February 17, 2025 • 31 mins
On this episode of the Giants Huddle podcast, John Schmeelk chats with former Giants offensive lineman, and current NFL Vice President of Football Development, Roman Oben. They discuss how the College All-Star Games were executed and how the NFL is implementing changes to help prospects.
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
It's time to get inside the Giants. Let's go, Let's go,
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Speaker 2 (00:09):
Let's roll.
Speaker 1 (00:10):
Welcome to another edition of the Giants Little Podcast, brought
to you by Citizens, the official bank of the New
York Football Giants. I am John Schmelk. We are joined
by former Giants offensive lineman Roman Obin. Roman. I will
let you give your title. You work with the NFL
now in the league office. You've got the you got
the shield on your chest there we can see it. Uh, first,
tell the folks what you're doing and what you're up to,
(00:30):
and then the myriad of things that you're responsible for,
and will kind of go through all of them.
Speaker 2 (00:36):
So my official title now is Vice President Football Development.
So I currently deal with a lot of the strategy
behind the college to pro pathway from informing FBS coaches
about some of the policies and working with the nh
double A, the All Star games. You know we see
each other's singing Bowl every year, singing Blea Spress Fine Bowl,
(00:58):
working with the Combine on player performance. And then I
had a start and actually ten years ago its January
of twenty fifteen in health and safety. So we were
dealing with a lot of the youth football issues, concussions
of the negative health and safety narrative, and more importantly,
how clubs could do a lot in their communities to
highlight football participation, celebrate coaches and all that. So I've
(01:21):
had a myriad of responsibilities, as you mentioned, but I'm
really happy about the work that I get to do
and the people that I get to work with, and
obviously got our local clubs right in our backyard with
you guys, and obviously the Jets as.
Speaker 1 (01:33):
Well for sure. All Right, so why don't we start
then with the All Star Games? Because those just happened.
We'll talk about the combine and then we'll kind of
go from their room, and so let's go first the
All Star Games. They just happened. What kind of impact
is the league having on those two games, how they're run,
what are you guys trying to achieve. We saw the
rule change last couple of years with the underclass and
being able to go to the games. We've seen the
(01:54):
rule change this year where if you attend these games,
you had to play, right. That was a rule that
kind of got in this year as well, So just
tell me about the direction you're trying to take these
games to help that college to pro pathway.
Speaker 2 (02:07):
Well, the first thing you mentioned was this was the
first year where there were no rule changes in terms
of the coaching staff from the prior year. So in
the old days, if you had the lowest record and
you were retained, you had to coach the Senior Bowl,
and then the East West game had a blended staff
if you will have just different coaches from every club
based on club nominations. Now across both games you have
(02:30):
a blended staff. So we've got to get down about
one hundred twenty five submissions from coach from GMS and
coaches across the league to down to about sixty five
slots between the head coaches, often the coordinated for both games,
and obviously special teams coaches as well, which you're seeing
a trend maybe with some special teams coaches being head
coaches and some of these all star games, because they
(02:52):
know both sides of the ball, they know all the personnel,
they know all the back end of the roster. So
it's been a good change. I mean, I think it's
important to talk about like club equity, make sure all
the clubs are represented, but there is a process. So
Joe shown Andy Barry from the obviously gym and the Browns.
There were two other gms, one wasn't retained and one
(03:14):
was still in the playoffs, so it would have been
for general managers plus Rod Graves, who's head of a
Fish Polder alliance. So a push towards minority coaches, a
push towards just advancement in a lot of those areas.
So if you're the D line coach, you get to
be the defensive coordinator. If you're a running backs coach
with the Giants, you're gonna be offensive coordinator. So those
are the kind of things that we've done, and coaches
(03:35):
are able to do something that they don't do during
the year, and most likely you're going to coach a
guy they end up drafting, because now you get to
stand on a chair saying, I work with this guy
for a week. This is how we approach the meetings,
This is how he approached all those interviews. It's a
long schedule, but it's a part of the journey that
they're constantly evaluating these kids in terms of who will
(03:56):
best fit our a roster or a draft selection or
even a free agent the Roman real quick.
Speaker 1 (04:00):
Just to stay with the coaches. But before we get
to the players, how does that committee of the GMS
and the president of the Fritz Power Alliance, how do
they actually go about selecting the coaches? Do they get
a list of recommendations from teams?
Speaker 2 (04:11):
Like?
Speaker 1 (04:11):
How does that process actually go down?
Speaker 2 (04:14):
Yeah, so all teams that are not in the teams
that have been eliminated from the playoffs will all vote,
and you'll get a last minute vote from the teams
that got bounced out for the wildcard round. So they'll
nominate someone for potential head coach who comes from the
coordinator ranks, potential coordinator who comes from whether a position
coach ranks or a quarterback receiver coach becomes an offensive coordinator,
(04:38):
and then they nominate assistant. So your assistant D line
coach would be nominated for like a you know, a
D line coach. For example, Angela Baker from the Giants
has been the last two years. So she's an example
of someone that gets to coach. She got to coach
tight ends this year at the Singer Bowl.
Speaker 1 (04:54):
So say de right, James Ferns is the assistant on
line coach here. He was the full time all line
coach at the at the Senior Bowl.
Speaker 2 (05:00):
Yeah, and I worked with him for a week and
we talked about so we can talk about that a
little bit. But yeah, So once the head coaches and
coordinators are decided, then me and a few staff we
actually personally select the position coaches. So we go down
the list. We look at coaching experience. I mean, you
have a lot of NFL coaches that coached in college
for eight nine years and then they come to the
(05:21):
NFL and their assistant d line or assistant position coaches,
so they actually have coaching experience, just not a lot
of long NFL experience. So going back to coach college
All Stars is actually it's a plus for them. So
we look at college experience, we look at we look
at guys like Mike Adams. You know a former NFL
players that are going into coaching right away. Mike I
know him very well. I know his family, you know,
(05:41):
from Patterson on New Jersey, and a lot of things
he's done in the community back home when he's playing
on other teams. But to see him coaching last year,
he coached special teams this year, he's coach. He coached dB,
so there's always a tie in to guys that coach
in college, guys that played in the NFL potentially, and
just getting them to coach in a way that they're
not coaching during the week during the regular season.
Speaker 1 (06:04):
All right, So that's the coaching side of it. Let's
talk about the players side of it. How are you
trying to enhance the scouting process and the player evaluation
standpoint of everything so these players can really show their
best for the team's coaches that are coaching them and
the scouts in front of this personnel that are watching
them and meeting with them and meetings during the week.
Speaker 2 (06:22):
Yeah. Well, I would say, first of all, I mean
Jamagi does a great job from a Singing Bow perspective
of running running a good ship. I mean there's a
lot of gms, a lot of head coaches that show
up during the week to watch those practices. From a
player standpoint, he does a good job, you know, getting
the players there and yet a high, you know, high
percentage of guys that have been drafted from the Singer
Bowl specifically, I think from my perspective in terms of quality,
(06:48):
I look at the O line and D line the
one on one matchups, and we've tried to make sure
that the film angles and the competition is more about
highlighting what you do well. A lot of the players,
and today's players that they a lot of them show
up at the Singer Bowl and you're just reading your
weaknesses on your draft reports and there's a lot of anxiety,
and you're saying, listen, guys, like you're here because you're
(07:10):
a good football player. You may be playing next to
a guard that you've never played next to. Most likely
you saw some guys like LSU had a multiple offensive lineman.
So there are always gonna be schools like that. But
typically you're there to have a good week and just
to start that journey. And so I specifically talk to
the on line and D line coaches about how to
manage that week, how to manage anxiety. How are they
(07:30):
in the meeting room, how are the players receiving what
they're learning. I mean, you're putting in a new system
in two days, you're practicing, and you're just seeing guys
get better and how do they respond in that situation.
