Sunday, March 9, 2008

Are you smarter than an NFL Player?

The NFL Combine is one of my least favorite times of year.  The Combine is a week-long meat market for the top college football players to strut their stuff for NFL Teams.  It brings back fond memories of my beloved Philadelphia Eagles getting suckered into drafting Mike Mamula, a stiff defensive lineman from Boston College.  Mamula wowed the NFL brass by running a 40 yard dash faster than most running backs, bench pressing more than most offensive lineman and jumping higher than most wide receivers.  The problem was he couldn't play football.

The testing of the prospective players includes: 40 yard dash, Bench press, Vertical jump, broad jump, 20 yard shuttle, 3 cone drill, 60 yard shuttle, drills, interviews and my personal favorite The Wonderlic Test.

The Wonderlic Test is a simple IQ test.  It is a timed 50 question test designed to test aptitude for learning, overall intelligence and simple problem solving.  A score of 20 indicates an average level of intelligence.  According to Dr. Z, a writer from Sports Illustrated the average scores for each position are: 

Offensive Tackle 26 ; Center 25 ; QB 24; Guard 23; Tight End 22; Safety 19; Linebacker 19; Cornerback 18; Wide Receiver 17; Fullback 17; Running back 16

In today's NFL with the complex schemes on both the offensive and defensive side of the ball intelligence plays a big role.  NFL playbooks are notorious for their complexity and girth.  I actually believe that the Wonderlic Test is probably the most important part of the NFL Combine.

But remember Mamula, the most important question is: Can they play football?

Test Your Knowledge:

Saturday, March 8, 2008

Eagles Trading for Larry Fitzgerald?

It looks like the Arizona Cardinals have again made it more difficult for themselves.  In one huge management blunder they have overpaid one of the best receivers in the NFL.  This wouldn't be a problem but now they can't make any moves this off-season.

The Eagles will get Larry Fitzgerald.




Sunday, March 2, 2008

Snowballs at Santa

Nothing makes me cringe more than the over-told, media hyped story of Eagles Fans throwing snowballs at Santa Claus.  Does anyone even realize that this was 40 years ago?  Here is an article we wrote on the topic.