Schefter: Teams want to postpone NFL Draft

[amfootball]

The NFL always wins. It is the only game in town literally and it will dominate the month of April and May with the draft just like it dominated March with FA. I am personally psyched to see it not get delayed and for it to happen virtually. I hate all the hoopla of the live events. Go back to the scroll with the teams just electronically punching in their selections. I am pumped for pick #23 and what the Pats will as their natural pick has not been that high in over a decade.

 

[mgteich]

How do you like last year's draft alone?

1.) A big bodied red zone receiver that missed half of the season, but clearly has some talent.
2.) A 6'3" corner who will see plenty of action this year, IMO.
3.) Wino...he's gonna be a starter, IMO.
4.) Harris is gonna see more action this year, IMO. He is like BFF with Stidham.
5.) Two OL depth guys who never played last year.
6.) Our current starting QB per the depth chart.

And in 2018, we drafted our starting LT and RB.

hmm half empty or half full

Many posters look at the same players and are very unsatisfied. They don't like the quality of the starters. 12-4 seasons are horrible failures after all.

 

[amfootball]

How do you like last year's draft alone?

1.) A big bodied red zone receiver that missed half of the season, but clearly has some talent.
2.) A 6'3" corner who will see plenty of action this year, IMO.
3.) Wino...he's gonna be a starter, IMO.
4.) Harris is gonna see more action this year, IMO. He is like BFF with Stidham.
5.) Two OL depth guys who never played last year.
6.) Our current starting QB per the depth chart.

And in 2018, we drafted our starting LT and RB.

I agree. Last year's was pretty a solid draft especially Wino and I think Harry is going to be an above average receiver especially since he has a QB in Stidham who will not ice him out.

 

[Gronk]

And you are sure because you look them in the eye?

Can one truly stare into another’s soul via Skype?

I say just do it as is everyone will have the same flaws - doing it later may in fact allow teams in some areas to have visits before others, who knows. This is how it is this year, it can still be good TV, and without all the ridiculous fans that are all over the usual draft broadcasts.

 

[luuked]

Agree 100%. In person visits haven’t really meant “good choices”.

The point of visits is to put prospects under a microscope in an unfamiliar environment and see how much they absorb and how they react when you have the ability to actively set the script for multiple hours (and not just a short combine iview). The medical is another important aspect, especially for players that were not invited to the combine.

Obviously there is no silver bullet that gives you something definite about a player but to me player visits are an extremely valuable data point for the overall picture.

There is also the story -- told by Lombardi a couple times by now -- how the Pats brought in Manziel and JG at the same time and how JG wasn't intimated or smitten by Brady at all while Manziel seemed to lack in that department:

"(We) put them through the same battery of tests, interviewed them the same way, and both of them were really smart football players," Lombardi said. "(With) both of them, (we) came out saying 'you know what? These guys would fit really well into the program,' because whomever you bring into the New England program has to withstand the Brady element. Like you can't bring a guy who is going to look at Brady and say 'Oh my God, you're great.' You want a guy that's going to come in and compete against Brady. And that's where Garoppolo really won...That's how you have to approach it.

via Former Patriots staffer describes Garoppolo, Manziel visits

 

[farn]

The point of visits is to put prospects under a microscope in an unfamiliar environment and see how much they absorb and how they react when you have the ability to actively set the script for multiple hours (and not just a short combine iview). The medical is another important aspect, especially for players that were not invited to the combine.

Obviously there is no silver bullet that gives you something definite about a player but to me player visits are an extremely valuable data point for the overall picture.

There is also the story -- told by Lombardi a couple times by now -- how the Pats brought in Manziel and JG at the same time and how JG wasn't intimated or smitten by Brady at all while Manziel seemed to lack in that department:



via Former Patriots staffer describes Garoppolo, Manziel visits

ATM, my thirst for entertainment supersedes my desire for draft accuracy. I’m almost done watching Tiger King and I need something to fill the void.

 

[Steve102]

Yeah, that's how the NFL avoids having guys like Rae Carruth and Aaron Hernandez.

I just said that's how I would want to run my organization. Hypothetical.

 

[SHOWTIME15]

Herr Goodell...

 

[rochrist]

It would be great PR for NFL to hold the draft while the nation is starving for entertainment and positive and exciting news to take minds off Pandemic

The NFL teams can survive without the in person visits for one year pre draft

Yes, great PR for the NFL to show off their fat cat owners giving millions of dollars to kids while half the country is beginning to starve.

 

[XLIX]

Yes, great PR for the NFL to show off their fat cat owners given millions of dollars to kids while half the country is beginning to starve.

You sound like the people who wanted to postpone free agency for the same reason. Instead they went ahead with free agency and no one got upset about the "optics". Do you think the economy will be significantly better in May than April? Or in June? When exactly do you think it should be held?

There's no reason to postpone the draft. It can be done safely by being done remotely, and each team has the same disadvantage in preparing.

 

[Nikolai]

Herr Goodell...

Yep, someone's flexing now that the new CBA is signed...

 

[XLIX]

Yep, someone's flexing now that the new CBA is signed...

I think it was meant more as a warning to the GM’s, not the players. I doubt they care terribly much.

 

[Nikolai]

I think it was meant more as a warning to the GM’s, not the players. I doubt they care terribly much.

I take it the same way, but the point is that he doesn't have to play nice anymore. As far as I'm tracking, there aren't many negotiations coming up and it's prohibitively difficult to fire him. We'll get to see his nasty side in all it's ****ing awfulness.

 

[marian]

Would you like to draft a guy in 1st round only to find out in the training camp that he had the virus and now his lungs are in 20-30% destroyed?

 

[XLIX]

Would you like to draft a guy in 1st round only to find out in the training camp that he had the virus and now his lungs are in 20-30% destroyed?

I know I wouldn't, but that can happen to any player.

 

[raduray]

If the NFL pulls this off, they should next share their system with Congress so that they can participate/vote remotely.

 

[rochrist]

I take it the same way, but the point is that he doesn't have to play nice anymore. As far as I'm tracking, there aren't many negotiations coming up and it's prohibitively difficult to fire him. We'll get to see his nasty side in all it's ****ing awfulness.

Plus he isn't going to get another contract. This will be it for him.

 

[captain stone]

...Knowing the Patriots' superior prep, I think it is an advantage for us to proceed ahead...

Superior prep?
How‘s all that superior prep been working out in recent years

I was about to post the same response...

"Superior prep"...yeah right...

Whatever prep is the opposite of Superior, that's what Little Billy is doing right now...

 

[TruthSeeker]

Postpone until when? At what point will travel commence? At what point will it make sense to have the draft? These are questions that we don't really have the answers for. Better to stay on schedule with what you have and give yourself a better chance for starting the season on time. Piling everything up until later just creates more headaches overall.

 

[Scotty]

What would happen if this years draft goes ahead but the football season does not ? Would that mean the 2021 draft players from college will still go into a draft........probably but could be a log jam of players