So the perimeter guys, I mean, it's the same drills
they play man they can't blitz. I mean, it's the
same type of thing you would do in ALLSOT game,
but the lineman is specifically you're working with the guy
(07:52):
right next to you've never worked next to. It is
something of a challenge, but you get to see how
guys respond in that situation.
Speaker 1 (08:00):
Yeah, no question about it. And the other rule I
wanted to bring up to you, I know RU got
put out this year where I think, if they're attending
one of these games, the players that to participate in
a correct borring an injury. What was the reason behind
that rule and do you think it was effective?
Speaker 2 (08:14):
Well, I think there was a notion that and I
think maybe it was coming from agents. And I don't
talk to a lot of agents about this. That a
guy can show up to an All Star game and
not have to work out if he's a top pick
or if he's a top could perceivably be like a
top thirty guy. And I think it's it really takes
a spot one. It takes a spot lot away from
(08:36):
And I always use a proverbia like a kid from
eastern New Mexico who goes in the fifth round that
people don't care about. That guy would have showed up
and solidify himself or maybe moved up. But now you're
taking spots away from guys. But legitimate injury. It makes
all the sense in the world. But this isn't is
an opportunity to compete, to get evaluated, to see how
you are in real time. I mean a lot of
(08:56):
gms and and head coaches haven't physically seen these players before.
Maybe you've read about it and you will watch them
on film. But you get to physically see a guy,
and there will be a lot of interview opportunities, thirty visits,
the combine, your pro day, There'll be a lot of
other opportunities. But uh, for the for the integrity of
the All Star Game being a chance to compete, That's
why that memo went out.
Speaker 1 (09:17):
Hoddle up, get in here.
Speaker 3 (09:19):
If you're lined up here, you gotta go over the
middle with at the score great.
Speaker 1 (09:23):
How do we make that happen?
Speaker 3 (09:25):
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Speaker 1 (09:32):
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citizens bank dot com slash giants. What are some of
the things that you're still trying to look to improve
in these games and maybe future adjustments or just other
things you're trying to achieve through this All Star Game process?
(09:55):
For the for the prospects, I think.
Speaker 2 (09:57):
When you look at when you look at a roster,
and there's always talk about like the back end of
a roster, look at the new kickoff rule that was
implemented this year. I think that's something Next year you
put the new kickoff in the All Star Game, you
get players to start thinking about how can I make
a team if I can do the new kickoff punt
punt return is universal across the board. But the new
(10:17):
kickoff rule, for example, any new rules like that, anythings
that you want to try. But again, the rules of
the game are pretty vanilla. But but you're looking for
special teams guys. You're looking for guys that are highly
productive from a Scott's perspective, but may just come in
as a special team's developmental guy. But that fifth round
pick and sixth round pick is just as valuable as
at first and secon round pick. Because that's the majority
of your football team. So they're always were always sensitive
(10:40):
to what how coaches can better evaluate, and that new
kickoff rule would be an advantage probably which would go
into next year. So I'm giving you a little little
secret sauce here.
Speaker 1 (10:49):
No, I like that Roman good stuff. So when you
take a look at these rosters and and and how
they're constructed, how do you think the rule worked? Being
the second year was they're allowing underclassmen to come. Do
you think they're becoming more willing to come to these games?
Did you did you think the participation from the underclassmen
was where you want it to be? Do you want
(11:09):
to try to entice more guys to come and play?
How do you think that adjustment over the last two
years has gone?
Speaker 2 (11:13):
Yeah, I think well, one thing over the last two
years is there's less and less underclassmen coming out, and
because of nil and because of I mean I've seen
numbers where it was one hundred and ten hundred and
twenty underclassmen. I believe in twenty twenty one, twenty twenty
two last year there were only fifty four underclassmen that
came out. This year, I think there were thirty three
that were true underclassmen, which means they had graduate from
(11:35):
high school three years ago, and you had maybe another
fifteen or so redshirt juniors that had graduated, so they're
true seniors, but they're just redshirt juniors with a degree
in three and a half years. So I think if
a player thinks he needs to be evaluated and it
gets the invite, I think you have to compete, and
I think what we have to do a better job
(11:55):
is identifying that as soon as possible. And then some
of the challenges are obviously Number one, a later college
national championship. I think you had two juniors between the Raymond,
Ohio State that came out early, and so those guys
most likely weren't going to play in the national championship.
So you just want to get the information sooner so
you can do logistics sooner because you've got to go
on with the head coach selection and all those other things.
(12:17):
But I think juniors playing in All Star Games is
a plus because teams get to see them actually play
football and it's not just you know what they call
the underwear Olympics from January through March, running forties and
all the non football things and the interviews on the
medical obser important. But it's been good to see juniors
playing the game, especially the ones that have declared and
that they want to play in the game.
Speaker 1 (12:37):
So let me hit rewind a little bit more so
before these guys get to the All Star Games, these
underclassmen have to decide if they want to come out, right,
how does that process work with getting advice in terms
of you know what round they might go in, does
it make sense for them to come out? How involved
are you in that and how does that process work
is you try to advise some of these college kids
as to whether or not they should have come out,
(12:57):
because now, I think, to your point, Roman, the choice
of remaining in college for these kids that have financial
issues is a lot more viable, right because you can
stay get nil though, you can get paid, and you
can stay in college. So how does that process go
about with you guys advising these kids as to you know,
where they could when they could potentially be drafted, and
whether or not it makes sense for them to come
out at all as underclassmen.
Speaker 2 (13:18):
Well, the first thing you said is right, it's no
longer a hardship case for a player to come out early.
For financial reasons because these players, I mean a lot
of players may have up to million dollars in their
pocket in college. So that's why you've seen the lesson
juniors coming out. We work with our management Council staff
as Kenneth Fiory and his team. There's a thing called
(13:39):
the CAC Evaluation SAC College Advisor Committee Evaluation where you
can submit it in December. Where would I go if
I was going to get drafted? I think about one
hundred players a year submit that and they tell you
that your first second round pick, or stay in school.
It used to be you go into first three rounds,
or we recommend you coming back a year. Up until
(13:59):
problem two years ago when with the NIL it was
probably eighty eight to ninety percent accurate. I mean Josh
Allen from the Bills sweared by it because had he
left the year early, he wanted to lead Wiloming in
a year early, he might have been a late first rounder,
maybe a second rounder, maybe not gone to an organization
like the Bills, but comes back a year later mature,
he is a top ten pick. I can't remember where
(14:21):
he went in the draft that year, but it works
for people like that. Again, now with and iol it's different,
but there is a process that players have to go
through their school, submit their names, and then in that
month of December, between the last college weekend November thirtieth
into that conference weekend first week in December through the
end of December, players will know where they stand. I
think there's a world now where they use that Khaki
(14:44):
evaluation to say, all right, maybe now I can get
anio deal because the NFL says I'm a top three
pick and I'm coming back next year to get more money.
So we're always evaluating the relevancy of the Khaki evaluation
and what it does. You know where it lends in
the future. And again there's General Managers Advisory Committee, there's
a College Advisor committee, and all that thing is, everything's presented,
(15:05):
the committee decides, and then we all teams vote on
any of those major changes.
Speaker 1 (15:09):
That makes sense, all right, Then you also have to
decide what one of these prospects you get to go
to the combine. There's a limited number of spots. You
can only have so many players, there's only so much time.
Did you drills and all that stuff? How does that
process work in determining which players get combine invites and
which guys.
Speaker 2 (15:24):
Don't well Jeff Foster, who runs the NIC, which is
it's the Combine is technically the National Invitational Camp. That's
technically the name for it is that, so people will
call a NIC. I think teams vote early. I think
there's a mid year vote. Typically, your top one hundred
guys are pretty easy to detect. Those guys, they've been
highly productive in college. They've been all Americans probably since
(15:45):
sophomore junior year. Those are pretty easy to detect. And
then there's a later round vote, and I think you
need you need X number of votes. Let's say you
need twenty five out of thirty two votes of teams
saying yes, this person has at least a mid round grade.
