NFL Announces New Regional Combine Initiative

I have nfl network. I may watch it here and there just like I tend to watch the combine workouts here and there on nfln

Would you watch a regional combine like this on television (assuming you had NFLN, of course)?

No.

In hopes of being noticed?

No- not in a million years.

At this point, I’m really curious as to what percentage of NFL fans get more entertainment out of the draft than the actual season. My guess is 20%. In baseball, I have also encountered a huge contingent of fans who are absolutely obsessed with minor league prospects to the point that they get more satisfaction out of touting their development than they do their parent club’s on-field success. I find both groups strange to my sensibilities, but I guess I can’t stand on an old school soap box either. Over the past few seasons, I have begun to enjoy following my two fantasy teams more than watching the BIlls on Sunday afternoons. Entertainment products rise and fall. There was a time when boxing and horse racing were two of the three most prominent spectator sports in America…very few are concerned with those entertainment products in 2011.

Reeks of a rating ploy but I’m still pissed that my cable company (Brighthouse) doesn’t carry the NFL Network…

1 I like to see what prospects will be available for the Bills to draft. I really enjoy watching the offseason coverage leading up to the draft. This could give everyone a chance to see what players will most likely be drafted late in the draft. Everyone knows about the top rated prospects but what about getting a chance to see guys like Jasper pre-draft, I’m sure a lot of Bills fans would have loved to get more footage of him other than the home made youtube videos we all saw after they picked him.

2 Anything NFL related during the painfully slow offseason is something I will watch and if its potentially Bills related even better. I wouldn’t say I enjoy pre-draft coverage better than watching live games, but it helps me to make it through the off-season. I say the more NFL pre-draft coverage the better.

That being said I still would rather watch replays of games from the previous season, come on NFLN why not give us a second chance to watch our team play, you got 24hrs a day to kill replaying games would fill some of those time slots, just sayin.

I usually try to watch the combine and watch the position groups that I think are a need for the Bills, and that’s a chore.

I’d have to agree with Brian’s point that it seems to be an interest/ratings boost for the off-season. I’ve already seen the change in NFLN looking more and more like ESPN. They seem to focus on the big 12-20 teams for 90% of their air-time.

I would ABSOLUTELY watch it. Not only is it an opportunity for young guys who might get passed over, it is a perfect opportunity to become more familiar with guys who will be “undrafted free agents” should their opportunity not pan out. In addition, I think all NFL teams should be required to run open workouts, to see if there are “Cinderella Stories” to still be found, like Fred Jackson. ESPECIALLY given the fact a lot of other teams might not want to be bothered, allowing talent starved rosters like ours, more footage on guys that there may be less tape on… with their measurables. That may not mean you draft them… but it doesn’t mean that it isn’t some kid like Joique Bell, or Naaman Roosevelt… Just seems dumb NOT to have a combine for the kids that won’t play in the Senior Bowl, get invited to the Combine in Indy, or have the means to travel to multiple teams workouts, should they EVEN BE A TEAM, that does that!

I think they should hold an invitational game for all underclassmen that declare, along with these… idk… let’s say “secondary” players who may not necessarily be drafted (as come on, there are less than 300 drafted each year. There MUST be guys who get missed.) and it can be like the senior bowl. a chance for them to all play, in a short week, and get evaluated in a “snapshot” week of activities, based on how they do at these regional combines. I have wanted a system like this since following the draft, which has only been the last decade or so. (wasn’t much of a college fan.)

I’d watch it, ONLY if it was done with legitimacy and not like some reality show.

I’d rather see a Regional NCAA football playoff, followed by a Super Regional NCAA Championship game in Detroit. Bowl games suck. A month of absolute crap.

A month of REAL college games would be fantastic!
Would it be March Madness? No.

IT WOULD BE HOLIDAY HYSTERIA!!! And we all get to fill out brackets at work!
What could be better?!?!

I really think this a great idea…I cant believe no other sport has thought of this before…what better way to find diamonds in the rough. Not to mention this would be going on in a great time of the year. This would be happening in a “dead time” for sports…baseball just starting…middle of year for bball and hockey.

Kudos to the powers that be…excellent idea.

I’d watch it if NFLN didn’t completely suck and I didn’t have to pay extra for it.

I would far prefer a well organized and well supported minor league playing with NFL rules that is used expressly for the development of players. The NFL simply can’t let the NCAA hold them hostage in player development anymore. They need a minor league under their own control.