DeMaurice Smith would like to eliminate the Scouting Combine (1 Viewer)

[farfromforgotten]

https://profootballtalk.nbcsports.c...d-like-to-eliminate-the-scouting-combine/amp/

I wasn’t sure where to put this or if it was even being discussed elsewhere already or not. I find it funny how Smith mentions that drills like the vertical jump and the 40 yard dash are meaningless. Tell that to all of the guys who have seen their draft stock rise from running a blazing 40.

 

[Hankmoody]

https://profootballtalk.nbcsports.c...d-like-to-eliminate-the-scouting-combine/amp/

I wasn’t sure where to put this or if it was even being discussed elsewhere already or not. I find it funny how Smith mentions that drills like the vertical jump and the 40 yard dash are meaningless. Tell that to all of the guys who have seen their draft stock rise from running a blazing 40.

It's meaningless at the aggregate because for every guy that's helped by it there are guy(s) hurt by it. The draft is a zero sum game - only 32 players can be drafted in the first round (31 this year). Combine or not 256 guys are gonna get drafted. Combine or not another 500 or so will sign as UDFA. If Sean Tucker blows out a 4.31 and goes early 2nd that means someone else that would have been drafted there falls to Tucker's prior landing spot.

Smith's focus is on increasing the overall package because that's the only way to serve the entire player population. That's why they don't care about wage scale or veteran minimum or anything else - for every individual player he helps, he hurts others. If he can get the team total spending increased, he can potentially help every player on that team.

 

[nightmare]

The scouting combine is for medical and interviews. The underwear olympics is just for show.

 

[renesauz]

I'm having a hard time understanding why he would be against the combine. Many teams give it too much weight, but it's far from meaningless

 

[rockaction]

The combine is an awesome, leveling activity. Every time I think the owners are greedy, trough-gulping animals, the NFLPA comes in and reminds me what sort of license they're bargaining against. I forget that everyone would be on one-year deals until free agency, whereupon each and every player would get max guaranteed money for prior performance. That's a players' union for you. I get the labor arguments, too, I just think that giving carte blanche to a PA spells trouble for the game.

Thankfully, the NFLPA doesn't have too much of a leg to stand on here, nor does it bargain very hard for folks that aren't in the union yet.

The scouting combine is for medical and interviews. The underwear olympics is just for show.

Tell that to every kid from a small school that blazes a forty time. Heck, tell Christian Watson that. We're talking millions of dollars at stake here based on what you do in your "underwear."

 

[STEADYMOBBIN 22]

Pretty sure he's just making trouble for Troy vincent who took his job by convincing everyone that because D smith didn't play ball he doesn't know what's best for the players.

 

[Boone22]

I think his comments about the interviews are interesting. While I agree that I’m sure the teams ask questions that are completely out of line and uncalled for, I also believe the the interviews are extremely important in understanding personalities and how the players process and answer questions.

 

[wgoldsph]

I think his comments about the interviews are interesting. While I agree that I’m sure the teams ask questions that are completely out of line and uncalled for, I also believe the the interviews are extremely important in understanding personalities and how the players process and answer questions.

There was a player a few years back whose name escapes me that was a Rhodes scholar. One of the questions he was asked during his interview was about how he "let his team down" by accepting the scholarship. The player was deeply offended (rightly so) and said that his teammates were the people most happy for him.
So yeah, you get some really screwed up questions.

 

[Da Guru]

I think his comments about the interviews are interesting. While I agree that I’m sure the teams ask questions that are completely out of line and uncalled for, I also believe the the interviews are extremely important in understanding personalities and how the players process and answer questions.

If I am 22 years of age, and about to possibly get a deal worth a million, or 5 million, or maybe 10-30 million. Ask me anything you want.

 

[massraider]

I think his comments about the interviews are interesting. While I agree that I’m sure the teams ask questions that are completely out of line and uncalled for, I also believe the the interviews are extremely important in understanding personalities and how the players process and answer questions

The interviews at the combine are like 15 minutes, back to back, players bouncing from room to room.


The combine has so many things wrong with it, from a logistical standpoint, it's hard to believe the NFL is actually running it.

 

[menobrown]

Not sure how much money the combine generates but it's part of the revenue that sets the cap, in other words any revenue from the combine is shared with NFL and and the union. Past the actual money the combine generates directly it also serves to keep the NFL news cycle humming, which generally is a good thing and again any benefit to the NFL will be a benefit to the NFL players. So I can for sure see why Smith might want to see some changes and I can see why the new era of NIL athletes want to be paid directly to participate, I just can't see wanting to do away with it entirely being a benefit to anyone.

