The 2006 Rookie Scouting Portfolio

[Mike FF Today 724]

Guys,

 

I've been proud to display the work of Mr. Waldman over the last couple years. If you've read his articles here at FF Today, you know the kind of quality work he does. You may have seen some of his Scouting Profiles floating around the site for sometime. Well, they are back, and back in a big way. Check this out...

 

The 2006 Rookie Scouting Portfolio

 

This Rookie Portfolio (.pdf format) covers players in more depth than most anything you will find in print! As a fantasy owner, its geared to the rookies you need to know about.

 

I'm telling you what folks, I was pretty amazed when I got the final version of this 379-page publication. Yes, 379 pages with no fluff. Matt's a skillful writer and very in-depth in every piece that he does and this collection of Scouting Profiles, Position Reports, Player Rankings, etc, is no different.

 

Check out this sample profile of RB Terrence Whitehead, Oregon. There's 114 more where that came from!

 

To go along with the 115 Player Profiles, Matt has included Position Reports (QB, RB, WR & TE) which contain...

• Overview & Fantasy Impact Of The Position
  
• Overrated/Underrated
  
• Fantasy Top 15
  
• Projects
  
• Best By Category
  
• Combine/Pro Day-Adjusted Rankings
  

The intent of the The 2006 Rookie Scouting Portfolio is to provide the fantasy owners and draftnik information that goes beyond the general one and two paragraph summaries of player strengths and weaknesses and Matt has certainly done that. Checking out competing Draft Guides that are available online, I truly believe this Portfolio is well worth the $17.95 price tag. The Portfolio is available in .pdf format and can be viewed with Adobe Reader, a very common program on most PCs today. Hopefuly you guys will enjoy it as much as we do and both Matt and I are definitely interested to hear your feedback on this product. For more details on included features and purchasing information, you may follow the link below.

 

The 2006 Rookie Scouting Portfolio

 

Draft time is just around the corner.

[t.j 35]

This is going to take months to read. Good thing I have that long before my fantasy draft.

[Wildman 0]

This is going to take months to read. Good thing I have that long before my fantasy draft.

 

 

Happy Birthday. Let me know what you think...when you finish it sometime in September

[Zap 0]

First thought

 

Second thought

[Wildman 0]

First thought

 

Second thought

 

 

Thanks Zap, always knew you'd be honest and with your perspective on things I'm appreciative you feel that way on the second thought...

[Zap 0]

Third thought. Wow, we don't have an emoticon for this.

 

Check out this sample profile of RB Terrence Whitehead, Oregon. There's 114 more where that came from!

 

As avid Pac 10 fan with a keen interest in RBs, this is just exceptional. I wouldn't say that if I didn't mean it. I read almost all the free scouting reports online, and those behind three subscription sites, and I haven't read one on Whitehead this thorough or that I am in more agreement with. Very nice, Matt. Nowak, our resident college RB guru, and I have debated Whitehead a little in email, and I bet he concurs with this report too. He likes Whitehead a little more than me, and I don't want this thread to be about a late round Oregon RB. Those of you considering the 18 bucks need to realize there's 114 more of these, covering the highest rated (fantasy) prospects in the draft. Bargain.

[Groy 0]

If you guys haven't checked this out yet, you owe it to yourself to look at it.

 

Most of us thrive on data from many sources because we don't get to watch actual games like Bowling Green vs. Toledo.

 

This is the kind of thing I have been looking for from a draft service for years.

 

[Orgazmo 2]

"Why should I run my 40 when you can read all about me in Waldman's fabulous portfolio!"

-- Matt Leinart

 

"It was so good, I ate it!"

-- Lendale White

 

"Man, that's a long read"

--Dan Sez

 

"You'll definately have to scroll"

-- the Soloist

 

"I quit my law career to read it full-time!"

-- Call Me...Tim?

[Wildman 0]

 

What others had to say:

 

 

"If you carry this portfolio while running the 40 you'll cut .5 seconds off your time. It's our primary training tool...Champ and LT swear by it."

