July 16-22
As you know, the NFLPA held its exam for prospective contract advisors on Wednesday. However, unless you sat for the exam, you may not know how this strange week played out. Here’s a quick recap of what turned out to be a long few days for the 350-odd test-takers and the union officials.
The final push: Between our last Wrap and Wednesday’s exam, we hosted two Zoom sessions, one last Sunday and one Tuesday night. Both were co-hosted by Chicago-based contract advisor Ian Greengross and ITL’s Neil Stratton. We also introduced our services to a closing burst of test-takers; taking our exams in the last 24 hours before the exam has become a tradition in exam prep season. We also disseminated our new feature for 2022, our Zoom session videos, to several applicants. There were many happy returns. “Your whole prep package was awesome,” said one satisfied client. “I’d be glad to do a testimonial, etc., post-certification.”
The exam: It was a doozy, but not due to the questions themselves. We spoke to plenty of people who took the test, and though there were outliers, the feedback we got was that it was mostly fair and, with a few exceptions, followed from what was presented in the two-day seminar. “My perspective was that it was a fair exam; in comparison to last year, I would say this year was slightly easier,” said one applicant in Wednesday’s Rep Rumblings, in which we did our usual post-exam rundown.
The problem wasn’t the exam itself. Instead, it was the presentation of it that had applicants fuming. A number of test-takers had trouble connecting with the proctoring service; one prospective agent we spoke to said it took a full 90 minutes just to establish a link to the platform, after which the exam began immediately. That led to a nearly five-hour engagement with no bathroom breaks. There were other stories of frustration:
- Several test-takers were chosen for mid-exam security spot checks in which they had to present all their testing materials and a full screening of their testing space. Some of these spot checks took place in the crucial last half-hour of their respective testing slots. They told us the timing of their three-hour testing periods was not halted for these checks.
- There were odd requests by the testing service. Some people even had to remove jewelry or other clothing accessories.
- Multiple test-takers related difficulty communicating with the testing service’s representatives.
- One test-taker, whose exam was pushed to 2022 when he couldn’t establish a link with the testing service last year – the first year the test was administered virtually -- was again unable to establish a link.
Though we don’t know exactly how many people missed their exam slot due to technical difficulties, the number was great enough to prompt an email from the NFLPA’s Mark Levin, who’s roundly agreed upon to be the most responsive official at the Players Association. He tried to deescalate the situation in an email Wednesday afternoon that promised, after a review of the testing procedure, that the NFLPA would “inform (applicants) of the information (the testing service) provides on (applicants’) case(s) and (their) options.” The email cautioned that any information was likely two weeks away, and that no additional information would be provided until that time.
The aftermath: We know of no one who has received subsequent communication from anyone at the NFLPA. Though some have suggested that the two-week time frame might give the Players Association time to generate a new exam once all the problems have been resolved, that seems unlikely given that all grades are scaled. Though it seems like delaying the exam until 2023 may be the likely option, we, along with many other frustrated applicants, await further information. However, though we realize that’s not going to satisfy those with prospective clients in the ’23 draft class or those who were on their second attempt at passing, it might be the best (only?) solution. If so, will we see a return to in-person testing in ’23? It’s a fair question.
We will continue to monitor the situation. In the meantime, here’s a look at what else we saw, heard, read and said about the business of college and pro football this week.
Got XFL questions? Join us Monday: Over the last month, obviously, most of the questions we’ve fielded and chatter we’ve heard has dealt with the 2022 agent exam. However, running a close second has been the topic of the XFL. What will players get paid? How will they be procured? How will the draft work? What happens if my client gets a call from an NFL team? We at ITL don’t have the answers to all those questions, but we know who does, and Monday night, they’ll join ITL’s Neil Stratton on Zoom. Three members of the XFL’s management team, Doug Whaley, Russ Giglio and Marc Ross, will discuss all these matters in an hour-long session, and everyone is invited. So, if you’re an agent, hoping to be an agent, a player hoping to get into the XFL, or anyone else interested in the league, you’re invited to join us Monday at 8 p.m. ET. Here’s the Zoom link. Want more details about Monday’s subject matter? We’ve got the goods in this week’s blog at Succeed in Football. Read up to see what we’ll cover, or come up with your own questions, then join us Monday night. Hope to see you there. Once again, Zoom link here.
