The NFL glass window for women is very real, but if there’s someone who could break it, it’s Catherine Raîche. While not a household name, Raîche has quietly and steadily built a résumé as strong as any candidate for general manager in this cycle. Raîche, the Philadelphia Eagles’ vice president of football operations, has people in positions of power taking notice.
Get to know NFL general manager candidate Catherine Raîche
It’s believed that Raîche is the first female candidate to interview for an NFL general manager job. She will meet with the Minnesota Vikings in the coming days as they consider candidates to replace Rick Spielman.
Raîche’s football background
A native of Montreal, Quebec, Raîche first pursued a career in law, getting her degree at the Universite de Sherbrooke, where she earned a master’s degree in tax. Raîche worked for three years as a corporate and tax attorney before moving to the Canadian Football League. She worked for both the Toronto Argonauts and Montreal Alouettes, serving as assistant GM for the latter. According to Raîche’s LinkedIn, her duties in the CFL included running football ops, managing the salary cap, player evaluation, the draft, and contract negotiations.
Following a brief stint in the perpetually doomed XFL, Raîche got her biggest career break yet. The Eagles hired her as a personnel and football operations coordinator. Her duties included player evaluation, contract management, and player development. After two years, the Eagles promoted Raîche to her current role. She’s helped general manager Howie Roseman in all matters of football operations, including player evaluation, contract management, and football research.
How Raîche performed in 2021
It’s difficult to pinpoint how responsible Raîche is for the Eagles’ recent success. Still, it certainly helps her case that they’re back in the playoffs, have arguably the NFL’s best draft capital in 2022, and a talented young corps.
What they’re saying about Raîche
In the words of former Raiders CEO Amy Trask to Sports Illustrated in June 2021:
“It is, of course, very exciting to see progress, to see development, but what’s truly going to be exciting is when stories like these are no longer newsworthy. In other words, when everyone, every business, hires without regard to race or gender or ethnicity or any other individuality which has no bearing whatsoever on whether one can do a job. That will be truly, truly exciting.”