--SPARQ training coordinator

 

"This is going to be an excellent resource. You won't hear nothin' from T.O. this year. I'm stuffing this 379 page portfolio in 81's big mouth everytime he tries to open it."

--Bill Parcells

 

"No injuries this year, thanks to the extra padding of this tome. The Titans are going to regret getting rid of me."

--Steve McNair

 

"My arm strength has increased dramatically since I've been tossing this portfolio around my apartment."

--Matt Leinart

 

"My Wonderlic score was 5, but when I read Waldman's portfolio it went up 10 points in a week."

--Vince Young

[Walter34 3]

Sounds interesting Matt and alot of work obviously went into it. I cant imagine a time in my life when I would have time to read a 400 page report on the NFL draft however.

 

Out of curiosity, do you watch film on all these guys? Where do you get your info from to get detailed opinions on such minute aspects of a players game? It sounds like a fulltime job.

[Wildman 0]

Let me address your comment about the amount of information in the portfolio because if your worried about the time element, I think it might be unnecessary. In fact many of the reports are set up for people to print 5-10 pages and use for their drafts. If you use your laptop, the document is bookmarked for your convenience.

 

Here's more of a breakdown:

 

1. About 25 pages of this work is a glossary devoted to defining the standards I used to grade players. I felt it was important to define the criteria because no other publication does so with a level of detail that helps you pick out what to look for when watching on your own. I always wondered how they defined certain skill sets and exactly how much value they place on a player. This isn't something most people will study when they purchase the portfolio, but it's available to them if they have a quesiton about how my evaluation process works. I work in an industry where defining standards is important because subjective grading systems can wreak havoc on overall performance. I applied this concept to this project.

 

2. Another 120-130 pages are the checklists. These checklists aren't necessary to study in order to get the basic value out of this publication. Again, I listed them to demonstrate my scoring methods because I don't see anyone else out there doing this for the public to see. This helps a discerning reader determine if they agree with how much importance I place on certain skill sets.

 

3. The position specific reports are 20-25 pages and supply an overview of how I feel about players (overrated/underrated/long term projects/rankings/and other observations)--some things--like the rankings--you'll find in a draft publication elsewhere, others you won't see.

 

4. The 150+ pages of profile are the meat of the publication. This is where I break down the film at a level of detail that I'm told you won't find available anywhere else.

 

Considering a draft magazine is 120-150 pages--sometimes more--I'm providing 175 pages of highly detailed info on players and the rest is a worthwhile reference/resource. Some people will use this to compare with other analysis they read or form their own opinions of players.

 

As for how much time I put in...I watched film on all of the prospects in the portfolio and it was like working a full-time job. I recorded all the games between July and January and spent 4-5 nights a week watching games. If I had players from opposing teams to profile, it might take me 8 hours to study a game. If all the players were on one team, 4-5 hours. If just one player, 3-4 hours at most.

 

In February I devoted a 136-hour work week to this project. Mostly watching film locked in a hotel room with my pc, a dvd player, a remote, and an easy chair. Honestly, I wasn't sure how I was going to feel about doing this but it was actually a lot of fun. I'll be writing something about this experience soon.

 

I would describe what you are getting is two publications in one: A fantasy draft guide/player analysis and reference material. The checklists and definitions are something you can refer to when just casually watching a game and see if you make the same judgments about players or possibly gain some additional insight on certain skill sets that are often glossed over....

 

Thanks for asking about it Walter and if anyone has additional questions, I'll answer as many as I can

[t.j 35]

Considering a draft magazine is 120-150 pages--sometimes more--I'm providing 175 pages of highly detailed info on players and the rest is a worthwhile reference/resource. Some people will use this to compare with other analysis they read or form their own opinions of players.

