Chris Mara, who is in his 20th season in his second stint with the Giants, is the team's senior player personnel executive. Mara joined the Giants as vice president of player evaluation on July 29, 2003. He was promoted in 2011 to senior vice president of player personnel and received his current tile this year. In his position, Mara evaluates both college and professional players.
Mara was instrumental in acquiring numerous players on the 2007 and 2011 Giants teams that won Super Bowls XLII and XLVI.
Mara first joined the Giants' staff prior to the 1979 season and over the next 14 years Mara was a member of the club's player personnel department. Mara was a scout during the franchise's first two Super Bowl Championship seasons in 1986 and 1990.
Following his first stint with the Giants, Mara spent eight years (1994-2001) operating ProRate, Inc., an independent football scouting service contracted by as many as 15 NFL franchises. The service provided an evaluation of the free agent market in the NFL.
Mara spent 2001-02 as the President/General Manager of the New Jersey Gladiators of the Arena Football League. He oversaw a myriad of responsibilities including ticket sales, operations, and the arena lease. Mara's primary focus was on player personnel and player contracts. He brought his extensive knowledge of professional football to the team and revived the struggling franchise in just one season.
After a difficult first season, the Gladiators posted a 9-5 record in 2002 and a first-place finish in the Eastern Division of the National Conference. Posting the biggest turnaround in AFL history, the Gladiators finished the 2002 regular season with seven more victories than the previous year and qualified for the playoffs for the first time in franchise history.
Mara graduated from Iona Prep in New Rochelle, N.Y. where he was a standout defensive back for three seasons, winning All-Catholic High School Athletic Association recognition after his senior year.
He began his collegiate career at Springfield College, where he was a defensive back on the freshman team and lettered on the varsity golf team. He then transferred to Boston College, where he earned a B.A. in arts and sciences. During his scholastic and collegiate days, Mara spent many summers working at Giants training camps. During the regular season, he worked with broadcast teams from both CBS-TV and NBC-TV, as well as with visiting and home radio broadcast groups.
Mara was born in New York City. He is married to the former Kathleen Rooney and the couple has four children - Daniel, Kate, Rooney and Conor - and five grandchildren, Judith Kailee, Wellington Rooney, Ann MacKenna, Blaise Rooney (Daniel's children) and a granddaughter (Kate's daughter).
