How to read scoutspeak
Mike Tanier knows a thing or two about the nitty-gritty details that make the NFL so intriguing. This time of year we get inundated by draftniks, many without any credentials whatsoever. Tanier tells us to look for those with scouting experience and listen carefully:
Every Scoutspeak term does correspond with some real physical attribute, and true experts like Mayock can pepper their explanations with jargon without delving into non-Newtonian football minutiae. Others use Scoutspeak to conceal ignorance. The Paradox of Draft Analysis states that the more detailed the observations about a prospect’s kinesiology, the less likely the writer-speaker is to have ever seen the prospect play football.
To acquire an ear for Scoutspeak, read draft publications; keep in mind that the grungier the production values, the better the information. Glossy magazines are for the mass market; true draft guides are churned out on blue mimeograph paper and stapled, like the heavy metal newsletters handed out by guys with face tattoos at indie record stores. Russ Lande’s “GM Jr.” is the best guide around; its 400 pages of single-digit fonts make it the Norton Anthology of Backup Linebackers.
I am with you AJ. As someone who grew up reading Buchsbaum in PFW and spending nights struggling to get his radio show from 1000 miles away in an era of over air broadcasting, who has his old copies of PFW's pre and post draft issues going back to 1979 (Barry Krauss), understanding what the scouts mean when they use certain terms and knowing when they are making stuff up just to have something to fill the pro or con column is second nature by now.
@19>18 I read somewhere that wine enthusiasts liked to do the same thing. And in my profession - IT - I have noticed that there's a distinct use of terminology and lingo that indicates a person's level of knowledge. I've had to develop that in order to support other support personnel, as well as participate in hiring.
There's a lot of reading between the lines of many scouts writings, that's for sure. That just seems to be a fact of life in any profession, I fear. :-S
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Oh that was freakin' AWESOME! :D
"For years, insisting that the second-ranked quarterback on the draft board is far superior to the top-ranked quarterback has been the go-to contrary opinion for the draftnik in a hurry. Love for the second quarterback blooms about the same time as crocuses in most states, which explains the direct correlation between this year’s mild winter and all of the Robert Griffin III hype...
...Finally, they can downgrade a top defensive lineman because he plays the wrong “technique.” Sure, he is 300 pounds of sculptured titanium, bench-presses old Chevy engine blocks for fun and recorded 60 career sacks at a major program, but he may not transition smoothly from three-technique to five-technique, an insurmountable adjustment that amounts to lining up about 42 lateral inches from where he did at college."
ROFLMAO!!! I loved that article. It totally resembles me!! :D