And if you don't get those that if you if
you meet that threshold, you get in. If you fall
below that threshold, you don't get an invite, and then
(16:07):
some years it's positional death. So I think last year
you had seventy offensive linemen at the Combine at three
hundred and twenty, that's a lot of offensive lineman that
you're talking Twenty percent of the is just one position.
This year, you're gonna have a high number of defensive
linemen in the combine. So you know that, and those
numbers obviously will get revealed to the clubs and at
(16:28):
the appropriate time, but just just from what I'm hearing.
But so it's not a secret secret, it's not a
it's not a big secret sauce about that process. But
it's just it just depends on the year positional depth.
And you hear this all the time. Hey, this is
a deep year for quarterbacks, So this is a deep
year for receivers or teams that can still get a
value a guy in the third round at that position.
You don't have to get a top twenty guy to
(16:50):
get the best guy that fits in your club. So again,
Jeff Foster does an amazing job. I'm on the combine
board along with Ronnie Barnes, Kendy Blackburn at the band
or the Bengals, John Spanos, and a few others. Reggie
Scott athletic training for the Rams. So we focus on
player experience Assessment Test, the Player Advisory Committee, just some
(17:13):
of the things that continue to evolve based on how
today's athlete needs to be best prepared to do well
when they get to Indie. I mean, athletes want to
do well when they get to Indianapolis. They want to
interview well, they want to test well. Agents want the
answers to the test that they cause. None of their
clients do poorly in anything. But it's not a perfect science,
but at least it's pretty good thus far. Also, I
(17:34):
will say John that there's probably up to thirty guys
that get drafted every year that didn't go to INDYE.
So I think that's that shows that it nothing's perfect,
and some teams have their own method of how they
evaluate guys. He might get a Division two guy that's
highly productive that ends up getting drafted in the sixth round.
(17:54):
That a lot of people that didn't get a combat
invit or didn't get it, you know, it wasn't high
on people's radar, but one team fell in love with them.
So I do remember that in college they said all
you need is one team to fall in love with
you that doesn't want you to go past that round,
that they have to get you now.
Speaker 1 (18:06):
So now I've also been told Roman and this is
why people that cover this nobody in the building or
in any other building in the NFL, that sometimes teams
will purposely not vote for a guy to go to
the combine because they think they have some like secret
guy that they think is really good and they don't
want the rest of the league to see him. That's
really well with the combine and they're like a put
in my back pocket and they I would have been
to find out about this guy.
Speaker 2 (18:26):
Well, I know that that's probably when Belichick was that
the Patriots. There were a couple of teams I'd hear
about that they have their own and they're out of nowhere,
just draft some guy that no one knew about it,
and then the person becomes a productive player. I actually
think the Patriots drafted like a D lineman. I think
two years ago it was a Division two player, like
in the sixth or fifth and sixth round. But yeah,
I've heard things like that. It's pretty funny, but it's
(18:48):
I mean, there's so much information out on guys now
that there aren't any secrets. If you're thinking like that
as a team, I would imagine at least ten other
teams have the same thought about the guy.
Speaker 1 (18:58):
I would imagine that that is definitely the case. I
imagine this was probably one of the toughest years to
narrow down for the combine role and I know you're
not involved in that process necessarily, but given this is
the last year for the COVID extra year, right that
there's a there's a huge viouyl players eligible for this
year's draft class. I know it's a particularly deep draft class.
There's a lot of really good players. I got to
imagine narrowing that combine number down this year was particularly tough.
Speaker 2 (19:22):
Yeah, I think so, especially, like I said, your top
hundred guys that are top hundred guys, but I think
the guys that get that that you get the challenge,
or guys that are highly productive and they're on the
border and then here comes the junior that comes out
and that person that right automatically jumps you. So there's
there's less juniors and there's so it actually bounced itself out.
(19:42):
If you imagine there's less juniors coming out and more
you know, fifth and six year seniors. Next year, it
might come back to balance the way it used to be.
But but again, the one good thing about that, John,
I would say this year, I think there were thirty
five hundred college football guys playing with cotwidth degrees on
the field with degree so yes and I and all
(20:02):
those things are good but it's good to have a degree,
and it's good to be able to manage yourself socially
and all those things you learn on a college campus
because you're actually more likely to be a better professional
once you actually get a contract, if you've learned how
to manage your life, and then if you manage your
lifeable football take care of it yourself. So it was
encouraging to see all the guys with degrees.
Speaker 1 (20:20):
You know, and I know you're working on with Ronnie
Barnes right on the combine and I c board yes, absolutely,
what is Ronnie's rolling?
Speaker 2 (20:27):
That just Ronnie Barnes along with Reggie Scott, just any
any of the medical changes or any medical always looking
to do things better, you know, the wait time for MRIs,
the combine, all that thing that leads to the player experience.
And obviously Ronnie has gotten more years in athletic training
than most people. So some of those things go to
Ronnie Barnes. Some of the things that are club related
(20:49):
may go to the gms and some of the owners
on the call and then I just me and another
lady and Yaka and the lampety shoes ahead of clinical owners.
We deal with like player assessments, player experience drills, some
of those things. But Ronnie has such a breadth of knowledge,
and he's got so much credibility of league, other clubs,
p fats, the trainers associations and all those things. A
(21:11):
lot of people look up to Ronnie, so it's awesome
to be, you know, teammates with him in a new
locker room, so to speak.
Speaker 1 (21:17):
Now we've had some schedule changes at the Combine rolement.
You talked about trying to make this experience is good
for the players as possible. You want to allow them
to test as well as they possibly can, but there's
also a TV event, right, so you have to balance
kind of those two things together. So how is those
conversations gone in terms of making that schedule work for
everybody involved in that event at the same time, Yeah,
I think as.
Speaker 2 (21:37):
Long as the what's first and foremost is the players
experience and the players being able to test well. I
know there were some narratives that were floating around that
it's hard to interview all day than run a forty
at night, and I think it's still the same schedule
of arrive, administrative medical interview, then test. I think a
(21:59):
lot of players would say like you show up in
shape and then you don't run for three days and
you think, oh man, I'm out of shape. You're not
out of shape after three days. But I think the
schedule has The schedule changes have been positive, even down
to what players are eating time off. Limiting time on
interviews has been a big change. You can't just hold
the guy hostage for an hour. If an interview is
(22:21):
fifteen minutes, there's like a clock on the wall, and
you've got a guy from nine to nine fifteen, the
nine fifteen to nine thirty, then interviews over. So teams
are teams are knowing that they have to adjust now
because again, any extra wait time, whether it's an interview
took too long or it took too long to get
a MRI, that always leads to a negative experience, and
then you're not You're less likely to get guys having
a positive experience. About the combine.
Speaker 3 (22:43):
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Speaker 1 (22:50):
Hey, I can also talk long care.
Speaker 3 (22:52):
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Speaker 1 (22:58):
Yeah, I'm happy you brought up the interview because i
know that has changed a lot. And I've heard stories
from some of the old heads and I'm sure as
a player you were involved in this right the old
train station where players are at the train station at
the hotel, and I've heard stories are like team personnel
like are fighting over guys and like they're getting into
shouting matches and fighting matches on who gets to interview
the players? What have you guys done, the kind of
(23:19):
streamline that whole process, like you kind of just talked about.
Speaker 2 (23:22):
Well, if you look at Insie Lucasoco Stadium, there's little
suites and every club has their own suite, so the
interviews are done there. It's a friendly environment. I think
one of the things that coming from the league office
is always that players need to be treated with the
utmost respect and dignity during that process. It's an HR
interview for all practical purposes. On the on behalf of
(23:44):
the player and behalf of the club, so the clubs
can't ask certain questions that make a player uncomfortable. Some
players may have a legal issue that you may have
to deal with and you just have to address it.
