I understand your take but I respectfully disagree with you. “Couch surfers“ as you call them, get to watch exactly the same game tape as the “professionals“ do. I myself liked this pick however there are many many many instances where I wanted Seattle to select a player at their spot that they didn’t only to select somebody that ended up being way worse. Sure the professionals get to interview them and watch them practice, but the game tape and games are televised for all to see and judge.
“Couch surfers” might be able to watch the same game tape as the professionals, but one thing you aren’t taking into consideration is the time they invest. If my job was as a professional scout, I would spend every weekend during football season attending different games all across the country. Before going to said games, I would take hours and hours studying up on guys I had a bead on. I’d take copious notes during games on players on my radar as well as players who might pop onto my radar during games. Post games I would be compiling my notes and writing up detailed reports about each player I observed. That’s my weekend.
From M-F, I’m probably meeting with other scouts and coaches about what I’m seeing and what we are looking for. So maybe 60-80 hours a week dedicated to watching and observing players up close during football season. Once the college season is complete it’s time to really go to work on the analysis of potential future players.
But if I were a professional scout, I’d probably just tell my bosses I could do the same job just “couch surfing” from my basement.
I’m guessing said “couch surfers” probably have regular jobs and might watch 10-15 minutes of video during lunch and probably a few hours more scattered throughout the day. That’s for the hardcore “couch surfers”!
I’m not buying the regular Joe has the same perspective bullshit as a paid professional football scout.
