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kam.
Mr. Blackmon
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http://www.cbssports.com/nfl/draft/story/15736612/need-help-evaluating-talent-ask-packers-ravens
Heh. Since Lion fans think Mayhew is god, and since Bosox thinks BB is a genius.Ask any NFL employee and they'll tell you that for all of the money that goes into contracts for head coaches and players, the scouting department is the life blood of any successful team.
Sure, some clubs are built into playoff contenders because they hit on a few first-round picks or spend wisely in free agency. Most do so by building from within and finding the proverbial diamonds in the rough during the middle and later rounds of the draft, as well as undrafted free agency.
Just scouting and drafting well, however, doesn't necessarily translate into victories. Coaches have to be able to draw the peak-level talent and effort from the players they've been given. Players have to perform and remain healthy.
Perhaps the most critical element to success in the NFL is communication between the scouting department and the coaching staff. By understanding precisely the physical and mental characteristics coaches are looking for, scouts are able to find the top-rated prospects for their clubs' unique schemes, rather than simply taking the man widely viewed as the best available player.
To assess just which scouting departments are the best in the league, NFLDraftScout.com asked the only people who would really know -- the scouts, themselves.
A panel of five individual talent evaluators ranging from area scouts to general managers agreed to identify the five best scouting departments in the NFL. They were asked to largely ignore the team's overall record or thoughts on the coaching staff in their assessment, and instead focus on reliability, longevity and consistency of the scouting department. The scouts, whose identities are protected, were not allowed to choose the teams in which they are currently employed.
Their answers may surprise you...
The Top Five Scouting Departments:
5. Jacksonville Jaguars
Two of the five scouts asked listed the Jaguars' scouting department among the top five groups in the league. Another did not list Jacksonville among his top five. He did peg Jacksonville as the NFL's most underrated unit.
Asked to explain the selection, one high level scout summarized: "[General manager] Gene Smith worked his way up through the organization. He can make his own opinions but respects the work done by his staff. [The Jaguars] aren't afraid to go after the small school players, which requires guts and an eye for talent. They've also got one of the better scouts in the business in Tim Mingey, who won the C.O. Brocato award last year as the Hall of Fame's Scout of the Year."
Prior to 2009, when Smith was hired, the Jaguars had developed a reputation for gambling on athletic upside. This led to busts with defensive ends Derrick Harvey and Quentin Groves, as well as 2008 first-round pick safety Reggie Nelson.
Since then, the Jaguars seem to have hit on their first round picks, though quarterback Blaine Gabbert, offensive lineman Eben Britton and certainly defensive end Tyson Alualu were panned by some. The Jaguars have also been extraordinarily successful in the middle rounds, finding starters DT Terrance Knighton, WR Mike Thomas, DE Derek Cox and OG Will Rackley in the third round or later since 2009.
4. New York Giants
Three of the five scouts listed the Giants among their top five, with one listing New York's crew as the second-best in the NFL. General manager Jerry Reese was highlighted by two of them, with one scout also acknowledging Jerry Shay, a former Giants' defensive tackle and a scout for the club since 1973.
Since hiring Reese to take over for Ernie Accorsi in 2007, the Giants have won a Super Bowl and have never finished a season with a losing record. Those facts speak for themselves. Perhaps most impressive, however, has been the Giants' drafting. Reese's first draft class in 2007 played a huge role in their winning the Super Bowl a year later. While some teams talk about building through the draft and ignoring the high costs and bust rates of veteran free agency, the Giants have lived it. Of their current starters, only Eli Manning (acquired in a draft day trade with San Diego), OT Kareem McKenzie, FS Antrel Rolle and LB Michael Boley weren't drafted by the Giants.
3. Pittsburgh Steelers
Four of the five scouts listed the Steelers among the NFL's elite.
Kevin Colbert, the first officially recognized general manager in the history of the Pittsburgh Steelers has been with the organization since 2000, when he was hired away from the Detroit Lions as the team's director of football operations. Pittsburgh is perhaps best known for the Steel Curtain defense, but rival scouts recognized Colbert and his staff for their forward thinking on the offensive side of the ball every bit as much as their collaboration with Pittsburgh's defensive-minded head coaches -- Bill Cowher and Mike Tomlin -- during Colbert's tenure.
Said one scout, "Colbert is such a good scout in his own right, but what the Steelers do as well as any team in the league is work hand-in-hand with the coaching staff. Their scouts know exactly what traits their coaches are looking for in players."
The working relationship shows. Statistics can be bent in lots of ways to prove a point, but this one requires little explanation. In the 10 years Colbert worked in Detroit, the Lions went to the playoffs five times. Since he left, they haven't been back. The Steelers, on the other hand, have gone to the playoffs seven of the past 11 years, reached the AFC Championship game five times and have won two Super Bowls.
2. Baltimore Ravens
Four of the five scouts polled listed the Baltimore Ravens as one of the NFL's top five scouting departments. General manager Ozzie Newsome gets most of the credit -- and according to those questioned, he deserves it.
"Newsome is a so savvy. He reads the board well and doesn't chase needs. That's why he's had so many stars fall into his lap. He follows the best-player-available strategy and gets good football players every time."
One scout also mentioned that Eric DeCosta, who now serves as Baltimore's director of player personnel after serving six years as the team's Scouting Director, should be a GM by now. DeCosta has interviewed for such jobs, and reportedly was a prime target of the Oakland Raiders this week.
Since the move to Baltimore, Newsome has helped the Ravens' staff become arguably the NFL's most consistent talent evaluators. In their first ever draft, they landed future Hall of Famers Jonathan Ogden and Ray Lewis. Including linebacker Bart Scott, who was signed as an undrafted free agent, the Ravens have produced 14 "homegrown" Pro Bowl players in just 15 seasons. It is also important to note that unlike the other teams on this list, Baltimore scouts independently and is not a current member of either of the two scouting services used by most other NFL teams to help narrow the search for new talent.
1. Green Bay Packers
Playing well this season as the defending Super Bowl champs, perhaps it isn't much of a surprise that the Packers head this list.
It is interesting that Green Bay's scouting department, led by general manager Ted Thompson, was nominated by all five poll participants.
Three of the scouts listed Green Bay first.
Thompson has long been recognized in scouting circles as one of the better and more committed talent scouts in the business. Like Pittsburgh's Kevin Colbert, Thompson was acknowledged by peers not only for the success he has had with his current team, but his former team, as well. Prior to re-signing with Green Bay, Thompson followed Mike Holmgren to Seattle. Thompson, according to one scout, was instrumental in his role as the Seahawks' vice president of football operations in helping Seattle reach Super Bowl XL. Many credit Thompson with recognizing the talent he had in Aaron Rodgers and not allowing Brett Favre's past to guide the Packers' pursuit of future success. Similar gambles on B.J. Raji, Clay Matthews, James Starks, Jermichael Finley and even backup quarterback Matt Flynn have already paid off.
"What's scary is that the [scouting department] has helped the Packers build the deepest, most talented team in the league. Thompson is running the show for the Super Bowl champs, so he's king of the hill -- and he may stay there for awhile."
