The Ledger: NFL Tests Draftees' Decision-Making Abilities (quotes from Skins FO)

[SkinsMaster88]

Link: http://www.theledger.com/article/20090418/NEWS/904155065/1410?Title=NFL-Teams-Look-Into-Prospects-Lives-and-Heads

NFL Tests Draftees' Decision-Making Abilities

Pro Teams Are Increasingly Look Into Draft Prospects' Lives and Heads

By Rick Brown

THE LEDGER

From the first time they touch a football, most kids dream of playing in the NFL.

That's no different for three Polk County players - Florida offensive lineman Jason Watkins (Lake Gibson), South Florida running back Ben Williams (Lake Wales) and Webber International defensive back Vince Anderson - who hope to hear their names called in the NFL Draft that starts Saturday.

They know what they must do physically, and more often these days, athletes now must compete mentally and morally. They must show they are capable of making sound decisions on and off the field.

As the public is bombarded with stories of high-priced players ruining their careers with personal issues, a prospect's character has become nearly as important, if not equally as important, as a player's 40-yard dash time.

After all, NFL teams aren't much different than other employers when looking for prospective workers. They look at resumes, conduct multiple interviews with prospects and check references before deciding who would be a good fit for the company.

...

Those involved in drafting star athletes say the best ones have common traits beyond height, weight and speed, said Scott Campbell, the Washington Redskins' director of player personnel.

"There is intelligence, worth ethic, leadership, competitiveness," Campbell said. "Those are things we look for in every player, and then we have specific things we look for in each position."

Athletes' resumés are films of games from the past three or four years. Their references include college and high school coaches, friends, pastors - anyone who could give more information about the player.

"We look as much as we can into the background," Campbell said. "Our area scouts go to the schools two or three times for the major prospects. We talk to a lot of resources there, not only the coaching staff, but the academic support staff, the training staff, the strength staff, the nutrition staff, the graduate assistants, the secretaries. We talk to anybody that the player would come into contact with during his career to get a feeling for his behavior and how responsible he has been throughout his career."

...

"(Character) is very important and becoming even more important with the league's implementation of a fine system for players who get in off-the-field trouble," Campbell said. "You always have to weigh and balance the risk-reward when you are taking players who have a checkered past. Sometimes, there are explanations for it. Sometimes it's maturity. It is one of the most important aspects, and defining it is one of the hardest things to get when scouting a prospect."

...

During the combine, players are not only judged on individual physical tests such as the dash and weight lifting. The league also gives the players drug tests and an intelligence test known as the Wonderlic.

"It is just a piece that really gives you a red flag," Campbell said. "It is not the determining factor at all. Typically, it would raise a red flag if a prospect had a lower score. That allows you to go back to the school, the university and the coaches to find out about the learning."

But the test has some problems:

It's outdated. Many copies of the test have been out on the market for years.

The schools sometimes give the test. At the combine, the environment is controlled. At individual schools, it may not be.

Some athletes might not know how important it is to their overall evaluation and may whisk right through it.

For those reasons, "It is a tool that you use that lets you know you need to investigate a guy, but you can't go by that score alone," Campbell said.

...

Campbell said once teams have all of the numbers on a prospect, they take their best educated guess on a prospect based on past experiences.

"What experience allows you to do is to examine successes and failures," he said. "You determine the characteristics that have made some successful and others not successful."

Intangibles such as determination and heart are immeasurable but just as important in scouting a prospect.

"With all that, there is still a chance you can miss on a guy, so it is not an exact science," Campbell said.

[Rest at Link]

Also lists Wonderlic scores for avg. by position, notable names, other professions, etc.

[Burgold]

Geez... I can't believe how many potential draftees missed the following question--

Why did the Eagle cross the road?

to get a look at a superbowl trophy case

[Thirtyfive2seven]

Geez... I can't believe how many potential draftees missed the following question--

Why did the Eagle cross the road?

to get a look at a superbowl trophy case

Why did Dan Snyder cross the road?

Because his thing was stuck in the Eagle?

[Arsenic]

Eagle = Green flag

Bald Eagle = Whoa, buddy.