Catching Up: Richard Shelton, 56, spent 15 years as an area scout with the Titans and Eagles. We caught up with him last week.
· Where are you living and what are you doing now? “I’m living in Florida right now. I’m between Florida and Georgia, close to Valdosta. I’m pretty much retired, just enjoying life. That’s it.”
· Do you miss the job? What do you miss most? “I think I just miss being out on the road, going to different games, going into a school to visit, talking to coaches, evaluating tape and being able to hang out with some of the other scouts.”
· Do you keep in touch with any of your former colleagues? “Every once in a while, I talk to some of the young (scouts), but there are a handful, probably about 5-6 (veteran scouts), that I still talk to.”
· Do you go to any live games (HS/college/pro)? “Probably the last game I went to was a high school game, but I was just going with a friend who had a son who was playing on the team.”
· Are there any players you love to watch and/or feel close to due to your work in the game? “A lot of guys I watch that I scouted are now seven-, eight- or nine-year veterans. I like to look at them and see how they’ve progressed based on where they should be, so it’s a lot of stuff I like to look at. I look at some of my old reports and see if they’re in that category where I put them back around draft time.”
Review the latest from other former NFL scouts and executives by accessing our Catching Up archive here. Want to hear from a former scout, or know someone who may be interested in being interviewed? Let us know.
Scouting Changes Grid: With veterans reporting Tuesday, scouting movement has slowed to a crawl. At the same time, teams’ media guides are starting to be published and websites updated for the ’22 season, which exposes moves we didn’t previously know. We uncovered a couple today and tweeted about them:
We’ve added all the moves to our big board. We expect a few new moves in the coming weeks as more teams put out their media guides.
More to know on NIL: With NFLPA Exam prep for this year in the rear-view mirror (we think), we’re working on bringing several experts together to talk about the practical concepts of monetizing name, image and likeness. A year into this new era, there’s a lot of bluster about what works and what doesn’t, as well as how many hundreds of thousands of dollars are out there, but not much clarity. Sure, you can sign a player and make estimated guesses on what’s possible, but how do you interest a potential sponsor? How do you close that sponsor? Also, how do you bring a client a steady income stream without burning him out with endless social media posts, appearances and other commitments? We didn’t know, so we started asking questions, and we’ll be trying to bring you a platform to help provide answers in the coming weeks. Stay tuned for more information. Want to learn more? Just ask.
Rep Rumblings: This week, we had four reports. On Monday, we discussed the first day of pre-exam seminars, the agencies getting contract advisors certified, and an established agent who’s now on the market. Tuesday, we had feedback on Tuesday’s seminar, plus we looked at a job opening in the USFL, the NFL ties of New Mexico State’s coaching staff, and more. As we’ve already discussed, Wednesday’s report dealt with post-exam fallout and applicants’ reaction to this year’s test. Finally, on Thursday, we had more post-exam notes, a look at New Mexico’s coaching staff and NFL ties, and a few scouting staff moves in Dallas. Get a look at these and all our Rep Rumblings reports this year here.
Next week: This week, we’ll take a breather after a very busy July. Well, not really a breather, exactly. Let’s run down what’s ahead in the next seven days.
· Monday night, we’ll host a Zoom session with XFL executives, as we previously mentioned. It starts at 8 p.m. ET, and everyone’s invited. We’ll mainly talk about the XFL salary structure and other vagaries of compensation and roster management. Here’s the Zoom link. Remember: Monday, 8 p.m. ET.
· We’ll have five more Profile Reports. They include North Texas, Northern Illinois, Northwestern, Notre Dameand Ohio. We have 52 to go.
· We hope to start catching up on our Agent Changes. We’re running a ways behind, but hopefully, we start getting back on track in the coming days.
· In our weekly blog at Succeed in Football, we’ll review our Zoom session with XFL officials and have a few thoughts.
· In next week’s Friday Wrap, we’ll talk to Tom Gibbons, who’s worked with the Chargers, Jets and Bills, for our Catching Up feature.
We may not keep up the same pace we did this week, but we never “chill.” We’ll keep up the grind until next Friday and beyond. Come along with us.
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