But you can't double down on some negative issue. You
can't double down on a player's childhood or upbringing or
some things that really fall really far outside the scope
of the football. The x's and Z is how the
(24:04):
player learns. And John I would say, most players come
from humble beginnings and come from you know, maybe some
challenging issues, and many good players come from that, and
most players are good guys, and sometimes negative things happen.
You've got to address that. But I think there's been
a concerted effort to make sure that players and clubs
understand that this is to be a professional environment on
(24:26):
both sides. You don't want the kid coming in. I
remember my Combine experience. I mean sitting in front of
Bill Kauer. I mean that was the year they lost
the Super Bowl, the Cowboys and the ninety after ninety
five season, and they ask me to draw up a
play and I'm meeting nervous and then I draw up
a play backside and power what does the tackle do?
Another team may ask you to about your childhood by
your background from a single mom. How does that help you?
Speaker 3 (24:49):
You know?
Speaker 2 (24:49):
So every team is different how they respond, how they
ask questions, which they're perfectly allowed to do. But again,
it's the part about doubling down on a specific issue
or you know, trying to break a player, so to speak,
mentally about how the person thinks. And I don't think
a lot of clubs do that at all. But I
think it's just the transparency about what the priorities are
(25:09):
are important to convey to players and to clubs WO like,
and obviously their agents know that too, because they're the
clients of these players.
Speaker 1 (25:16):
All right, Ron, before we say goodbye, anything else, you
want to get out there about this process, the All
Star games to combine, and just making sure these players
go through this process as successfully as possible. We even
talked about the thirty visits. You can talk about that
if you want, and just to make sure what you
guys are doing allows them to put their best foot forward.
Speaker 2 (25:34):
I think one thing I didn't mention is we do
talk a lot with the NCAA on some of the rules,
junior declaration dates, the National Championship date was I have
a son, Howard cross Wey. Both two Giants player former
Giants guys have sons that played from their name. They
played sixteen games this year. They played all the way
up until January twentieth, so that affects the offseason schedule
(25:55):
as well. So some of those things aren't done in
conjunction with the NUBA. So just want to let the
you know, the viewers know that none of this is
done in a vacuum. It's by committee work the NAA.
We want college football to throw out. We want players
to do well and do their best, and that includes
thing in school. So we're not making decisions based on
superficial things or TV. What makes sense for television, what
(26:18):
sense for network? But no, it's what makes sense for
the entire of the event. The club's done the evaluating
and obviously the players having a good experience overall.
Speaker 1 (26:26):
All right, I got to ask you about RJ before
we say goodbye your room. He is going through this process.
How is it going for him? I have a chance
to talk to him down at the Senior Bowl. You
guys can go back on the audio podcast feed for
the huddle. You can find that interview in one of
those Senior Bowl episode interview episodes. How's it going for him?
And how are you handling as the dad man? I'm
sure this is extremely stressful for you. You don't want
to get too heavily involved. He's like, Dad, I can
(26:47):
do it, and I'm sure he doesn't want you all
all up in his business. How has this whole experience
been for you as a dad of a prospect.
Speaker 2 (26:55):
You know, it's gone pretty well. He's pretty mature, he's
pretty mure. He's probably more witch ourether than I was
that age, for sure, But you know I didn't have
a dad in the business telling me about things. I
just I'm a little bit of a stickler on the interview.
I think today's generation of kids, they don't communicate as
well as is like I mean, the you know, you
grew up in the world where you look at guy
and I shake his hand, yes, sir, No, sir, I
(27:17):
come from that world. So he didn't want to hear
any nineties references by any means. But it's it's good
to see him, and as any parent, I mean, whether
you're kids playing the trumpet or something that band in
fourth grade or or they're at the senior Bowl, I mean,
you're just proud that they've taken ownership and things that
they want to do well. It's a tough process, and
you know, he's probably considered a Day three guy, you know,
(27:39):
fifth sixth round something like that. And so hopefully for him,
I care about, you know, just a good organization that
he goes to, a good organization that that has stability
and you know, coaching, GMS, all those things, because then
he could come in and learn and develop. But again,
one thing I've heard that he's done really well in
the interviews last week of the you know, during the
Senior Bowl. So the character the reviews, and when you
(28:02):
hear things like it's a smart player, works hard and
cares about football, comes in the building early, leaves late.
I mean that's I think as a as as someone
of that offensive line mentality, I think that's it's good
to hear that because you want more D linemen and
DB's having that mentality than just offensive lineman. So I'm
happy for him and I'm always here to support. But yeah,
I'm probably a little bit more of a stick through
(28:22):
on the interviews more than an being because that's when
they really get to know you. And I'm sure a
few teams asked them like what did you learning from
having a dad that playing in NFL? And he talked
about preparation and and and always taking football seriously and
being in places early and all that those things. So
I'm happy for him.
Speaker 1 (28:38):
How much do you guys like work technique with like
O line D line stuff like that, where you like,
you know, teach him how to you know, work offensive
lineman because you can obviously talk from that perspective, oh
all the.
Speaker 2 (28:47):
Time, all the time. I mean, he had a big
sack against Georgia in the semi final, and I remember
usually the night or two before the game, I'll talk
to him. I said, what are you seeing on film
from his offensive line? Are they leaners? Are they big guys?
Are they technicians other athletes? You know, you got to
prepare differently against each guy. And as he's gotten older
into college, we have less of those discussions because he's
(29:07):
developed his own method of that. But he said, he said, look,
I could probably beat this guy for two or three
sacks if I get that opportunity, because he's a leaner,
I'm better with my hands. And he had a big
shrip sack in the second half of the you know,
the Georgia game. I'm his second quarter rather and so
it's good to you know, as kids get older. It's
not always your idea, but it's like, what is your
(29:30):
idea and just taking an ownership of something you believe
in and then just listen to how they go through
it and then you say, okay, that that makes sense.
What would you also consider X, Y or Z. And
so it's a different discussion than when you're seventeen. I'm like, okay,
bull rush this guy and I'll do a spin move
because this guy oversets. But as he gets older, he's
taken a lot more ownership. So now I'm definitely proud
and want him to do. But he's a technician, though
(29:51):
he would he would tell that he's a technician.
Speaker 1 (29:53):
Well, I'll tell you man, Like I don't know who
would not expect him to interview while he went to
Duke and Notre Dame. I mean, great job at he you,
I mean, that's two fantastic schools. I think you know
he's going to be a smart point. He's gonna interview
all given the two schools he went.
Speaker 2 (30:05):
Through, right, yeah, absolutely, and just the environment they are in.
I mean some of those kind of schools, like they
even any player from like those schools. You know, your Northwestern,
your Vand's you know, Boston College. I mean, you're you're
living with regular students in the dorm. When you're young,
You're you're not just hanging around football players. You you
have other interests that's encouraged, so you have a more
worldview of the world versus just the football part of it.
(30:26):
But no, I'm i'm I'm. I'm glad that he's he's
done well for himself academically and and whatever whatever, he's
whatever he earns on the field on Sundays. I mean,
that's one thing I tell him all the time. You
got to earn it on Sundays. I said, no, no,
GM is going to get fired because they drafted Romanovn's kid.
I said, You're gonna have to earn every dollar, every
every down, every every training camp rep, every preseason rep.
Speaker 1 (30:47):
You're gonna have to earn it once you're in the building.
Nothing else matters. That's absolutely this was fun, man, Thanks
so much for doing it. And I was always gonna
catch up with you. And I'll see at the Combine
and India. I'm assuming in a couple of weeks.
Speaker 2 (30:57):
Yep, I'll see there.
Speaker 1 (30:58):
Oh aw, some Romano Olden works the NFL and now
former Giant. Of course, that's Roman Open. Thanks for joining
us on the Giants Little Podcast, brought to you by Citizens,
Official Bank of the Giants. We'll see you next time. Everybody,
It's time to get inside the Giants. Let's go, Let's go,
Let's go, Giants. Get my Giants, mobul give me some jobs.
Part of the Giants podcast Network.
