2019 after originally coming to Baltimore as a player personnel assistant in 2015.
Frazier has served as the organization’s West Coast scout the past three seasons (2021-23). Before that, he was a Ravens’ pro scout for two years (2019-20) and originally joined the team as a player personnel assistant in 2017. Before arriving in Baltimore, Frazier served as an advance scout for Vanderbilt University (2016) and interned in the scouting department for the Denver Broncos during the the 2015 NFL season.