Over the past few years, with the NFL's popularity rising quite a bit, the combine has gone from something only the die-hard fans watch to something that receives a ton of mainstream coverage. It's really part of the notion that the NFL has become so big that anything it puts on will be watched, even an event where potential draft picks are merely running around and doing workouts.
With all of the added attention the combine now receives, fans have started reading into every single measurement or time, no matter how unimportant it may be. While some of the numbers can reveal information about the players, most of the drills and workouts don't really translate to the football field. That is the basis of Jerry Mallory's latest video for SB Nation (subscribe here) on Pride of Detroit's YouTube channel. He examined if the combine is being overrated by fans.
I would say it almost definitely is overrated by fans. Just from reading the comments from Martin Mayhew and Jim Schwartz and other people in the NFL over the last couple weeks, it's clear that they don't put a ton of stock in the numbers from the combine. Sure, the numbers could help form their opinion on a player, but the combine is merely one tool that makes up a larger profile based on years of scouting.
Do you think we as fans put too much stock in the combine?