Speaker 2 (00:09):
Let's roll.
Speaker 1 (00:10):
Welcome to another edition of the Giants Little Podcast, brought
to you by Citizens, the official bank of the New
York Football Giants. I am John Schmelk. We are joined
by former Giants offensive lineman Roman Obin. Roman. I will
let you give your title. You work with the NFL
now in the league office. You've got the you got
the shield on your chest there we can see it. Uh, first,
tell the folks what you're doing and what you're up to,
(00:30):
and then the myriad of things that you're responsible for,
and will kind of go through all of them.
Speaker 2 (00:36):
So my official title now is Vice President Football Development.
So I currently deal with a lot of the strategy
behind the college to pro pathway from informing FBS coaches
about some of the policies and working with the nh
double A, the All Star games. You know we see
each other's singing Bowl every year, singing Blea Spress Fine Bowl,
(00:58):
working with the Combine on player performance. And then I
had a start and actually ten years ago its January
of twenty fifteen in health and safety. So we were
dealing with a lot of the youth football issues, concussions
of the negative health and safety narrative, and more importantly,
how clubs could do a lot in their communities to
highlight football participation, celebrate coaches and all that. So I've
(01:21):
had a myriad of responsibilities, as you mentioned, but I'm
really happy about the work that I get to do
and the people that I get to work with, and
obviously got our local clubs right in our backyard with
you guys, and obviously the Jets as.
Speaker 1 (01:33):
Well for sure. All Right, so why don't we start
then with the All Star Games? Because those just happened.
We'll talk about the combine and then we'll kind of
go from their room, and so let's go first the
All Star Games. They just happened. What kind of impact
is the league having on those two games, how they're run,
what are you guys trying to achieve. We saw the
rule change last couple of years with the underclass and
being able to go to the games. We've seen the
(01:54):
rule change this year where if you attend these games,
you had to play, right. That was a rule that
kind of got in this year as well, So just
tell me about the direction you're trying to take these
games to help that college to pro pathway.
Speaker 2 (02:07):
Well, the first thing you mentioned was this was the
first year where there were no rule changes in terms
of the coaching staff from the prior year. So in
the old days, if you had the lowest record and
you were retained, you had to coach the Senior Bowl,
and then the East West game had a blended staff
if you will have just different coaches from every club
based on club nominations. Now across both games you have
(02:30):
a blended staff. So we've got to get down about
one hundred twenty five submissions from coach from GMS and
coaches across the league to down to about sixty five
slots between the head coaches, often the coordinated for both games,
and obviously special teams coaches as well, which you're seeing
a trend maybe with some special teams coaches being head
coaches and some of these all star games, because they
(02:52):
know both sides of the ball, they know all the personnel,
they know all the back end of the roster. So
it's been a good change. I mean, I think it's
important to talk about like club equity, make sure all
the clubs are represented, but there is a process. So
Joe shown Andy Barry from the obviously gym and the Browns.
There were two other gms, one wasn't retained and one
(03:14):
was still in the playoffs, so it would have been
for general managers plus Rod Graves, who's head of a
Fish Polder alliance. So a push towards minority coaches, a
push towards just advancement in a lot of those areas.
So if you're the D line coach, you get to
be the defensive coordinator. If you're a running backs coach
with the Giants, you're gonna be offensive coordinator. So those
are the kind of things that we've done, and coaches
(03:35):
are able to do something that they don't do during
the year, and most likely you're going to coach a
guy they end up drafting, because now you get to
stand on a chair saying, I work with this guy
for a week. This is how we approach the meetings,
This is how he approached all those interviews. It's a
long schedule, but it's a part of the journey that
they're constantly evaluating these kids in terms of who will
(03:56):
best fit our a roster or a draft selection or
even a free agent the Roman real quick.
Speaker 1 (04:00):
Just to stay with the coaches. But before we get
to the players, how does that committee of the GMS
and the president of the Fritz Power Alliance, how do
they actually go about selecting the coaches? Do they get
a list of recommendations from teams?
Speaker 2 (04:11):
Like?
Speaker 1 (04:11):
How does that process actually go down?
Speaker 2 (04:14):
Yeah, so all teams that are not in the teams
that have been eliminated from the playoffs will all vote,
and you'll get a last minute vote from the teams
that got bounced out for the wildcard round. So they'll
nominate someone for potential head coach who comes from the
coordinator ranks, potential coordinator who comes from whether a position
coach ranks or a quarterback receiver coach becomes an offensive coordinator,
(04:38):
and then they nominate assistant. So your assistant D line
coach would be nominated for like a you know, a
D line coach. For example, Angela Baker from the Giants
has been the last two years. So she's an example
of someone that gets to coach. She got to coach
tight ends this year at the Singer Bowl.
Speaker 1 (04:54):
So say de right, James Ferns is the assistant on
line coach here. He was the full time all line
coach at the at the Senior Bowl.
Speaker 2 (05:00):
Yeah, and I worked with him for a week and
we talked about so we can talk about that a
little bit. But yeah, So once the head coaches and
coordinators are decided, then me and a few staff we
actually personally select the position coaches. So we go down
the list. We look at coaching experience. I mean, you
have a lot of NFL coaches that coached in college
for eight nine years and then they come to the
(05:21):
NFL and their assistant d line or assistant position coaches,
so they actually have coaching experience, just not a lot
of long NFL experience. So going back to coach college
All Stars is actually it's a plus for them. So
we look at college experience, we look at we look
at guys like Mike Adams. You know a former NFL
players that are going into coaching right away. Mike I
know him very well. I know his family, you know,
(05:41):
from Patterson on New Jersey, and a lot of things
he's done in the community back home when he's playing
on other teams. But to see him coaching last year,
he coached special teams this year, he's coach. He coached dB,
so there's always a tie in to guys that coach
in college, guys that played in the NFL potentially, and
just getting them to coach in a way that they're
not coaching during the week during the regular season.
Speaker 1 (06:04):
All right, So that's the coaching side of it. Let's
talk about the players side of it. How are you
trying to enhance the scouting process and the player evaluation
standpoint of everything so these players can really show their
best for the team's coaches that are coaching them and
the scouts in front of this personnel that are watching
them and meeting with them and meetings during the week.
Speaker 2 (06:22):
Yeah. Well, I would say, first of all, I mean
Jamagi does a great job from a Singing Bow perspective
of running running a good ship. I mean there's a
lot of gms, a lot of head coaches that show
up during the week to watch those practices. From a
player standpoint, he does a good job, you know, getting
the players there and yet a high, you know, high
percentage of guys that have been drafted from the Singer
Bowl specifically, I think from my perspective in terms of quality,
(06:48):
I look at the O line and D line the
one on one matchups, and we've tried to make sure
that the film angles and the competition is more about
highlighting what you do well. A lot of the players,
and today's players that they a lot of them show
up at the Singer Bowl and you're just reading your
weaknesses on your draft reports and there's a lot of anxiety,
and you're saying, listen, guys, like you're here because you're
(07:10):
a good football player. You may be playing next to
a guard that you've never played next to. Most likely
you saw some guys like LSU had a multiple offensive lineman.
So there are always gonna be schools like that. But
typically you're there to have a good week and just
to start that journey. And so I specifically talk to
the on line and D line coaches about how to
manage that week, how to manage anxiety. How are they
(07:30):
in the meeting room, how are the players receiving what
they're learning. I mean, you're putting in a new system
in two days, you're practicing, and you're just seeing guys
get better and how do they respond in that situation.
So the perimeter guys, I mean, it's the same drills
they play man they can't blitz. I mean, it's the
same type of thing you would do in ALLSOT game,
but the lineman is specifically you're working with the guy
(07:52):
right next to you've never worked next to. It is
something of a challenge, but you get to see how
guys respond in that situation.
Speaker 1 (08:00):
Yeah, no question about it. And the other rule I
wanted to bring up to you, I know RU got
put out this year where I think, if they're attending
one of these games, the players that to participate in
a correct borring an injury. What was the reason behind
that rule and do you think it was effective?
