I am in a group of people that includes the assistant coaches of two different NFL offenses. As another round of drinks is being passed around, one coach turns to the other.
Coach 1: OK, real talk. You know your guy sucks, right?
Coach 2 [laughs]: He's awesome. I love that kid.
Coach 1: It's me. Come on. He can't play.
Coach 2: I'm serious. We value different things at [that position].
Coach 1 [skeptical]: Like what?
And then proceeds a 15-minute debate about the most important attributes to succeed at a certain position and whether or not Coach 2's player has them.
And so it goes in Indianapolis at the annual NFL combine. In theory, the idea is that invited college players can perform certain drills and be interviewed by NFL teams to help them further evaluate those players. And all that does go on and is important.
But something that doesn't get discussed as much is that it's the only time in the year that every person in the NFL is in the same place. General managers, coaches, front-office personnel, other team members ... and the press. No fans, no pressures of the season, just a week in the middle of America.