My last article resulted in a flurry of feedback from the Sports Central readership. For those of you who missed it, basically I was noting that the quality of quarterbacks in the NFL is not what it should be and a number of teams have been unable or unwilling to upgrade at the position.
I also predicted (slightly sarcastically) that the playoff teams would not change since the better quarterbacks play on the playoff teams from last year.
I learned the following from the e-mails I received: (a) the Sports Central Nation is very well-informed (as indicated by several people who noted the error I made as I went through the QB depth charts of several teams); (b) Name-calling is apparently how debate is moved forward by a number of readers, and; (c) Jake Delhomme has a huge fan base within those of you who read Sports Central based upon the number of e-mails that came in to defend the Carolina Panther QB.
Readers, be ready as I move onto my next observation.
The NFL is an exclusive club and once admitted, the payoffs are huge.
This statement isn't one I make lightly. Think about what is said by analysts, columnists, and others who cover the league when one team wins. "The NFL is a copycat league."
Absolutely. But the reasons the NFL is a copycat league go beyond simply that imitation is the greatest form of flattery.
The NFL itself is setup as an entity that is slow to change or evolve on its own because the people who play, coach and critique are the same people.
I will outline a number of factors that I consider to be the main contributors that show that the NFL is a club that likes its own and resists outsiders.
Coaching Carousel
This term is more than a cliché. The coaches in the NFL set the team philosophy and direction. They set trends and innovate. The problem is, more often than not, owners will reach for a name from the past or a former head coach to run their team.
While this makes sense from a risk-reward point of view, it doesn't move the game forward.
When the Dallas Cowboys were looking for a coach, owner Jerry Jones went back to the future to bring in Bill Parcells. Parcells was on his way to the Hall of Fame and had to have his name removed from ballot considerations as he was going to become active again.
The Washington Redskins liked the 1980s so much owner Dan Snyder hired Joe Gibbs to repeat the success he had in the days when Miami Vice was a hit show.
Out in the desert, the Arizona Cardinals talked Dennis Green out of his self-imposed exile and convinced him to return to the sidelines.
Each of these men was out of football for a number of years and yet each landed the head coach job in a classic example illustrating how NFL membership can last a lifetime.
Dick Vermeil of the Kansas City Chiefs, Marty Schottenheimer of the San Diego Chargers, and Norv Turner of the Oakland Raiders also represent other head coaches who in some cases were thought to never coach again and yet, they are a head coach once more.
If you aren't a previous head coach, then the next best way to land a job in the NFL is to be on the staff that had a great deal of success. The Bill Walsh San Francisco 49ers have a great legacy in the NFL annals and also in the number of current head coaches with close links to the 49er glory years.
Mike Holmgren, Jon Gruden, Andy Reid, Steve Mariucci, and Mike Shanahan all have coaching roots that can be traced back to the 49ers.
The "West Coast Offense" is now played on the East Coast, the Gulf of Mexico Coast, the Lake Michigan Coast, and other places where there aren't any significant water masses at all.
If you throw in the Bill Parcells coaching tree with Bill Belichick and his offshoots, the vast majority of head coaches in the NFL really come from only a few teams. Same teams, same philosophies, same ideas.
While not all head coaches have this pedigree, those that don't often aren't given much of a chance to succeed when they do get a crack at the big job (see Chan Gailey, Jim Fassel, and Gregg Williams). Meanwhile, the same names get the opportunity to be a head coach in another town when they were just run out of the other city on a rail.
We Are Family
Some would say that those who play in the NFL represent some of the best athletes around. The odds of making a roster in the NFL are slim and many have their professional football dreams end long before an August training camp.
So, with so few jobs and so many hopefuls, what are the odds that members of the same family can land places on the roster?
Real good, apparently.
Ronde and Tiki Barber. Peyton, Archie, and Eli Manning. Phil and Chris Simms. Bob and Brian Griese. Ty and Coy Detmer. Matt and Tim Hasselbeck. Tony and Anthony (Jr.) Dorsett. Walter and Jarrett Payton. Mark and Michael Clayton. The Gramaticas.
Throw in all the cousins that are also playing in the NFL together and it becomes clear that in order to crack the NFL, knowing the right people is just as important as having the skills.
That isn't to say the above players named aren't worthy of playing in the NFL, but how many would-be stars don't get the invite to the scouting combine because someone had a brother or father who was there some years ago?
The Big Six
The NFL has the most extensive farm system of any professional league. College football is huge and national coverage for some teams is almost as great as the pro league.
The majority of the high-profile teams play in the big-name conferences: the SEC, the Big 10, the Big 12, the Pac-10, the ACC, and the Big East (although this one is fading as fast as teams leave the conference).
These six conferences run college football and the big-game, big-money BCS. If you want to play in the NFL, landing a scholarship with a team in one of these conferences is a great step forward.
Not only is the media present at these colleges, previous NFL coaches are also often on staff at the school. These connections play a role in getting a chance at the NFL. Think of the big names in the NFL: Peyton Manning (SEC), Tom Brady (Big 10), and Mike Vick (ACC).
Not every star played in one of the Big Six conferences, but it becomes a big story when they don't. When Chad Pennington and Ben Roethlisberger played well, part of the story behind them was the fact that they played their college ball in schools that were not part of the Big Six conferences.
How many other players don't get the chance because they don't play at a school with ex-NFL coaches and scouts on the payroll?
The Mel Kiper Factor
It isn't possible to talk about college football and not mention Mel Kiper. Look at Kiper's website the day after the draft and he posts his idea of who the top-25 recruits will be for next year.
Last year, Kiper had Carnell Williams of Auburn as the top pick for the next year shortly after Eli Manning was chosen first overall by the San Diego Chargers. While Williams was not the number one pick and in fact his team-mate, Ronnie Brown was chosen in front of him, the attention and hype for Williams didn't hurt him and could have played a part in him going number five overall.
Look at Kiper's website now and he has DeAngelo Williams from little-known University of Memphis in Conference USA on his draft board at number four overall and the number one running back.
It will be interesting to see how Williams benefits from Kiper's endorsement of his NFL abilities. We will never know how Williams would fare in the draft without Kiper's input, but if Kiper stated that Williams wasn't good enough for the NFL, don't you think that would carry some weight in some NFL war rooms on draft day?
Color Analysts
Former players and coaches are an important part of any broadcast or pre- or post-game show. These people can offer insights that those of us who never walked an NFL sideline could ever contribute. However, these former NFLers also bring with them their ideas of how the game is to be played.
In the 24-hour media presence of today's sports world, the comments made by these color analysts have an effect on those who still play.
How many times has a remark made on television or radio enraged present-day coaches and players?
The criticism isn't taken well and often results in interviews being declined or arguments that the networks gladly broadcast. This perpetuates the same ideas and narrows debate. The NFL doesn't like criticism and has some control over the networks.
Also, have you ever noticed that a large number of analysts then return to the game after covering all the teams and watching their practices? Certainly, this continues the same circle of the same people doing the same thing.
The NFL is where football players want to be. It has the money, the profile, and opportunities for fame that many dream about while they pursue their dream career.
But the NFL runs on a business model of lowering risk as much as possible. While this makes sense on a business level, it makes you wonder how many would-be stars are selling insurance instead of Gatorade.
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