 

[fatness]

De Smith has some decent points.

“As soon as you show up, you have to waive all of your medical rights and you not only have to sit there and endure embarrassing questions,” Smith said, via ESPN. “And I think that’s horrible, and I don’t wanna pooh pooh any of that, but would you want your son to spend hours inside of an MRI [machine] and then be evaluated by 32 separate team doctors who are, by the way, are only doing it for one reason? What’s the reason? To decrease your draft value.”

Smith said that he could see the NFLPA organizing its own Pro Days where draft prospects could show what they can do in an environment that the players’ union approves.

I'd like to see what the NFLPA comes up with there.

 

[rockaction]

De Smith has some decent points.

“As soon as you show up, you have to waive all of your medical rights and you not only have to sit there and endure embarrassing questions,” Smith said, via ESPN. “And I think that’s horrible, and I don’t wanna pooh pooh any of that, but would you want your son to spend hours inside of an MRI [machine] and then be evaluated by 32 separate team doctors who are, by the way, are only doing it for one reason? What’s the reason? To decrease your draft value.”

Smith said that he could see the NFLPA organizing its own Pro Days where draft prospects could show what they can do in an environment that the players’ union approves.

I'd like to see what the NFLPA comes up with there.

That part about the injuries is rubbish. It's not like free agency where they get paid according to likelihood of injury and past injury. This only affects draft slot, both positively and negatively. A clean bill of health can bump one's status up a good deal. Sure, there's the other side to that coin, but it's not so one-sided. Anybody with a critical eye can determine that to be the case. How could it hurt everybody? The draft is as close as you get to a zero-sum game in terms of slot order (one will drop, the other will rise because of an injury or a non-injury). This does not include people that fall out of the draft, but even if they fall out, somebody takes their spot. Why is the union saying it only hurts or decreases their clients' draft value? Makes no sense.

Rubbish.

 

[fatness]

That part about the injuries is rubbish. It's not like free agency where they get paid according to likelihood of injury and past injury. This only affects draft slot, both positively and negatively. A clean bill of health can bump one's status up a good deal. Sure, there's the other side to that coin, but it's not so one-sided. Anybody with a critical eye can determine that to be the case. How could it hurt everybody? The draft is as close as you get to a zero-sum game in terms of slot order (one will drop, the other will rise because of an injury or a non-injury). This does not include people that fall out of the draft, but even if they fall out, somebody takes their spot. Why is the union saying it only hurts or decreases their clients' draft value? Makes no sense.

Rubbish.

Do they have to waive their medical rights to enter the combine?

 

[rockaction]

Do they have to waive their medical rights to enter the combine?

I would say HIPAA probably has to be waived, yes. But to compare football players to the general population is sort of a fool's errand. That said, I was only talking about the zero-sum aspect of the latter part of his claim so I'll leave it there because I don't know the inner workings of medical practice and how it pertains to the endeavoring football player.

 

[GroveDiesel]

That part about the injuries is rubbish. It's not like free agency where they get paid according to likelihood of injury and past injury. This only affects draft slot, both positively and negatively. A clean bill of health can bump one's status up a good deal. Sure, there's the other side to that coin, but it's not so one-sided. Anybody with a critical eye can determine that to be the case. How could it hurt everybody? The draft is as close as you get to a zero-sum game in terms of slot order (one will drop, the other will rise because of an injury or a non-injury). This does not include people that fall out of the draft, but even if they fall out, somebody takes their spot. Why is the union saying it only hurts or decreases their clients' draft value? Makes no sense.

Rubbish.

Do they have to waive their medical rights to enter the combine?

Does Smith also object to players having to pass physicals before FA signings or trades become official?

The entire idea behind the pre-draft process is to fully evaluate players to project their future production. These guys are in a profession that 100% relies on their physical abilities. Their physical health is a huge component of that. To suggest otherwise is ridiculous.

The NFLPA ultimately would prefer the draft be completely eliminated and all incoming guys simply be free agents. Which would mean each team would be conducting physicals on every guy they bring in anyway as is currently standard practice. So, IMO, this argument by Smith is disengenuous.

 

[rockaction]

The NFLPA ultimately would prefer the draft be completely eliminated and all incoming guys simply be free agents.

Exactly. There's a lot of advocacy in what Smith is saying, not much substance. He's looking out for the players, which is fine, but I wouldn't put great weight upon what he's saying.