Keenan Allen slide?

[Ravenswintitle]

Now there's a report out there that Austin scored a 7 on the wunderlic
http://sports.yahoo.com/news/wideout...2914--nfl.html

[Shas]

I'm not as concerned about the drug test rumor on Allen, because there are varying reports on what that was about. But what really set off a red flag for me was reading anonymous scouts say he was a really poor interview at the combine and was basically big-timing them.

That's the bigger concern. The drug test he may or may not have failed is really just evidence of the bigger problem, that being that he's too dumb to realize what the opportunity here is all about, or worse, just doesn't care and is going to do whatever the hell he pleases. That suggests that he's not going to put in the work and become a good team guy.

That's why the interview matters the most out of all this, and it's not really being brought up.

[Ravenswintitle]

Shas - I still am very skeptical of these types of reports from 'anonymous scouts' or 'unnamed coaches'. You never know the motive and if it's true or totally fabricated; especially this close to the draft. What is their gain by putting it out there other than hurting his stock?

[moose10101]

Now there's a report out there that Austin scored a 7 on the wunderlic
http://sports.yahoo.com/news/wideout...2914--nfl.html

And now Hopkins is named as one of the guys who trashed the hotel room:

http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/nfl-sh...GlvbnM-;_ylv=3

If I didn't know better (:D) I might think somebody's conspiring to make the WR's drop so they can snag one near the end of Round 1.

[Shas]

Shas - I still am very skeptical of these types of reports from 'anonymous scouts' or 'unnamed coaches'. You never know the motive and if it's true or totally fabricated; especially this close to the draft. What is their gain by putting it out there other than hurting his stock?

True. There is lots of lying this time of year. Maybe it has something to do with tax season and people are just in that mode.

Just thinking it through, though. Let's say you are the Ravens and you're interested in Allen and you're really not too worried about the maybe-drug-issue or the ankle or the 40-time. But you're hoping other teams are down on Allen so he falls to you. And maybe you're thinking, 'hey, if other teams think we don't like the guy they won't try to leapfrog us and take him before we get the chance.'

Except... if that's your motive, why stay anonymous? If you are trying to signal you don't like the guy, then someone like Eric DeCosta needs to come right out and say he thinks the guy is bad news.

What does an anonymous thumbs-down trashing of Allen's character really accomplish? I don't see a reason to remain anonymous. It's not like another team who is considering taking Allen is going to get wind of a bad-character rumor and back off. They're going to interview him, talk to his college coaches, and form their own opinion.

If anything, I trust an anonymous source more than an on-the-record quote.

Back to my Ravens example, if I'm Eric DeCosta and I know I've got a black dot next to the guy's name, I don't want ANYONE to know that he's off my board. I want them thinking we may take the guy. And if a reporter asks me, I'm either going to lie on the record, or I'm going to give the reporter something off the record to avoid signalling my intentions.

So, my rule of thumb is that if it's a direct quote, ignore it. If it's off the record, maybe there's something to it--if you trust the reporter having good sources.

By the way, here is the anonymous quote in particular about Allen that I recall reading, attributed to an anonymous scout...

There were already character concerns. His stock will drop significantly. ... He didn't interview great at the combine. People thought he was big-timing them -- everything was on his terms. And now this. He was probably in the 15-25 range before. But now he's probably late second round

This appeared in the Mercury News, basically the paper that covers Cal. Had it been written by, say, Aaron Wilson, then I'd be more skeptical--thinking that the Ravens were planting it in the Baltimore paper to strongly signal where it came from. Fake anonymous, shall we say. This one seems legitimately anonymous.

Not to overthink it or anything. :o