The Kansas City Chiefs scouting department will head to Indianapolis this week to take in the 2011 NFL Combine. Throughout the week the Chiefs will be able to spend some time with NFL prospects watching what they can do on the field while speaking to them off of it.
The players will go through medical exams with the teams which is an important part of the process. Some teams tumble in the draft if they have a medical issue so it's important that the Chiefs have information on that.
The Chiefs will also watch these players work out so they'll have official 40-yard dash times, vertical leaps and things like that. The Chiefs don't use those numbers as if they make or break a decision on a player, instead filing it into their overall evaluation.
Chiefs GM Scott Pioli picked Kendrick Lewis last year and he had what was considered a poor 40-yard dash time. Last year, Pioli said about that:
"I"m a firm believer in tape, not just numbers, and while I didn't completely ignore (the times) -- because when you saw the speed it affected him on our board -- you go back and do more work on the guy."
So the times do matter, they're just not deal breakers.
The Chiefs will also interview players during the NFL Combine. These are 15-minute interviews and it gives the teams a chance to figure out more about the player. It's gotten hard to get around coached-answers these days but it's still an important part of the process.
The first batch of players will start arriving on Wednesday and more will come in throughout the week.