Can NFL prospects manipulate the draft through interviews? I think Mayfield did.

[YoloinOhio]

I was thinking that there is very little that draft prospects can control during the process. Of course they all want to go as high as possible but the film is in the bag. They trained for the upcoming combine and the workouts can help/hurt them to some degree. But one of the biggest variables that comes out of the combine other than medicals are the team interviews.

 

Take the QBs- they will interview with a ton of teams, some of which they may not want to go to. When a normal person is in the job market, they get to decide who they want to interview with based on where they want to work. If you are a prospect who wants to have some control over where you play the next 4-5 years before you can “decide” in FA, can’t you purposely blow the interview with a team like the Browns or (gulp - Bills) if you don’t want to go there? Not act like a total jerk or say anything outlandish that could get leaked/reported but just say some things that you think could be looked at as negative by that team ... like if you know the Bills are all about “process” so you purposely give an example of how you are more dialed in on Gameday but the week leading up to it you don’t need to focus as much. Or stumble over questions about preparation and leadership. Then when you interview with the teams you want to play for you knock it out of the park. I feel like it wouldn’t be too hard to figure out what each team wants to hear. 

 

For the pre-draft visits.... same thing. They pretty much can’t choose whether or not to go if invited, but could certainly choose to portray themselves a certain way. 

 

Edited April 18, 2018 by YoloinOhio

[Koko78]

It's a dangerous game. People talk.

 

For example, it was reported before the draft that Geno Smith was more interested in playing with his phone than answering questions during his draft process a few years ago.

[YoloinOhio]

3 minutes ago, Koko78 said:

It's a dangerous game. People talk.

 

For example, it was reported before the draft that Geno Smith was more interested in playing with his phone than answering questions during his draft process a few years ago.

I thought about that Geno story. I think it would need to be more crafty. Like in how you answer questions, or questions asked. 

[Bray Wyatt]

Didnt Kelvin Benjamin say something about dogging his 40 or whatever too so he could go later?

[Gigs]

I think it would get around that your interviewing is bipolar. Someone like Schefter would be told 3 different things about a player’s interview from different teams and make it news. 

[Fadingpain]

The average NFL player is nowhere near intelligent enough to play this type of mind game.

 

Some could do it for sure, and who knows, maybe they do "throw the interview" so they don't end up in Cleveland or Buffalo! 

 

But the player is not interviewing the team, the team is interviewing the player.

 

I honestly think the teams just want 10 minutes of face to face time with these guys so they can talk to them one-on-one and see if the player is dumb as dirt, beyond dumb as dirt, or surprisingly intelligent enough to be able to work with.

 

You don't have to talk to someone very long or ask many questions to realize he is beyond being coachable, or surprisingly sharp for a pro athlete.

 

Look at the IQ level of Brady, Rogers, or Romo.  You wouldn't have to talk to those guys very long to see what they are about.

 

On the flip side, how long do you need to talk to Gronk to realize the guy's head is made of concrete? 

 

And then you make your decisions accordingly.

 

 

 

[26CornerBlitz]

Film don't lie!

[KollegeStudnet]

Man, it's been about a decade, but I remember a story where a first round graded player botched a couple drills because his childhood team that he was a fan of wanted draft him. They didn’t have a first round pick, but a second rounder. 

 

Because he botched the drills, he slid to the middle rounds and was passed by his childhood team. He ended up being drafted by another team and never panned out. 

He ended up saying he botched the drills years after he was out of the league. I'm going to have to look back and research to find out who the guy was. 

[Formerly Allan in MD]

Coaches can manipulate the hiring process (Ryan) thru interviews, so it likely can't hurt draft prospects.

[YoloinOhio]

7 minutes ago, Fadingpain said:

The average NFL player is nowhere near intelligent enough to play this type of mind game.

 

Some could do it for sure, and who knows, maybe they do "throw the interview" so they don't end up in Cleveland or Buffalo! 

 

But the player is not interviewing the team, the team is interviewing the player.

 

I honestly think the teams just want 10 minutes of face to face time with these guys so they can talk to them one-on-one and see if the player is dumb as dirt, beyond dumb as dirt, or surprisingly intelligent enough to be able to work with.

 

You don't have to talk to someone very long or ask many questions to realize he is beyond being coachable, or surprisingly sharp for a pro athlete.

 

Look at the IQ level of Brady, Rogers, or Romo.  You wouldn't have to talk to those guys very long to see what they are about.

 

On the flip side, how long do you need to talk to Gronk to realize the guy's head is made of concrete? 

 

And then you make your decisions accordingly.

 

 

 

I think that can be true of some positions . For a QB - I think they might go a little deeper on the mental stuff.

 

like with the Gruden QB camp (RIP) where he has them break down plays ... it shows how ready they are to be out there in a pro offense 

Edited February 21, 2018 by YoloinOhio

[boyst]

I've known a few guys to get scouted by the pros. The stuff that gets dug up is amazing. When I was in middle school our coach had a former athlete that was being looked at for a mid round pick, I don't remember his name, but there were half a dozen practices where the scout would come watch our practices to see what the coach was like; he told us that these coaches and scouts know that the building blocks of not just football, but life, hard work, determination, pride, rah rah rah, are built on the young practice fields across the country.  It was a powerful message.

 

But, these scouts do more than just interview. They talk to teachers, professors, administrators, preachers, neighbors, etc.

