PITTSBURGH (93.7 The Fan) – As NFL teams are holding interviews with potential draft picks in Indianapolis, that’s not the place to learn about them as people. Former NFL GM Doug Whaley told the Fan Morning Show you want to learn about players, go back to their colleges.
“I tell you the people that know the whole team the best-equipment managers and trainers,” Whaley told the Fan Morning Show. “They are dealing with them and they are in their element. When equipment managers are in the locker room, they see who are the leaders. Who are the malcontents. How do they treat assistant trainers or student trainers? Are they respectful? Or do they dog them out and think they are lessor class citizens.”
“I learned from Pro Football Hall of Famer Bill Nunn. He says if you really want to know about players-go to the student union. Start talking to regular students, see how players treat regular students. You get to know what the real deal is.”
It’s a fascinating point. It’s about how much you do your homework and Whaley says you have to go back far now. Don’t stop with how they behave in college, go back to high school, back to middle school. Whaley said teams will hire firms that will go back through a person’s entire social media history. He said they did so at the Bills and, for instance, researched Patrick Mahomes throughout his life.
Whaley said you want to also seek out position coaches, because those are the coaches players will confide in with their deepest problems. They are the ‘good cop’ and often are the sounding board for players. He said often the head coaches don’t know the stories because they are more the CEO and oversee a program and don’t know in-depth about a player because they have so many under their watch.
South Side move?
The Chicago Bears unveiled plans for potentially building a stadium in the suburbs. The reason, as it often is, is money. The Bears want more suite revenue, that’s where most of the people who buy the suites live. They can also create a destination around the stadium (bars, restaurants, shops, entertainment venues), like the Atlanta Braves.
Whaley doesn’t expect the Steelers to push for that with a stadium, but it could happen with their practice facility.
He was there nearly 23 years ago, when the Steelers opening their shared facility with Pitt on the South Side. Whaley told the Fan Morning Show they’ve outgrown it. While there used to be plenty of space, growth of coaching, support and administrative staffs have made too small with little room to expand.
It’s not far fetched to see them create a Steelers specific training center in the suburbs. Whaley said you could have an area where you display the Lombardi Trophies and other historic items.
You could then charge $10 a head to take a tour of the offices in off-hours. He believes in five years, you’d have the facility paid for.