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GREAT SCOUTING:

 THE HIGHEST RETURN ON INVESTMENT IN SPORTS … AND IN BUSINESS.

In the National Football League (NFL), as is in most businesses, an inordinately small number of teams wins an inordinately large number of championships – the equivalent of dominant market share and highest profitability in the business world. The rest scramble for what’s left over.

Of the 32 NFL franchises only 16 have ever won any of the 43 Super Bowls. In fact, nearly 75% of the Super Bowl champions find there roots in one of three to four teams. For example, under Gil Brandt, vice president of player personnel for the Dallas Cowboys from 1960-89, developed one of the most successful franchises in sports history, winning 5 Super Bowls, 10 Conference and 18 Division Championships. What sets these winning teams apart from the others? 

In a word, scouting: or the art and science of imagining potential.  Many scouts work long hours to identify, evaluate and select talent. Scouts come in various shapes and sizes, from general managers to player personnel directors to coaches to cross checkers and birddog scouts. Great scouts have a natural sense for discovering the talents that fit a coach’s system of play. They’re like great detectives who see (or can imagine) the whole picture to create a mental image of the potential of a player.

The person who has led the New England Patriots to victory in three Superbowls, quarterback Tom Brady, is vivid evidence of the power of effective scouting, and looking beyond raw statistics to see potential talent.  Brady was a sixth round (199^th overall) pick in the 2000 NFL draft, and the general consensus among less observant or talented scouts was that his arm was too weak for the pro game.  This unheralded college player only a part-time starter his senior year at Michigan is the winningest quarterback in Patriots history.  But how can teams (or businesses, or any organization) find natural leaders like Brady, and avoid drafting “can’t miss” quarterbacks such as Ryan Leaf, who are pro flops? Read the rest of this entry »