The NFL Combine Question

Did you hear about the guy who ran a 4.2 and change 40? Question is, should we care?

Or maybe the real question is, can he play football?

Personally I never got the combine hype. That is because its impact is exaggerated overall.

The biggest gain from a combine workout is a guy moving up or down in the draft which ultimately has a financial impact and doesn ’ t affect his play or   his ability to help an NFL team   at all.

Yes there is no question that teams should see a prospective player workout. That is because you can learn a lot about someone based on how they handle these workouts. It will show there work ethic or lack thereof for one thing.

As far as the feats of strength and raw speed? I don ’ t think that tells you much. It may tell you a guy should run in track events or that he has athleticism but what does it tell you about football?

The difference between 4.3 and 4.6 on the field is hardly significant. Other than if this is tie breaker situation. If you consider 2 guys equal in a football sense than it can ’ t hurt to take the faster guy, but there is so much more too it than that.

Let ’ s take a couple examples. Our own James Harrison was an undrafted free agent! Largely due to the fact he went to a small school.

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Then take Mike Mamula. A solid college player who went to Boston College, he was definitely going to be drafted on the first day because of his sacking potential at BC.
But after he showed an incredible vertical leap, a strong bench, and a fast 40 for his size the Philadelphia Eagles traded up into the Top 10 to pick him! They passed on a proven Warren Sapp to do it.

The result? Mamula sucked. Turned out he could bench 225 pounds but couldn’t push 300 lb. men out of his way. Yes he was reasonably fast but by the time he used his speed to get around O-lineman, the ball was gone. In Philly they used to have this joke in the media. There was a sack, there was a hurry, and then there was a Mamula, which meant you almost did one or the other.

And this is just one of an endless list of examples you could give.

Remember Jeff George? His rocket arm got him picked #1 overall, but didn ’ t help his meatballs for brains though.

Vernon Davis from a couple years back was a work out phenom with   a body cut from granite. Does anyone know where he plays and what position?

Few years back the Eagles picked R J Smith, TE, because he was faster than Jason Whitten. But who was the better TE then and still is?

This whole combine process is blown way out of proportion by the media. Although I totally ignore it to be honest. The above examples I gave were things I learned after the fact.

The irony is that draft experts like Mel Kiper Jr, only use the combine stats as a point of reference. And yet some GM ’ s and Head Coaches will make a pick based solely on those same numbers. That is absurd!

The bottom line is you have to see if the guy can play football, period. If he is a man among boys at a small school and he is significantly slow, for example, than yes you should be worried. But if his speed is within reason and more importantly his body of work stands out, then that is your pick.

Plus people overlook the mental aspect. I don ’ t mean intelligence either. I ’ m talking about the guy who is a workout monster but is a lazy fool when it comes to film work and details. You don ’ t have to know calculus but you do know have to know your cover 2 from a blitzing safety. And you must have the desire to be prepared for everything and to know your system inside and out and your role in that system.

This will also apparent in film. Take LaVar Arrington for example. Another combine monster who made some unbelievable plays while playing at Penn State. But if you watch an entire game you would have seen numerous times he missed assignments and was lost on the field. Now,   he was athletic enough in College to compensate for some of that. That will never work in the NFL however. And it didn ’ t in his case either.

So for me I trust that the Steelers are studying and relying on game film and watching work ethic instead of 40 times and bench reps.

Fact is you can make a great football player faster and stronger but you can ’ t make a fast or strong man a better football player if he sucks to begin with. Think about that.

Yes you may be able to take a football player and make him a better football player. But you can ’ t take a track star or a body builder   and make him a football player. Believe me it ’ s been tried. If you could then people would be talking to Hussein Bolt right now.

By Brandon Niles
ProFootball-fans.com Staff Writer