Speaker 2 (08:14):
Well, I think there was a notion that and I
think maybe it was coming from agents. And I don't
talk to a lot of agents about this. That a
guy can show up to an All Star game and
not have to work out if he's a top pick
or if he's a top could perceivably be like a
top thirty guy. And I think it's it really takes
a spot one. It takes a spot lot away from
(08:36):
And I always use a proverbia like a kid from
eastern New Mexico who goes in the fifth round that
people don't care about. That guy would have showed up
and solidify himself or maybe moved up. But now you're
taking spots away from guys. But legitimate injury. It makes
all the sense in the world. But this isn't is
an opportunity to compete, to get evaluated, to see how
you are in real time. I mean a lot of
(08:56):
gms and and head coaches haven't physically seen these players before.
Maybe you've read about it and you will watch them
on film. But you get to physically see a guy,
and there will be a lot of interview opportunities, thirty visits,
the combine, your pro day, There'll be a lot of
other opportunities. But uh, for the for the integrity of
the All Star Game being a chance to compete, That's
why that memo went out.
Speaker 1 (09:17):
Hoddle up, get in here.
Speaker 3 (09:19):
If you're lined up here, you gotta go over the
middle with at the score great.
Speaker 1 (09:23):
How do we make that happen?
Speaker 3 (09:25):
I don't know, but Citizen does makes sense of your
money with Citizens Official Bank of Eli Manning.
Speaker 1 (09:32):
John Sotal podcast is brought to you by Citizens, the
Official Bank of the Giants. From game day celebrations to
your everyday financial needs, Big Blue Fans can get the
most out of every moment with citizens learn more at
citizens bank dot com slash giants. What are some of
the things that you're still trying to look to improve
in these games and maybe future adjustments or just other
things you're trying to achieve through this All Star Game process?
(09:55):
For the for the prospects, I think.
Speaker 2 (09:57):
When you look at when you look at a roster,
and there's always talk about like the back end of
a roster, look at the new kickoff rule that was
implemented this year. I think that's something Next year you
put the new kickoff in the All Star Game, you
get players to start thinking about how can I make
a team if I can do the new kickoff punt
punt return is universal across the board. But the new
(10:17):
kickoff rule, for example, any new rules like that, anythings
that you want to try. But again, the rules of
the game are pretty vanilla. But but you're looking for
special teams guys. You're looking for guys that are highly
productive from a Scott's perspective, but may just come in
as a special team's developmental guy. But that fifth round
pick and sixth round pick is just as valuable as
at first and secon round pick. Because that's the majority
of your football team. So they're always were always sensitive
(10:40):
to what how coaches can better evaluate, and that new
kickoff rule would be an advantage probably which would go
into next year. So I'm giving you a little little
secret sauce here.
Speaker 1 (10:49):
No, I like that Roman good stuff. So when you
take a look at these rosters and and and how
they're constructed, how do you think the rule worked? Being
the second year was they're allowing underclassmen to come. Do
you think they're becoming more willing to come to these games?
Did you did you think the participation from the underclassmen
was where you want it to be? Do you want
(11:09):
to try to entice more guys to come and play?
How do you think that adjustment over the last two
years has gone?
Speaker 2 (11:13):
Yeah, I think well, one thing over the last two
years is there's less and less underclassmen coming out, and
because of nil and because of I mean I've seen
numbers where it was one hundred and ten hundred and
twenty underclassmen. I believe in twenty twenty one, twenty twenty
two last year there were only fifty four underclassmen that
came out. This year, I think there were thirty three
that were true underclassmen, which means they had graduate from
(11:35):
high school three years ago, and you had maybe another
fifteen or so redshirt juniors that had graduated, so they're
true seniors, but they're just redshirt juniors with a degree
in three and a half years. So I think if
a player thinks he needs to be evaluated and it
gets the invite, I think you have to compete, and
I think what we have to do a better job
(11:55):
is identifying that as soon as possible. And then some
of the challenges are obviously Number one, a later college
national championship. I think you had two juniors between the Raymond,
Ohio State that came out early, and so those guys
most likely weren't going to play in the national championship.
So you just want to get the information sooner so
you can do logistics sooner because you've got to go
on with the head coach selection and all those other things.
(12:17):
But I think juniors playing in All Star Games is
a plus because teams get to see them actually play
football and it's not just you know what they call
the underwear Olympics from January through March, running forties and
all the non football things and the interviews on the
medical obser important. But it's been good to see juniors
playing the game, especially the ones that have declared and
that they want to play in the game.
Speaker 1 (12:37):
So let me hit rewind a little bit more so
before these guys get to the All Star Games, these
underclassmen have to decide if they want to come out, right,
how does that process work with getting advice in terms
of you know what round they might go in, does
it make sense for them to come out? How involved
are you in that and how does that process work
is you try to advise some of these college kids
as to whether or not they should have come out,
(12:57):
because now, I think, to your point, Roman, the choice
of remaining in college for these kids that have financial
issues is a lot more viable, right because you can
stay get nil though, you can get paid, and you
can stay in college. So how does that process go
about with you guys advising these kids as to you know,
where they could when they could potentially be drafted, and
whether or not it makes sense for them to come
out at all as underclassmen.
Speaker 2 (13:18):
Well, the first thing you said is right, it's no
longer a hardship case for a player to come out early.
For financial reasons because these players, I mean a lot
of players may have up to million dollars in their
pocket in college. So that's why you've seen the lesson
juniors coming out. We work with our management Council staff
as Kenneth Fiory and his team. There's a thing called
(13:39):
the CAC Evaluation SAC College Advisor Committee Evaluation where you
can submit it in December. Where would I go if
I was going to get drafted? I think about one
hundred players a year submit that and they tell you
that your first second round pick, or stay in school.
It used to be you go into first three rounds,
or we recommend you coming back a year. Up until
(13:59):
problem two years ago when with the NIL it was
probably eighty eight to ninety percent accurate. I mean Josh
Allen from the Bills sweared by it because had he
left the year early, he wanted to lead Wiloming in
a year early, he might have been a late first rounder,
maybe a second rounder, maybe not gone to an organization
like the Bills, but comes back a year later mature,
he is a top ten pick. I can't remember where
(14:21):
he went in the draft that year, but it works
for people like that. Again, now with and iol it's different,
but there is a process that players have to go
through their school, submit their names, and then in that
month of December, between the last college weekend November thirtieth
into that conference weekend first week in December through the
end of December, players will know where they stand. I
think there's a world now where they use that Khaki
(14:44):
evaluation to say, all right, maybe now I can get
anio deal because the NFL says I'm a top three
pick and I'm coming back next year to get more money.
So we're always evaluating the relevancy of the Khaki evaluation
and what it does. You know where it lends in
the future. And again there's General Managers Advisory Committee, there's
a College Advisor committee, and all that thing is, everything's presented,
(15:05):
the committee decides, and then we all teams vote on
any of those major changes.
Speaker 1 (15:09):
That makes sense, all right, Then you also have to
decide what one of these prospects you get to go
to the combine. There's a limited number of spots. You
can only have so many players, there's only so much time.
Did you drills and all that stuff? How does that
process work in determining which players get combine invites and
which guys.
Speaker 2 (15:24):
Don't well Jeff Foster, who runs the NIC, which is
it's the Combine is technically the National Invitational Camp. That's
technically the name for it is that, so people will
call a NIC. I think teams vote early. I think
there's a mid year vote. Typically, your top one hundred
guys are pretty easy to detect. Those guys, they've been
highly productive in college. They've been all Americans probably since
(15:45):
sophomore junior year. Those are pretty easy to detect. And
then there's a later round vote, and I think you
need you need X number of votes. Let's say you
need twenty five out of thirty two votes of teams
saying yes, this person has at least a mid round grade.
