I thought it interesting that Belichick gave his coaches time off from the combine. Now I'm not a draft person like others here ... casual observer. But I've often thought the combine is really not a format that Belichick would find very useful anyways ... but it's there so he goes. So my question is does anyone here think the combine has any useful value to Belichick? If he gives his coaches time off that tells me he's really not afraid of missing anything. Perhaps the combine is more useful to the coaches as in learning the ropes.
The drills are far less important than the interviews & medical, and the public has zero access to that.
How many times have we heard the Patriots coaches say "mentally tough"? The combine offers an efficient way to meet with dozens of prospects, and compare their personality/make-up.
Can he diagnose a play? Does he know the assignments of others around them?
Can he repeat back assignments that you explained?
Is he professional?
Does he appear to be a hard worker? How important is football?
How does he respond to that off-field problem he had as a freshman?
Did he prepare for your interview?
Is he confident? ****y?
If all you knew about Tom Brady was his combine performance, you wouldn't pick him up.
If all you knew about Tom Brady was his interview performance, I'd bet you'd be surprised he was still available on the second day of the draft.
The combine gives the coaches this level of insight.
That said, I don't know if you can set up five different interview rooms with five coaching groups, and see five times the number of players. You may only need a couple of coaches to get that information.
The numbers are available to anyone on the internet. Speed and power on the field is more important than speed and power in the gym, and that's available on the tape. Anyone that showcases surprising results - that simply throws up a flag, good or bad, and you go back to the tape again watching for that.
You don't need the coaches for the medical tests, so no need to send anyone to watch the professional take an MRI.
That's why Belichick goes, and that's why he snoozes through the Olympics portion.