 

IMO there is more substance in 10-20 pages of the RSP than there is in your typical 150 page draft guide. I've spent some time digging through it now and it is truly awesome. Then yesterday I read a Q&A interview with Kiper, and the interview was complete and utter fluff by comparison. People: How often do you read "expert" commentary about a player and all they have to say is, "He's a second-round talent, a great athlete but raw," or similar? I am loving the RSP, after reading a player profile you'll know for yourself what the value of a prospect is, and why. You'll know whether he has a strength or weakness in well over a dozen categories, and you'll know you're getting the info derived directly from film study, rather than second or third or fourth-hand information. Like Wildman said his findings are presented in a variety of ways, so a reader can get satisfaction spending however much time they want studying it.

[Mike MacGregor 20]

Free time is at a premium for me, which is why my favorite part is the reports by position. The individual player profiles are cool to see how the ratings are built up, but I'll definitely be leaning heavily on the reports for my dynasty rookie drafts.

[Mike FF Today 724]

I am loving the RSP, after reading a player profile you'll know for yourself what the value of a prospect is, and why. You'll know whether he has a strength or weakness in well over a dozen categories, and you'll know you're getting the info derived directly from film study, rather than second or third or fourth-hand information. Like Wildman said his findings are presented in a variety of ways, so a reader can get satisfaction spending however much time they want studying it.

 

I couldn't have said it better myself.

[Queso Viejo 0]

I picked this up last week in preparation for my dynasty draft and it is very impressive.

 

Time will only tell how good the evaluations are and these are exlusive of the situations that each player ends up in, but very in depth and allows you to decide how much detail you want to go into.

 

Great work, Matt.

[Wildman 0]

I picked this up last week in preparation for my dynasty draft and it is very impressive.

 

Time will only tell how good the evaluations are and these are exlusive of the situations that each player ends up in, but very in depth and allows you to decide how much detail you want to go into.

 

Great work, Matt.

 

 

Thanks, I think it would be a cool idea to do a report card on past evaluations--maybe a 3 and 5-year kind of deal. I'll probably do more analysis of the draft next year as well...we'll see, just depends how little I want to sleep.

 

Never thought I was an insomniac...now I'm beginning to wonder

[kristv 0]

Okay, I have thoroughly read the 4 freebies on the linked page, and here are my initial impressions.

 

Pros:

 

Abundant, useful information - extremely helpful, and quite an amazing compilation

 

Well thought-out, insightful commentary

 

Good analysis on several key abilities

 

Easy to read/understand format

 

Cons:

 

Could use a bit more detail on a couple of the ability (category) commentaries - some of them had maybe a sentence or two which didn't seem thorough enough to me, seemed a bit short in comparison to other players' analysis

 

Needs to be proof-read - far too many spelling, punctuation and grammatical errors. Missing words, extra words, incorrect usage of words (I’m guessing misspellings that turned out to be actual words, but the wrong word used) , run-on sentences, comma splices. For $18, I expected a bit more polish.

 

Wording was occasionally confusing - pretty minor, really only a couple of occurrences of this

 

 

Please don't take any of this the wrong way. I am just trying to give some objective, constructive criticism. It's obvious that a lot of work was put into this report, and the content is fantastic. Just needs a bit of polishing for the asking price is all I'm saying. Nice work, regardless!

[Wildman 0]

It was a self-edited publication, and this is not something we plan on doing in the coming seasons. If I were to make a criticism about the RSP, I would have said the exact same thing about the work needing an extra eye, or two. I would say the profiles have a the majority of these minor issues than the rest of the content. Due to the enormous time element of creating the database, scoring methods, reporting, and watching film I was a little rushed to complete the project in its initial year. Next year I'll probably have a friend of mine handle the overall editing (a sports editor for regional newspaper).

 

There are some players with a category or two that has a smaller level of commentary. Sometimes the player did not have the opportunity to demonstrate the skill set, or this area was covered in other spots of the profile.

 

Although you may not feel this publication matches your price expectations, I appreciate the balanced feedback.

