Why is the Combine so special?

[Dual RB way to go]

How does the Combine affect players draft rankings? If the player stood out in the games, then why allow players to surpass them in draft rankings when they are superior in workouts?

 

"Game" speed is something that you always hear about versus raw speed. Sounds like the combine is a RAW deal?

[ROCCEO]

I was lucky enough to have a chance to ask a very similar question to a high ranking member of the bills organization.

What he said to me amounted to this: A good scout does not judge by what he hears or what he reads on a stopwatch, he(or she) judges what they see. Therefore, what a guy does on film is the most important thing. However, the combine is not totally useless, he elaborated that there are certain benchmarks to watch out for. Essentially, if a guy looks great on film but runs a 7 second 40 or can only bench 225 three times then a red flag goes up. Similarly, a talented player could recieve a small boost from a particularly outstanding workout, but theres nobody who goes to the combine a 7th round prospect and comes outa first round prospect. He said, "the difference between college and the pros is that college is about proDUCTION, and the pros are about proJECTION.

[Dual RB way to go]

I was lucky enough to have a chance to ask a very similar question to a high ranking member of the bills organization.

What he said to me amounted to this: A good scout does not judge by what he hears or what he reads on a stopwatch, he(or she) judges what they see. Therefore, what a guy does on film is the most important thing. However, the combine is not totally useless, he elaborated that there are certain benchmarks to watch out for. Essentially, if a guy looks great on film but runs a 7 second 40 or can only bench 225 three times then a red flag goes up. Similarly, a talented player could recieve a small boost from a particularly outstanding workout, but theres nobody who goes to the combine a 7th round prospect and comes outa first round prospect. He said, "the difference between college and the pros is that college is about proDUCTION, and the pros are about proJECTION.

 

Sounds like ENDURANCE seems to be the key variable that the combine can expose.

 

Does the kid have what it takes for a 16 game gruelling schedule (mini camps, camp, pre-season, and maybe playoffs on top of regular season?)

 

TX for the response.

[Fewell733]

In many ways you are correct - game speed is much more important. However the vast majority of players in college football aren't pro material. As a result it is very tough to tell how fast the players actually are because they very well may be tearing it up among inferior competition. Players on good teams or big programs also have a major advantage. The combine is a way for the scouts to be able to totally level the playing field and gauge how athletic the player actually is. The problem is though - and this is your point - that a great athlete may not be a great football player.

[Dual RB way to go]

....... Similarly, a talented player could recieve a small boost from a particularly outstanding workout, but theres nobody who goes to the combine a 7th round prospect and comes outa first round prospect.......

 

WR Colston of New Orleans is a good example; 7th round yet he dominated the receiving corps. Injured before, but didn't the combine reassure his health as recovered? That's a interesting story how he got buried because of a previous injury.

[Deep2Moulds46]

In a lot of ways I agree with you, however I do think the combine serves a purpose.

 

Athletes slip through the cracks all of the time. Just because a guy didn't perform in college doesn't mean he won't make it in the NFL. What if he is in a system that doesn't suit his skill set? What if he played one position in college, but really is a better fit for another ( Cato June was a S in college and is now an OLB).

 

I think what the combine does is even the playing field, and show athletism. Guys like Gaines Adams or Calvin Johnson really have nothing to prove, as they have already shown freakish athletic ability and production. However, someone like Matt Jones.....who played QB all through college would have never been drafted if they just looked at game tape. Getting him in front of scouts running drills and showing off his athletism showed the scouts that he had freakish athletic ability.........and made him a first round pick.

[Oneonta Buffalo Fan]

The combine is important because you can see how athletic a player is.

[Pyrite Gal]

The other thing which happens at the Combine which generally does not and mostly cannot happen (without violating NCAA amateur rules) is that the GM's and personnel guys making decision actually get to meet and interview the players and look them in the eye.

 

The decision to draft a player is a high stakes investment often involving millions of dollars in precious resources. The combine is a unique collection of most of the potential draftees being in one location so teams can take the time as they try to figure out whether the character of a player makes him a Peyton Manning or a Ryan Leaf.

 

One can look at the tapes, get real weights and measures of the height of players, and watch them work out in not simply 40 yard dashes but also shuttle runs and special test designed to measure true agility and athleticism.

 

Yet, all of these stats can pale in importance to this one time chance to get to develop as much as one can in a short interview a feel for whether a player is gonna make the effort to be a champion or whether as soon as the get a big payday all the real play is gone.

 

If one is going to spend the big bucks on a choice this activity is easily justifiable.

[Lurker]

How does the Combine affect players draft rankings? If the player stood out in the games, then why allow players to surpass them in draft rankings when they are superior in workouts?

 

"Game" speed is something that you always hear about versus raw speed. Sounds like the combine is a RAW deal?

 

As others have said, getting to interview the prospects and see what their character/intelligence is like is just as important as the 'measurables.' Maybe more so for the second day guys.