NFL Combine

     The NFL Scouting Combine started in 1982. The purpose was to learn more about the health and fitness of the top draft picks. This four-day event allows the nations top college prospects to show off their skills in front of all 32 teams. The NFL Combine is invite only and can accommodate up to 335 players. This means not everyone that is drafted is invited to the NFL Combine.  Those individuals that are invited get the chance to not only show off their skills, but in addition they gain a lot of media exposure. The NFL Combine has got to the point where it is too big in my opinion. This post is going to show you just how big the NFL Combine has become.

     The NFL Combine started as a private event that had no media coverage. It was only open to scouts, coaches, and invited players. In 2004 the NFL Network began their taping inside the dome. They first used taped coverage to air on the NFL Network. Now in 2011 viewers see more than 30 hours of live coverage. Television audiences have grown because of the new exposure. Last year the NFL Combine had 5.24 million viewers, which set a record for the NFL Combine. The NFL Draft is similar to the NFL Combine in that it started as a private event. Now the draft is a televised event that just this past year had an audience of 32.9 million viewers. This is a lot more than the combine, but I think it’s important to note that the draft is in prime time. A few more years and the NFL Combine may have just as many viewers as the draft.

     Every year the NFL Combine attracts a larger number of media personnel. In 2011 the NFL set a record with 715 media credentials for the NFL Combine. This is an increase from the 628 media passes handed out the year before. The real question is when will the media credentials be capped off? I think media exposure is important in this case, but it must be a little overwhelming with so many media personnel. Seth Wickersham a writer for ESPN magazine wrote, “I never felt more like a parasite than at the NFL Combine.” At the combine all reporters have to wait out in the conventions center lobby. The real action occurs in the dome where only the NFL Network can tape. The media waits outside for players and coaches to pass. There hope is to get individual questions answered before the press conference. Seth Wickersham said that people would walk by and the media would huddle around anyone who looked like they were involved with the NFL.

     I can’t imagine going to an event where over 700 people huddle around me. I understand that it’s important for these players to get exposure, but I just can’t see the need for that many media credentials. The NFL Combine used to be about proving yourself on the field in front of the teams. Now they have added the media on the outside, which in my opinion is so big, that is becoming a distraction. Imagine just how much time it takes to get through the lobby when there are 700 people standing there. I want to know just who qualifies for a media credential. At this point the event is a successful televised event that allows the NFL to make money in the off-season. I don’t see a problem with the fact that it’s televised. I just can’t see the need for all the media that is involved. I think the NFL needs to be stricter when it comes to giving out media credentials.