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<\/a><\/p>\n\n Gathering as much intel as possible from events like the combine and pro days remains as important as ever. (Maria Lysaker \/ Getty Images)<\/p>\n
Viewpoints of today\u2019s prospects and their approach to the pre-draft process vary greatly depending on who you talk to. Whether it\u2019s former NFL players still closely associated with the game as coaches, team or league employees, or other NFL coaches, scouts and higher-level talent evaluators, everyone sees this new generation a little differently.<\/p>\n
Athlete and agent opinions on the importance of the combine have shifted over time. Just as players have begun opting out of bowl games to avoid unnecessary risk of serious injury, top prospects have become more selective of which aspects of the NFL\u2019s biggest job fair they wish to take part in. Some pick and choose which on-field portions they want to use to showcase their skills. Others skip all drills and simply take part in interviews and medical evaluations.<\/p>\n
Some old heads frown upon athletes who pass up another opportunity to compete on the field and make a strong impression on potential employers. They view a reluctance or refusal to take part in drills as a sign of entitlement. But because they can\u2019t just write off every athlete that opts out of a bowl or all-star game or combine drill (doing so obviously would be unwise given the number of high-level prospects that have begun making such calls), many NFL talent evaluators elect to frame things differently.<\/p>\n
They acknowledge that they\u2019re now dealing with young men who view themselves as businessmen, and so, they opt to extend them a greater degree of understanding.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think you can look at that in two different ways,\u201d New England Patriots executive vice president of player personnel Eliot Wolf said. \u201cMaybe they\u2019re coming in a little bit more entitled, but on the other hand, they\u2019re coming in more prepared, from a business standpoint, like they\u2019ve had money. They know what it\u2019s like. They know some financial literacy and understanding the trials and tribulations that come with that. So I think it\u2019s a double-edged sword. It\u2019s like anything. You just have to be able to adjust. And every person can be different.\u201d<\/p>\n
The best of NFL GMs, scouts and coaches have always approached the draft prospect evaluation process with a belief that each element \u2014 game tape, combine, pro day performances, medicals, interviews \u2014 is a piece of the puzzle. Rather than let one decision (or non-decision) sway their opinion, they probe deeper and place a higher premium on the research of scouts and information gleaned through interviews and pre-draft visits. Some teams view the fact that prospects are now coming into the NFL with dramatically improved financial situations as a positive and another evaluation tool.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think it\u2019s made it easier because you don\u2019t have to wonder how they\u2019ll carry themselves once they get money,\u201d Las Vegas Raiders general manager John Spytek said. \u201cYou know the ones that love the game and do the right things. They may have money in college, but they still carry themselves the right way, they still play the right way. They love the game, they\u2019re there for their teammates, and I think it\u2019s kind of the character illuminator.\u201d<\/p>\n
Some general managers even view prospects who haven\u2019t handled money swimmingly as a blessing in disguise, theorizing that those early lessons will position the players for more sound decision-making early in their NFL careers.<\/p>\n
\u201cI like to follow the whole journey,\u201d Chicago Bears GM Ryan Poles said. \u201cI don\u2019t hold it against an 18-year-old that gets a million bucks to go to school and maybe didn\u2019t have his priorities straight. Most of us here, if that happened to us, we\u2019d want to do some crazy things, too, or maybe not focus where we should be focused.<\/p>\n
\u201cBut I want to see the learning lessons that come from that. I want to understand their structure of the people they put around them. I want to understand how they battle through adversity. I think the toughest thing is when there\u2019s an option to transfer, when things get hard, we hurt the resilience of our young players. So I want to learn through that and understand how they grew throughout their ordeals. And that doesn\u2019t mean we would eliminate everybody, but we want to know what\u2019s coming in the building and what we need to lean into because I think we have to pick up some of that education on our side.\u201d<\/p>\n