And if you don't get those that if you if
you meet that threshold, you get in. If you fall
below that threshold, you don't get an invite, and then
(16:07):
some years it's positional death. So I think last year
you had seventy offensive linemen at the Combine at three
hundred and twenty, that's a lot of offensive lineman that
you're talking Twenty percent of the is just one position.
This year, you're gonna have a high number of defensive
linemen in the combine. So you know that, and those
numbers obviously will get revealed to the clubs and at
(16:28):
the appropriate time, but just just from what I'm hearing.
But so it's not a secret secret, it's not a
it's not a big secret sauce about that process. But
it's just it just depends on the year positional depth.
And you hear this all the time. Hey, this is
a deep year for quarterbacks, So this is a deep
year for receivers or teams that can still get a
value a guy in the third round at that position.
You don't have to get a top twenty guy to
(16:50):
get the best guy that fits in your club. So again,
Jeff Foster does an amazing job. I'm on the combine
board along with Ronnie Barnes, Kendy Blackburn at the band
or the Bengals, John Spanos, and a few others. Reggie
Scott athletic training for the Rams. So we focus on
player experience Assessment Test, the Player Advisory Committee, just some
(17:13):
of the things that continue to evolve based on how
today's athlete needs to be best prepared to do well
when they get to Indie. I mean, athletes want to
do well when they get to Indianapolis. They want to
interview well, they want to test well. Agents want the
answers to the test that they cause. None of their
clients do poorly in anything. But it's not a perfect science,
but at least it's pretty good thus far. Also, I
(17:34):
will say John that there's probably up to thirty guys
that get drafted every year that didn't go to INDYE.
So I think that's that shows that it nothing's perfect,
and some teams have their own method of how they
evaluate guys. He might get a Division two guy that's
highly productive that ends up getting drafted in the sixth round.
(17:54):
That a lot of people that didn't get a combat
invit or didn't get it, you know, it wasn't high
on people's radar, but one team fell in love with them.
So I do remember that in college they said all
you need is one team to fall in love with
you that doesn't want you to go past that round,
that they have to get you now.
Speaker 1 (18:06):
So now I've also been told Roman and this is
why people that cover this nobody in the building or
in any other building in the NFL, that sometimes teams
will purposely not vote for a guy to go to
the combine because they think they have some like secret
guy that they think is really good and they don't
want the rest of the league to see him. That's
really well with the combine and they're like a put
in my back pocket and they I would have been
to find out about this guy.
Speaker 2 (18:26):
Well, I know that that's probably when Belichick was that
the Patriots. There were a couple of teams I'd hear
about that they have their own and they're out of nowhere,
just draft some guy that no one knew about it,
and then the person becomes a productive player. I actually
think the Patriots drafted like a D lineman. I think
two years ago it was a Division two player, like
in the sixth or fifth and sixth round. But yeah,
I've heard things like that. It's pretty funny, but it's
(18:48):
I mean, there's so much information out on guys now
that there aren't any secrets. If you're thinking like that
as a team, I would imagine at least ten other
teams have the same thought about the guy.
Speaker 1 (18:58):
I would imagine that that is definitely the case. I
imagine this was probably one of the toughest years to
narrow down for the combine role and I know you're
not involved in that process necessarily, but given this is
the last year for the COVID extra year, right that
there's a there's a huge viouyl players eligible for this
year's draft class. I know it's a particularly deep draft class.
There's a lot of really good players. I got to
imagine narrowing that combine number down this year was particularly tough.
Speaker 2 (19:22):
Yeah, I think so, especially, like I said, your top
hundred guys that are top hundred guys, but I think
the guys that get that that you get the challenge,
or guys that are highly productive and they're on the
border and then here comes the junior that comes out
and that person that right automatically jumps you. So there's
there's less juniors and there's so it actually bounced itself out.
(19:42):
If you imagine there's less juniors coming out and more
you know, fifth and six year seniors. Next year, it
might come back to balance the way it used to be.
But but again, the one good thing about that, John,
I would say this year, I think there were thirty
five hundred college football guys playing with cotwidth degrees on
the field with degree so yes and I and all
(20:02):
those things are good but it's good to have a degree,
and it's good to be able to manage yourself socially
and all those things you learn on a college campus
because you're actually more likely to be a better professional
once you actually get a contract, if you've learned how
to manage your life, and then if you manage your
lifeable football take care of it yourself. So it was
encouraging to see all the guys with degrees.
Speaker 1 (20:20):
You know, and I know you're working on with Ronnie
Barnes right on the combine and I c board yes, absolutely,
what is Ronnie's rolling?
Speaker 2 (20:27):
That just Ronnie Barnes along with Reggie Scott, just any
any of the medical changes or any medical always looking
to do things better, you know, the wait time for MRIs,
the combine, all that thing that leads to the player experience.
And obviously Ronnie has gotten more years in athletic training
than most people. So some of those things go to
Ronnie Barnes. Some of the things that are club related
(20:49):
may go to the gms and some of the owners
on the call and then I just me and another
lady and Yaka and the lampety shoes ahead of clinical owners.
We deal with like player assessments, player experience drills, some
of those things. But Ronnie has such a breadth of knowledge,
and he's got so much credibility of league, other clubs,
p fats, the trainers associations and all those things. A
(21:11):
lot of people look up to Ronnie, so it's awesome
to be, you know, teammates with him in a new
locker room, so to speak.
Speaker 1 (21:17):
Now we've had some schedule changes at the Combine rolement.
You talked about trying to make this experience is good
for the players as possible. You want to allow them
to test as well as they possibly can, but there's
also a TV event, right, so you have to balance
kind of those two things together. So how is those
conversations gone in terms of making that schedule work for
everybody involved in that event at the same time, Yeah,
I think as.
Speaker 2 (21:37):
Long as the what's first and foremost is the players
experience and the players being able to test well. I
know there were some narratives that were floating around that
it's hard to interview all day than run a forty
at night, and I think it's still the same schedule
of arrive, administrative medical interview, then test. I think a
(21:59):
lot of players would say like you show up in
shape and then you don't run for three days and
you think, oh man, I'm out of shape. You're not
out of shape after three days. But I think the
schedule has The schedule changes have been positive, even down
to what players are eating time off. Limiting time on
interviews has been a big change. You can't just hold
the guy hostage for an hour. If an interview is
(22:21):
fifteen minutes, there's like a clock on the wall, and
you've got a guy from nine to nine fifteen, the
nine fifteen to nine thirty, then interviews over. So teams
are teams are knowing that they have to adjust now
because again, any extra wait time, whether it's an interview
took too long or it took too long to get
a MRI, that always leads to a negative experience, and
then you're not You're less likely to get guys having
a positive experience. About the combine.
Speaker 3 (22:43):
If you want to know how to manage two minutes
of crunch time football, I'm your man. But if you're
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to citizens.
Speaker 1 (22:50):
Hey, I can also talk long care.
Speaker 3 (22:52):
I'd like to learn about an molliaru Tae. Yes, I
knew I could help makes sense of your money with citizens.
Speaker 1 (22:58):
Yeah, I'm happy you brought up the interview because i
know that has changed a lot. And I've heard stories
from some of the old heads and I'm sure as
a player you were involved in this right the old
train station where players are at the train station at
the hotel, and I've heard stories are like team personnel
like are fighting over guys and like they're getting into
shouting matches and fighting matches on who gets to interview
the players? What have you guys done, the kind of
(23:19):
streamline that whole process, like you kind of just talked about.
Speaker 2 (23:22):
Well, if you look at Insie Lucasoco Stadium, there's little
suites and every club has their own suite, so the
interviews are done there. It's a friendly environment. I think
one of the things that coming from the league office
is always that players need to be treated with the
utmost respect and dignity during that process. It's an HR
interview for all practical purposes. On the on behalf of
(23:44):
the player and behalf of the club, so the clubs
can't ask certain questions that make a player uncomfortable. Some
players may have a legal issue that you may have
to deal with and you just have to address it.
