With the Super Bowl behind us, all teams in the NFL are now 0-0 and it is time to focus on the next season. The first major event of the next year is the NFL Scouting Combine. The combine has been in the news a lot recently with people criticizing some of the events that take place there, others questioning the need for the combine, while the league is considering moving it from city to city as it does the Super Bowl.
The combine started in 1982 in Tampa. Prior to that, each team was flying all over the country (and flying potential draftees into their cities) to gather information on college players. The combine allowed the NFL teams to centralize the evaluation process. It moved around for a few years before settling in Indianapolis in 1987. It’s been there ever since (36 years) because downtown Indianapolis is perfectly designed for events like the combine, with everything within walking distance (and medical facilities centrally located).
Both NFL executive VP of football operations Troy Vincent and NFLPA executive director De Smith were recently critical of the combine, with Smith questioning the need for it given the information that is already available on the players. Matt LaFleur recently joined a number of head coaches in deciding not to attend the combine. He said that he and his coaches were better off spending this time at the facility getting ready for the upcoming season.
Meanwhile, the NFL is considering taking the combine on the road. The league has committed to holding the combine in Indianapolis through 2024 and is looking at Dallas, Los Angeles and Indianapolis as possibilities after that.
In my mind, the combine is still an important tool in getting ready for the draft. It’s great to have all the players there, and the meetings with the players are especially helpful. It is also helpful to see how the players perform in a number of the drills. In recent years, the league has made some changes to ensure that the players are being treated well. It is also an opportunity for clubs to meet with the agents of current players on their teams.
While I realize that the combine has become a popular media event, I do not think moving it around like the Super Bowl makes sense. I imagine that the traffic in Los Angeles and Dallas would make for a much different combine than in Indy – you would spend a lot of your time in a car waiting for traffic to clear out. I know that 36 years can make us creatures of habit, but the combine has also worked…
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