Draft for Scheme? Draft for Need?

You hear every NFL personnel man say it--"We won't deviate from our draft board." Why would they? NFL teams invest hundreds of thousands of dollars, and man-hours, scouting players, double-checking their reports, cross-checking each others work, and finally placing a draft value on each prospect. So you can imagine the personnel gurus would be reluctant to drop down at all on their boards, when it's time to select. But Bills VP of College Scouting Tom Modrak talked with us today about the concept of drafting for scheme. He maintains you have to be flexible before you set up the board, and on draft day. In Modrak's case, this will be his seventh draft with the Bills. But he's already drafted for three different head coaches, and three different systems. The players the Bills selected for the Gregg Williams-Jerry Gray defense in 2002 might not fit at all in Dick Jauron and Perry Fewell's 2008 Bills defense. That's why the personnel experts have to factor in the scheme when they set their boards and make their picks. More importantly, that's why continuity is so important when it comes to building a NFL program. You might argue that in the free agency/salary cap era, with the roster in a constant state of flux, it's even more important to have a stable football operation (GM, Coach, and Personnel Department). You can hear more from Modrak Friday night at 7:30, on our Sports Blitz Draft Special on Channel 4.