But you can't double down on some negative issue. You
can't double down on a player's childhood or upbringing or
some things that really fall really far outside the scope
of the football. The x's and Z is how the
(24:04):
player learns. And John I would say, most players come
from humble beginnings and come from you know, maybe some
challenging issues, and many good players come from that, and
most players are good guys, and sometimes negative things happen.
You've got to address that. But I think there's been
a concerted effort to make sure that players and clubs
understand that this is to be a professional environment on
(24:26):
both sides. You don't want the kid coming in. I
remember my Combine experience. I mean sitting in front of
Bill Kauer. I mean that was the year they lost
the Super Bowl, the Cowboys and the ninety after ninety
five season, and they ask me to draw up a
play and I'm meeting nervous and then I draw up
a play backside and power what does the tackle do?
Another team may ask you to about your childhood by
your background from a single mom. How does that help you?
Speaker 3 (24:49):
You know?
Speaker 2 (24:49):
So every team is different how they respond, how they
ask questions, which they're perfectly allowed to do. But again,
it's the part about doubling down on a specific issue
or you know, trying to break a player, so to speak,
mentally about how the person thinks. And I don't think
a lot of clubs do that at all. But I
think it's just the transparency about what the priorities are
(25:09):
are important to convey to players and to clubs WO like,
and obviously their agents know that too, because they're the
clients of these players.
Speaker 1 (25:16):
All right, Ron, before we say goodbye, anything else, you
want to get out there about this process, the All
Star games to combine, and just making sure these players
go through this process as successfully as possible. We even
talked about the thirty visits. You can talk about that
if you want, and just to make sure what you
guys are doing allows them to put their best foot forward.
Speaker 2 (25:34):
I think one thing I didn't mention is we do
talk a lot with the NCAA on some of the rules,
junior declaration dates, the National Championship date was I have
a son, Howard cross Wey. Both two Giants player former
Giants guys have sons that played from their name. They
played sixteen games this year. They played all the way
up until January twentieth, so that affects the offseason schedule
(25:55):
as well. So some of those things aren't done in
conjunction with the NUBA. So just want to let the
you know, the viewers know that none of this is
done in a vacuum. It's by committee work the NAA.
We want college football to throw out. We want players
to do well and do their best, and that includes
thing in school. So we're not making decisions based on
superficial things or TV. What makes sense for television, what
(26:18):
sense for network? But no, it's what makes sense for
the entire of the event. The club's done the evaluating
and obviously the players having a good experience overall.
Speaker 1 (26:26):
All right, I got to ask you about RJ before
we say goodbye your room. He is going through this process.
How is it going for him? I have a chance
to talk to him down at the Senior Bowl. You
guys can go back on the audio podcast feed for
the huddle. You can find that interview in one of
those Senior Bowl episode interview episodes. How's it going for him?
And how are you handling as the dad man? I'm
sure this is extremely stressful for you. You don't want
to get too heavily involved. He's like, Dad, I can
(26:47):
do it, and I'm sure he doesn't want you all
all up in his business. How has this whole experience
been for you as a dad of a prospect.
Speaker 2 (26:55):
You know, it's gone pretty well. He's pretty mature, he's
pretty mure. He's probably more witch ourether than I was
that age, for sure, But you know I didn't have
a dad in the business telling me about things. I
just I'm a little bit of a stickler on the interview.
I think today's generation of kids, they don't communicate as
well as is like I mean, the you know, you
grew up in the world where you look at guy
and I shake his hand, yes, sir, No, sir, I
(27:17):
come from that world. So he didn't want to hear
any nineties references by any means. But it's it's good
to see him, and as any parent, I mean, whether
you're kids playing the trumpet or something that band in
fourth grade or or they're at the senior Bowl, I mean,
you're just proud that they've taken ownership and things that
they want to do well. It's a tough process, and
you know, he's probably considered a Day three guy, you know,
(27:39):
fifth sixth round something like that. And so hopefully for him,
I care about, you know, just a good organization that
he goes to, a good organization that that has stability
and you know, coaching, GMS, all those things, because then
he could come in and learn and develop. But again,
one thing I've heard that he's done really well in
the interviews last week of the you know, during the
Senior Bowl. So the character the reviews, and when you
(28:02):
hear things like it's a smart player, works hard and
cares about football, comes in the building early, leaves late.
I mean that's I think as a as as someone
of that offensive line mentality, I think that's it's good
to hear that because you want more D linemen and
DB's having that mentality than just offensive lineman. So I'm
happy for him and I'm always here to support. But yeah,
I'm probably a little bit more of a stick through
(28:22):
on the interviews more than an being because that's when
they really get to know you. And I'm sure a
few teams asked them like what did you learning from
having a dad that playing in NFL? And he talked
about preparation and and and always taking football seriously and
being in places early and all that those things. So
I'm happy for him.
Speaker 1 (28:38):
How much do you guys like work technique with like
O line D line stuff like that, where you like,
you know, teach him how to you know, work offensive
lineman because you can obviously talk from that perspective, oh
all the.
Speaker 2 (28:47):
Time, all the time. I mean, he had a big
sack against Georgia in the semi final, and I remember
usually the night or two before the game, I'll talk
to him. I said, what are you seeing on film
from his offensive line? Are they leaners? Are they big guys?
Are they technicians other athletes? You know, you got to
prepare differently against each guy. And as he's gotten older
into college, we have less of those discussions because he's
(29:07):
developed his own method of that. But he said, he said, look,
I could probably beat this guy for two or three
sacks if I get that opportunity, because he's a leaner,
I'm better with my hands. And he had a big
shrip sack in the second half of the you know,
the Georgia game. I'm his second quarter rather and so
it's good to you know, as kids get older. It's
not always your idea, but it's like, what is your
(29:30):
idea and just taking an ownership of something you believe
in and then just listen to how they go through
it and then you say, okay, that that makes sense.
What would you also consider X, Y or Z. And
so it's a different discussion than when you're seventeen. I'm like, okay,
bull rush this guy and I'll do a spin move
because this guy oversets. But as he gets older, he's
taken a lot more ownership. So now I'm definitely proud
and want him to do. But he's a technician, though
(29:51):
he would he would tell that he's a technician.
Speaker 1 (29:53):
Well, I'll tell you man, Like I don't know who
would not expect him to interview while he went to
Duke and Notre Dame. I mean, great job at he you,
I mean, that's two fantastic schools. I think you know
he's going to be a smart point. He's gonna interview
all given the two schools he went.
Speaker 2 (30:05):
Through, right, yeah, absolutely, and just the environment they are in.
I mean some of those kind of schools, like they
even any player from like those schools. You know, your Northwestern,
your Vand's you know, Boston College. I mean, you're you're
living with regular students in the dorm. When you're young,
You're you're not just hanging around football players. You you
have other interests that's encouraged, so you have a more
worldview of the world versus just the football part of it.
(30:26):
But no, I'm i'm I'm. I'm glad that he's he's
done well for himself academically and and whatever whatever, he's
whatever he earns on the field on Sundays. I mean,
that's one thing I tell him all the time. You
got to earn it on Sundays. I said, no, no,
GM is going to get fired because they drafted Romanovn's kid.
I said, You're gonna have to earn every dollar, every
every down, every every training camp rep, every preseason rep.
Speaker 1 (30:47):
You're gonna have to earn it once you're in the building.
Nothing else matters. That's absolutely this was fun, man, Thanks
so much for doing it. And I was always gonna
catch up with you. And I'll see at the Combine
and India. I'm assuming in a couple of weeks.
Speaker 2 (30:57):
Yep, I'll see there.
Speaker 1 (30:58):
Oh aw, some Romano Olden works the NFL and now
former Giant. Of course, that's Roman Open. Thanks for joining
us on the Giants Little Podcast, brought to you by Citizens,
Official Bank of the Giants. We'll see you next time. Everybody,
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