NFL Combine: What a Waste of Time…

To everyone in an NFL war room, this is the most important time of the year: combine time. This is where GM’s and NFL execs go through scientific measures to

To everyone in an NFL war room, this is the most important time of the year: combine time. This is where GM’s and NFL execs go through scientific measures to make sure that they get the best talent available in the April draft. Players are asked to go through a system of vigorous tasks like a cone drill, bench press, and most notably a timed 40-yard dash… and it’s all so ridiculous.

 

Since when does a quick 40-yard dash make you a good football player? Football is about football players, not track stars. In fact, when will an offensive lineman ever run 40 yards at a time in a football game? It’s rare, if ever.

 

The combine places a huge emphasis on the minute. According to combine aficionados both Jerry Rice and Larry Fitzgerald lacked the true speed to be big time receivers in the NFL.

 

Do you know who had the fastest 40 times in the 2008 combine? Tyvon Branch ran a 4.24 second 40, after him Justin King ran a 4.29. Tyvon Branch and Justin King are not household names.

 

After slow 40 times (Jenkins was clocked between a 4.52 and a 4.59), many draft experts say that former Ohio State All-Big Ten and All-American Malcolm Jenkins is too slow to play cornerback in the NFL. Jenkins was a finalist for this years Thorpe Award, and Ohio State’s website says of him “moves around the field to cover the opponent’s best receiver ... is a natural corner with great instincts and outstanding speed and quickness ... excels at man-to-man coverage ...” Apparently NFL scouts learned more about Jenkins’ ability as a corner in a week, then the Ohio State coaching staff could figure in Jenkins’ 4 years in Columbus.

 

So, what does the combine do? It helps NFL personnel evaluators find the player that is biggest, strongest, and fastest, even the player with the largest hands (that’s right, they do hand measurements); but not necessarily who is the best football player.

 

With combines would players like Phil Simms, or Terry Bradshaw even have been drafted? After the combine Tom Brady dropped all the way down to the 6th round. At Spartan Nation we still have distant memories of a fitness phenom named Tony Mandarich that blew people away in 1989 with his physical presence and giftedness, but turned out to be a total flop as an NFL player.

 

It would be naïve of me to suggest that NFL teams should spend millions of dollars on a player and not know exactly what they are paying for. While the “science” of the combine is overly exhaustive, perhaps an approach more like college recruiting would be more practical.

 

For example, let’s say NFL coaches, GM’s, and scouts studied a player on film, met with him and his family, and then drafted him. Do you still think Green Bay would have drafted Mandarich 2nd overall in 1989 had they known more of his character and less of his bench press?

 

Just like every year, this year the combine will see players stocks rise and fall, and GM’s will break down every aspect of a players game, and again some teams will lose sight of the forest for the trees.

 

One day there may be free weights at centerfield to decide who gets the ball; instead of kicking a field goal each team has to select a player to run 40 yards as fast as they can for 3 points; quarterbacks will have to perform well on a Wonderlic Test instead of reading a defense. But until that day, the combine’s statistics are pointless. GM’s should put more stock in the stats players amass during their playing careers, and less in the meaningless 40’s and bench press numbers that players can put up.