 

But, yes, it's quite obvious a crafty player could do this.

[Koko78]

17 minutes ago, Fadingpain said:

The average NFL player is nowhere near intelligent enough to play this type of mind game.

 

Some could do it for sure, and who knows, maybe they do "throw the interview" so they don't end up in Cleveland or Buffalo! 

 

But the player is not interviewing the team, the team is interviewing the player.

 

I honestly think the teams just want 10 minutes of face to face time with these guys so they can talk to them one-on-one and see if the player is dumb as dirt, beyond dumb as dirt, or surprisingly intelligent enough to be able to work with.

 

You don't have to talk to someone very long or ask many questions to realize he is beyond being coachable, or surprisingly sharp for a pro athlete.

 

Look at the IQ level of Brady, Rogers, or Romo.  You wouldn't have to talk to those guys very long to see what they are about.

 

On the flip side, how long do you need to talk to Gronk to realize the guy's head is made of concrete? 

 

And then you make your decisions accordingly.

 

 

I'm sure part of it is assessing intelligence, etc. I think, especially with the limited time available, that it's more a process to gauge personality than anything else. Is the guy humble, hungry, arrogant, entitled, etc.? Is he going to mesh with the coaches and the team's particular culture?

[White Linen]

I certainly think this is possible Yolo - just as QB's in the past have expressed their desire not to play for certain teams.  Sometimes it's work and other times it hasn't.  You'd really need to have some massive leverage though to attempt this.  You're also costing yourself about 1.5 million from 1st overall to 2nd - about 3.4 million from 1st overall to 4th -  and about 16.5 million from 1st overall to 12th.  

[YoloinOhio]

6 minutes ago, White Linen said:

I certainly think this is possible Yolo - just as QB's in the past have expressed their desire not to play for certain teams.  Sometimes it's work and other times it hasn't.  You'd really need to have some massive leverage though to attempt this.  You're also costing yourself about 1.5 million from 1st overall to 2nd - about 3.4 million from 1st overall to 4th -  and about 16.5 million from 1st overall to 12th.  

I think it would only be the top guys. And they would need to be sneaky.  I just feel like players kind of resent the draft process. Most were highly recruited out of HS and it was their decision where to go. Obviously that can’t happen in the pros but they have that mindset still that they want freedom to choose. 

 

I remember Zeke Elliott was very vocal about wanting to play for the cowboys and even wore Cowboys colors to the draft. 

Edited February 21, 2018 by YoloinOhio

[JoeF]

I think agents do the dirty work most often.  It would be smarter for the player to enter every interview like he wants the job and let the love of the game, intellect and work ethic shine through. 

 

If a kid doesn't want to go somewhere that's the agent's job to communicate.  It's a perverse system because the agent may be talking the player into a lower draft position and slightly less money for the agent ... but in the long run the agent wants happy, long-term clients and endorsements and second contracts are where agents really get paid.

[chaccof]

Didn't John Elway and his father kind of do that back in '83 when they literally told the Colts he wouldn't play for them?  Even after they drafted him, he still said he'd never play for them and his agent did a marvelous job of building trade interest and finally getting Irsay Sr. so mad he jumped in personally to negotiate not such a great deal. 

[Chuck Wagon]

28 minutes ago, YoloinOhio said:

I think it would only be the top guys. And they would need to be sneaky.  I just feel like players kind of resent the draft process. Most were highly recruited out of HS and it was their decision where to go. Obviously that can’t happen in the pros but they have that mindset still that they want freedom to choose. 

 

I remember Zeke Elliott was very vocal about wanting to play for the cowboys and even wore Cowboys colors to the draft. 

 

I believe Herm Edwards on signing day said something to the affect of how shocked he was by the difference in obtaining talent, basically going from picking nits on guys and taking who you want vs begging 17 & 18 year olds to pick your team.

 

 

 

Are the Browns even going to interview Rosen?  I can't see how that wouldn't be the most incredibly awkward interview of the process, they've both basically said they have no interest in the other.

Edited February 21, 2018 by Chuck Wagon

[YoloinOhio]

14 minutes ago, Chuck Wagon said:

 

I believe Herm Edwards on signing day said something to the affect of how shocked he was by the difference in obtaining talent, basically going from picking nits on guys and taking who you want vs begging 17 & 18 year olds to pick your team.

 

 

 

Are the Browns even going to interview Rosen?  I can't see how that wouldn't be the most incredibly awkward interview of the process, they've both basically said they have no interest in the other.

That Dorsey statement from before he took the Browns job would be like an elephant in the room. 

[Marv's Neighbor]

Gotta be the Russians again!

[OldTimeAFLGuy]

2 hours ago, YoloinOhio said:

I thought about that Geno story. I think it would need to be more crafty. Like in how you answer questions, or questions asked. 

 

 

....I'm sure these personnel guys are savvy enough to read between the lines, body language, eye contact, etc just like any job interview....and their film is their resume'/references....but just like in a regular job interview, the employer sometimes hits and sometimes misses.......interestingly, Genome was OBD's first choice in 2013 until they flew down to interview him and work him out.....consensus on plane ride home was "um no thanks"......was it the interview?.....was it the workout?.....was it both?......they didn't like something and it turned out to be right....on the other hand, EJ was their 2nd choice and......"you know the rest of the story"......