NFL - Random Opinions

Well, I'll probably shock you a bit with this: Mamula wasn't a full-fledged bust. What I was getting at was: Mamula was one of the first to train specifically for combine events. He was a good college player, but when he started out-jumping cornerbacks and out-benching offensive linemen, the ridiculous hype went into overdrive.

 

then why televise it ? why televise the draft ? the fans don't own the teams, so why care who they draft? they may not "need" the money but putting it on tv does something for them or why else do it? the NFL is always out to make a buck, so i don't put it pass them that putting the combine on tv makes money somehow.

for MLB they televise the first 2 rds of the draft now on MLB Network. MLB Network also televises all of the post-season awards and the HOF announcement. They didn't always do this, so why now? Again, if it can bring in dollar $1, they are doing it. Same for the NFL, NBA and NHL.

 

I believe I've already addressed this.

 

I went back 4 pages of posts and you do briefly mention it. whether it be tv dollars or fans needing it or tv saturation they will put anything on tv now. hell if ESPN puts the World Series of Poker on it's channels, what does that tell you? It's poker ! Golf is a hard ass sport and yes it's a sport, Poker is an activity !

 

Poker at least is a game that - like baseball and football and basketball and hockey - employs strategy and has an end result. The Combine is men running and jumping in spandex.

Yes, they will put anything on TV...provided there are enough suckers to watch and support it.

 

Never understood why people will watch poker.

 

I watch a lot of poker online and on TV...usually will have it on in the background when I'm doing other things. It's entertaining to me because I play a ton of poker. And the game has really evolved since the time it really exploded in popularity 15 to 20 years ago. There are apps and websites dedicated to tracking how you play and teaching new players the game.

Easy to see why a lot of people find it boring...but for people who play serious poker a lot it can be pretty entertaining.

 

I don't mind playing but watching is just uggg but then that may just be me.

 

My wife hates when I watch it. For me a lot of it is seeing how people play certain hands and stuff. There can be a lot of complexity to it.

But I get it. I love playing golf. I golf 5 days a week. I can't watch more than a half hour of a tourney without falling asleep. I watch the majors if nothing else is on but only on Sundays when it's the last day of the event.

 

Both of these things can be correct, depending on what you're listening to after the combine.

Overreaction and hype is part of the draft whether or not the combine gets the coverage it does. Pro days are going to eventually morph into something similar as soon as colleges figure out how much revenue (or the best way to maximize it) they can churn off of making some kind of live spectacle out of them.

As for the football side - There's a lot that can be gleaned out of the combine. Ht/Wt still matters at most positions, speed is always a factor, strength counts, explosion is necessary and if you can't move in the horizontal it's going to show up in your numbers.

The game film shows whether or not you can play the game from a shoulder's up perspective, how much hustle you display and if you possess natural instincts. It can be tricky though, because guys that look athletic on film can test poorly and it can confirm suspicions or answer questions about whether or not the type of athleticism they possess can transfer to the pro game.

The drill work is big for this and is meant to display certain weak points. If it shows up as a strength for a player, that's a plus but they are really designed to expose issues in a players game.

Make no mistake. The combine may be billed as an opportunity for a player to showcase talent but it's really all about poking holes in a players draft profile. Everything from the on field, to the pressers, to the interviews, is designed to put players under the microscope to find flaws.

 

Like BWW, I've found it to be entertaining and also informative, seeing how pros play hands/situations.

 

If you don't see overreaction and hype about everything the NFL has to offer, you might not be a fan of the league. I don't understand how it is surprising to anyone that follows this league that fanfare is included in the combine. We have reports coming from mini camps leading up to the draft...we have fans that attend training camp to watch them practice, etc.. it just goes on and on. If they could profit from these other activities, they would. They profit from the combine, so they televise it.

Saying you think it is silly, pointless and annoying is akin to me saying putting ketchup on steak is silly, pointless and annoying.

 

So...sharing an opinion on a thread titled RANDOM OPINIONS.....on a message board dedicated to sharing opinions.........is wrong?

Interesting....

 

I agree with all of that. My initial post was more about the fan and media hype surrounding it. I never really felt it didn't serve a purpose to NFL teams.

It's way, way overblown by the media.

 

Nice comment.

I'm curious to ask you, with all you said here, how much does DK Metcalf help or hurt his draft spot at the combine? The speed and strength was great but some of the movement drills weren't so good for him. How do teams measure that going forward?

 

Did someone on here say it was wrong for sharing your opinion?

 

No....that's why I used a question mark. It was a question, not a statement.

. That's a period

? That's a question mark

You're welcome.

 

Tomorrow we will work on nouns, verbs, and adjectives.

 

Not spreaking for Tim but in my opinion it probably depends on which team/scout/GM is looking.

Different people value different things in a player. Some GMs are bound to be blown away by the speed and strength and think the others either don't matter or can be taught. Other GMs are more fundamental and need to see the other stuff.

I know if I were a GM....see his size, speed, and strength would make it really hard to not want to select him once my turn came to pick and he's on the board. It's easy to fall in love with a player like that.

 

This question really drives home the importance of testing at the combine, on a personal level.

On the wide receiver thread in the draft forum, @TopDawg and I were having a discussion on D.K. prior to the combine. Basically, I had Metcalf ranked somewhere around #6 in this class. TD is really high on him and wanted to know what I was seeing that made his score push him down the board some. I responded that I had some questions regarding his horizontal movement ability. I wasn't concerned about his speed or his ability to get to top speed very quickly, but whether or not he would be able to move laterally (important in developing a full route tree).

His testing confirmed my suspicions about his inability to move horizontally with fluidity.

Now, every team is going to view his combine differently. Some are going to see him as an immediate schematic fit and others are going to question how steep his developmental arc is as a professional.

Ultimately, his stock is soaring right now but there is a lot of time between now and the end of April for that to cool some.