The NFL Combine = the Best Job Interview EVER
Manager: So Gurgz, let’s review your resume. You played ball at Michigan State. Tell me about that.
Me: It was an awesome experience…blah blah blah…you should hire me…I’m great…
Manager: Where do you see yourself in five years?
Me: With all of the hard work that I am going to put in, I envision myself …wocka wocka wock…verbal garbage…
So that’s a typical job interview – incredibly boring – especially when the interviewer has no clue what he/she is doing.
Now, imagine you’re Gurgz the All-American quarterback and you’re interviewing in front of a whole lineup of managers (NFL general managers) in Indianapolis this weekend. Sure, some interviewers are idiots (the Lions, Raiders and Bills), but some (the Colts, Steelers, and Patriots) will see the skills needed to make you their company’s Regional Manager, errr Pro Bowler.
Instead of “so Gurgz, tell me about a time when…”, it’s “Gurgz, run from here to there…go!” It’d be the anti-boring.
Sure, there is still pressure on these athletes to perform, just like people who work in an office. The drills at the NFL combine relate well to typical office behavior.
1. The 40 Yard Dash = Words per minute:
This event means more to some than others. For skill position players, defensive backs and linebackers, it’s huge. For fat o-linemen, not so much. At 4.24 seconds, Titans RB Chris Johnson was the equivalent of the Micro Machines guy on the keyboard.
Andre “Boobs McGee” Smith would be the guy employing the old “hunt and peck” method who says, “I’m just not quite caught up on this new technology.” Yeah, you aren’t getting the job, Boobs McGee.
The three cone drill is a little more complicated than the straight forty-yard dash. It forces you to think for a second. Pretty much, when the boss catches you surfing the web, what is your reply? The sucker who looks like a deer in headlights doesn’t look so hot. The sly guy who says that he was “studying the company’s competition” nails it.
The bench is a drill measuring upper torso strength. Normal office duties require a different kind of strength. Are you a guy who will stay late when necessary? Can you lead the important meeting or give a crucial presentation? Can the company count on you when their butt is on the line? Or…are you the guy who refills his coffee cup every ten minutes? Are you more concerned with the office scuttlebutt than your duties? Basically, are you a stud or a dud? Are you #56…stud or #3…”wirey”?
Nobody likes a kiss-ass. When the boss says “jump”, the brown-noser emphatically asks, “how high?” Well, consider the kiss-asses to be the high risers in the office. When they’re told to jump, they’ll leap through the office ceiling. I have a feeling I know who might just jump through the Lucas Oil roof in Indy this weekend…
The Combine is a very small sample of what a player can do, just like the interview is for someone who works in an office. Parts of each are overrated and unnecessary. Neither is a true representation of what somebody can do. They’re essentially the same – except for one thing – your future boss doesn’t care about proper footwork as you walk to the copy machine. Now go work on that bench press…wuss.
Other kickass NFL posts by IASID:
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