[kristv 0]

It was a self-edited publication, and this is not something we plan on doing in the coming seasons. If I were to make a criticism about the RSP, I would have said the exact same thing about the work needing an extra eye, or two. I would say the profiles have a the majority of these minor issues than the rest of the content. Due to the enormous time element of creating the database, scoring methods, reporting, and watching film I was a little rushed to complete the project in its initial year. Next year I'll probably have a friend of mine handle the overall editing (a sports editor for regional newspaper).

 

There are some players with a category or two that has a smaller level of commentary. Sometimes the player did not have the opportunity to demonstrate the skill set, or this area was covered in other spots of the profile.

 

Although you may not feel this publication matches your price expectations, I appreciate the balanced feedback.

 

 

Don't get me wrong, the content is well worth the price! Just needs a bit of proof-reading. I stand corrected on the commentary part. I went back to re-read the profiles, and sure enough, some of the information was in other parts of the profile (or like you said, sometimes the player didn't demonstrate the skill set). One more point of interest...on injury information, you may want to include the nature of the injury and how long the player was out of action. Not totally necessary, but would round out that bit of information and give people a rough idea of how tough (mentally and physically) the player is.

[Wildman 0]

Don't get me wrong, the content is well worth the price! Just needs a bit of proof-reading. I stand corrected on the commentary part. I went back to re-read the profiles, and sure enough, some of the information was in other parts of the profile (or like you said, sometimes the player didn't demonstrate the skill set). One more point of interest...on injury information, you may want to include the nature of the injury and how long the player was out of action. Not totally necessary, but would round out that bit of information and give people a rough idea of how tough (mentally and physically) the player is.

 

 

Good deal. Now that I won't have to create a database, I'll have more time to devote to other aspects in 2007. The injury suggestion is a good one, too. Thanks. There are some things I may consider next year as well--depending how all this works out:

 

1. IDPs (maybe 30-40)

2. More statistical analysis on the draft and player performance 1,3,and 5 years out.

3. More players in general or even more games per player. I often watched more than 1 game per player, but I didn't always list the checklist for the second game unless the player was high-profile and I had some criticisims of his game or the high profile player had very significantly different performances.

4. More combine/measurement analysis and discuss its impact in various ways

[Tusekan Raiders 0]

As an avid draftnik and purveyor of draft sites, this is absolutely the best independent work on the draft you can find (and probably better than what many teams do). There isn't much more to say. The best money any hardcore football fan will spend on feeding their information jones this year.

[Wildman 0]

Thanks Tony...

 

I've gotten some interesting feedback on this publication in the first 20+ days:

 

I'm a weekly in-season regular on Anita Marks South Florida ESPN afternoon drive and she led off the show by saying she had the ESPN Draft Guide and thinks it's a fine publication, but the 2006 RSP "blows it away." Personally, I've seen the ESPN Draft Guide and I think it's very good. I'm more self-critical about my own work, so it's hard for me to believe it blows away the ESPN publication but it's nice to know an ESPN affiliated employee likes it a lot and rates it up there in terms of content.

The New Orleans Saints personnel department requested a complimentary copy after I sent out queries to some NFL teams. We'll see if I get any more feedback after the draft.

 

CBS' Pete Prisco was impressed. He did note that in his opinion some players needed more games for evaluation, which I agree and will be the case next year.

 

If you are drafting in a dynasty league, I think you'll find the rankings and reports worthwhile as well. Especially once the NFL draft is over and you know where these players land. The RSP from the standpoint of content and editing was a one-man show so I there is room for improvement. Fortunately, I have heard the minor editing errors really don't detract from the overall product. Still, I will be having a sports editor I know in the Tidewater, VA. area handling the editing chores next year.

 

For those of you that have purchased The Portfolio and provided feedback, thank you very much and I'm encouraged to continue with this project in the coming seasons. For those of you considering it, please feel free to contact me if you have questions.

[Ainsley 0]

Here are my initial comments. There will be more to come, as this thing is going to take forever to read, which is a good thing .

