The Patriots have begun the formal process to officially hire a de facto general manager, sources confirmed to the Herald.

The news was first reported by CBS Sports’ Jonathan Jones. Eliot Wolf, who served as de facto general manager during free agency and the draft, is considered a candidate.

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The Patriots must conduct an official search to comply with the Rooney Rule, per Jones. That means the Patriots have to interview at least two external minority candidates in person before making a hiring.

The Patriots sent out interview requests on Monday, a source said.

It’s unclear whether the head of personnel will be named “general manager” or hold a different title. The Patriots have never given out the title of “general manager” since Robert Kraft owned the team. Bill Belichick, who parted ways with the team in January, previously was the team’s head of personnel as head coach.

The Patriots replaced Belichick as head coach with Jerod Mayo. They did not need to comply with the Rooney Rule in order to do so since it was written into Mayo’s previous contract that he would succeed Belichick.

Prior to the 2024 NFL Draft, Wolf was considered the prime candidate to continue as the team’s head of personnel. The Patriots selected quarterback Drake Maye third overall and filled needs at wide receiver with Ja’Lynn Polk and Javon Baker and on the offensive line with Caedan Wallace and Layden Robinson.

The draft was generally graded well by draft and NFL pundits.

Wolf said before the draft that he didn’t feel like he was on “trial” prior to the annual event.

“I haven’t thought about it that way,” he said last month. “That’s an interesting way to think about it. No. Since I’ve been given this opportunity to work with these people, I’ve just kind of put my head down and tried to do things that I feel like are the best for the Patriots.”

The team focused on bringing back their own players in free agency, including offensive tackle Mike Onwenu, safety Kyle Dugger, tight end Hunter Henry, wide receiver Kendrick Bourne and outside linebackers Josh Uche and Anfernee Jennnings. The Patriots also signed defensive tackle Christian Barmore to a large contract extension last week and added quarterback Jacoby Brissett, running back Antonio Gibson, wide receiver K.J. Osborn, tight end Austin Hooper, offensive tackle Chukwuma Okorafor, defensive tackle Armon Watts and linebacker Sione Takitaki earlier in free agency.

It’s not just Wolf who’s waiting to hear about his future with the organization. Other scouts and executives are awaiting details on their own contracts.

Kraft was asked in March why Wolf was the right candidate to lead the front office in free agency and the draft. He suggested at the time that it wasn’t a foregone conclusion that Wolf might would be the permanent choice.

“I think Eliot has good training, good pedigree. And we actually have a good group of young people. We’re starting new chapters in our development as we evolve here,” Kraft said at the NFL Annual Meeting. “I like the young people we have doing this. We were in an environment where everything really funneled to the top. And maybe some of the young people that have worked real hard didn’t get a chance to have their position heard. Or maybe didn’t speak up as much. I’ve encouraged them to be collaborative and I think the combination of Jerod and Matt (Groh) and together with Eliot, I’m actually excited what I’ve seen. And that also sort of ties in with how players have changed too really over the last 10-15 years, and how systems have changed. So I think they’re in tune, and I’m excited. I mean, some people call me an eternal optimist, so I don’t know how much you should take what I say, but I’m excited about what’s going on and the process. And they’re through. They’re very thorough.

“I’m excited with what I’ve seen so far, and we’ll evaluate after the draft and see how that’s gone and decide where we go from there.”

The Patriots have continued to make moves after the draft, signing linebacker Oshane Ximines and kicker Joey Slye.