• I agree 100% with your top three QBs.
  
• I'd like to see Derrick Ross RB Tarleton State included. I realize he is a D2 player and film isn't exactly easy to come by, but I think he is easily a top 10 RB in this class.
  
• Page numbers on all pages would be a nice addition, as sometimes I forget where I last left off.
  

I haven't really looked at your fantasy analysis yet, concentrating more on the grading of the players from an NFL standpoint. This guide is definately a great piece of work and perhaps in the future we can work together on something like this.

 

Thanks

[Wildman 0]

Thanks Ainsley...

 

Some thoughts I have after the first round from a skill position standpoint.

 

I ranked the QBs: Cutler, Young, and Leinart. Looks like Steven Young and Jaworski agreed on the Cutler rating. Denver moving up as high as they did to get Cutler despite a good season out of Plummer is a pretty good endorsement, too. Leinart landed in the perfect offense in terms of skill players to cushion his development. He will have the best start of the three, but I like where the other two QBs went and believe we'll see the other two catch up in 3-5 years.

 

Addai to the Colts has been the move I've been touting for several weeks. I have Chad Jackson as my top WR and NE trading up to get him as the 2nd WR off the board is a pretty big deal, especially since it was revealed Bill Belicheck personally worked out the kid.

 

I believe we'll see Brodie Croyle off the board in round two and I think Bruce Gradkowski is a surprise first-day pick at the QB position.

 

Lendale White is dropping...no surprise. I do think Marcedes Lewis was a questionable pick for the Jags. I think he's overrated--he'll be a good redzone option, but I don't see him as a downfield threat in the manner of a Leonard Pope. I'd rather see J-ville help out their o-line and pick up Dominique Byrd in round 2 or 3...

[Ilov80s 0]

Matt, great work with the RSP and all the fantasy stuff you do for the site.

I was wondering if you planned to do any type of draft wrap-up article? I am really curious to hear your thoughts on the Lions draft because opinions are VERY mixed around Detroit. Some people have said it was a debacle and claim to be giving up hope. Others (myself included) feel it was alright draft- much better then 05. Thanks again for all the stuff you do, it makes the fantasy season even better.

[Wildman 0]

Thanks, and I'll at least be doing a rookie impact article from the skill positions. I'll look into working something up this week in terms of a more timely team wrap-up

[Ainsley 0]

Thanks, and I'll at least be doing a rookie impact article from the skill positions. I'll look into working something up this week in terms of a more timely team wrap-up

 

I would like to see Mr. Irrelevant included.

[nobody 2,672]

Wow, I just got the 2006 RSP and my genetalia grew 30%. Women will finally like me.

 

Wildman, were you an NFL scout in a past life? I'm amazed at one man's football acumen! Oops. I just wet myself!~

[t.j 35]

Wow, I just got the 2006 RSP and my genetalia grew 30%. Women will finally like me.

 

Wildman, were you an NFL scout in a past life? I'm amazed at one man's football acumen! Oops. I just wet myself!~

 

Reading the RSP made me a better quarterback! By learning from the mistakes of the best student-athletes in the country, I have improved at looking off defenders and holding the ball up high. I now have a quicker release, and a completion rate over 60%! Still have to work on maintaining control of the ball in adverse weather conditions, though. If only there was an RSP for defensive backs, I could become a flag football God!

[Wildman 0]

Nobody...I thought I told you to read it not tie it to you! But if you are happy you are finally getting noticed, then

 

Writing the RSP made me a blind, hunchback, insomniac.

 

It was fun though...in a strange way.

[football_scooter 0]

Writing the RSP made me a blind, hunchback, insomniac.

 

And that's different than before how exactly?

[Wildman 0]

 

Just the hunchback part

[Kilroy 0]

"Why should I run my 40 when you can read all about me in Waldman's fabulous portfolio!"

-- Matt Leinart

 

"It was so good, I ate it!"

-- Lendale White

 

"Man, that's a long read"

--Dan Sez

 

"You'll definately have to scroll"

-- the Soloist

 

"I quit my law career to read it full-time!"

-- Call Me...Tim?

 

 

As for how much time I put in...I watched film on all of the prospects in the portfolio and it was like working a full-time job. I recorded all the games between July and January and spent 4-5 nights a week watching games. If I had players from opposing teams to profile, it might take me 8 hours to study a game. If all the players were on one team, 4-5 hours. If just one player, 3-4 hours at most.

 

In February I devoted a 136-hour work week to this project. Mostly watching film locked in a hotel room with my pc, a dvd player, a remote, and an easy chair. Honestly, I wasn't sure how I was going to feel about doing this but it was actually a lot of fun. I'll be writing something about this experience soon.

 

 

Good stuff Matt.

[Wildman 0]

LOL!

 

I know, funny stuff.

 

Seriously, the detail is great with this thing, but the front end reports summary page are worth using for dynasty drafts without having to read everything on a time period before your draft

[nobody 2,672]

Wildman's articles here at FFToday have made it to number 2 on my printout and take to the crapper with me at work status.

 

That's pretty high praise.

[Wildman 0]

Wildman's articles here at FFToday have made it to number 2 on my printout and take to the crapper with me at work status.

 

That's pretty high praise.

 

I never thought I would hear something like that and take it as the ultimate compliment, but as someone that used to do this with Bill Simmons' and Marcus Gladwell's articles I understand and honored...

[Mike MacGregor 20]

Wildman's articles here at FFToday have made it to number 2 on my printout and take to the crapper with me at work status.

 

That's pretty high praise.

 

It begs the question what is #1?

[Wildman 0]

Just some thoughts on the "second tier" or even lesser regarded rookies featured in this publication while leading up to training camps.

 

Hits (So far)

 

QB Bruce Gradkowski--He's had Gruden excited from the beginning and is making a strong first impression. Yes they grabbed Feidler to be the #2 QB when McCown went down, but I never expected the rookie to do anything but make the roster this year. I still stand by my thoughts he'll be nipping at Simms heels at somepoint next year. He really is that good on film and if you bought the Portfolio you know where he graded out on my adjusted rankings and why I saw his 6th round selection more of a surprise (for being so late) than the impression he's making thus far...

 

QB D.J. Shockley--I know this sounds silly to say about a late round pick, but I pegged the guy as a project over guys many thought would be graded higher (Pinegar, Holland, Elliott, and Hackney). Shockley should be a solid backup in 2-3 years and has played well enough to push for the #3 spot heading into camp.

 

WR Darian Hagan--I thought the bad hands whispers were overdone compared to the gamefilm. The Dolphins are beginning to see the same thing in practice and has a real shot at the #3 spot. He was my #2 WR on the draft board.

 

WR Mike Hass--Impressive hands, faster than the Saints thought...I'm telling you, pick this guy and stash him in your dynasty leagues. He's a huge bargain.

 

RB Jerious Norwood--I mentioned he was underrated and explained why. Those skills are translating well enough to apparently make former first round pick, T.J. Duckett expendable.

 

RB P.J. Daniels--A back I mentioned that will eventually surprise is actually expected to see some time as a possible 3rd down back as a rookie.

 

Misses (So far)

WR Charles Sharon--he's impressed as a free agent pick, but I thought he'd get drafted. It may take him a year or two to find a team that let's him develop. I'm not conceding anything about his skills, just his opportunity and how teams viewed him.

 

TE/FB Garrett Mills--He has failed to impress the Patriots thus far. What he's doing in practice seems to be the opposite of what he showed on film. We'll see if it takes a preseason game for him to shine.

 

RB Andre Hall--I thought he'd get drafted, but like Sharon he's only going to compete for a roster spot at best this year.

[RLLD 4,230]

"Man, that's a long read"

--Dan Sez

 

OMG...OMG....

[jacklesize 0]

I'd say great addition to the site.

 

By the way, glad the boards are back.