Players prepare for NFL draft

Published 9:59 pm Saturday, February 16, 2008

EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. — Former Cowboys Pro Bowl tackle Erik Williams is in one corner of the field, instructing the offensive linemen on the finer points of pass blocking technique.

In another corner is former NFL receiver Ricky Proehl giving advice to the wideouts hoping to make a positive impression on NFL scouts.

Then there is former Redskins and Browns running back Earnest Byner, giving standout Rutgers tailback Ray Rice and other promising young running backs some pointers about what it takes to make it in the pros.

Former Falcons defensive lineman Lester Archambeau instructs the linemen and linebackers, including Maryland’s Erin Henderson.

In all, 21 draft-day hopefuls are inside the practice bubble at Giants Stadium, trying to perfect their skills in advance of this week’s NFL scouting combine in Indianapolis. It’s all part of a calculated effort to improve their status for the draft and make a favorable impression when the league’s personnel executives and medical experts poke them, prod them and test their physical and mental skills during an intense week of workouts at the RCA Dome.

They will join hundreds of other hopefuls about to begin their NFL careers. “This is the best preparation you can get for the combine, getting tips and advice from players who played the game at the highest level,” said agent Alan Herman of Jericho, whose New York-based company, Sportstars, arranges the eight-week training sessions for its clients.

Sportstars will represent about 100 NFL players during the 2008 season. “When you have players who know what it takes getting these guys ready for their NFL careers, it’s invaluable,” he said. “They know what lies ahead for these guys.”

This is one of several training courses provided by agents around the country as the top 300 draft-eligible players prepare to be inspected by the league’s 32 teams. For many players, their performance during individual drills at the combine will go a long way toward determining their draft status in April.

It can mean a huge difference on draft day; some players’ stock improves dramatically at the combine, as was the case last year with Oklahoma running back Adrian Peterson, and some can fall precipitously, such as former Ohio State running back Maurice Clarett in 2005.

It can translate to millions of dollars gained or lost.

“The combine is very important in terms of how we look at players,” Colts president and general manager Bill Polian said. “We look at everything in terms of how a player reacts, to how he interviews, to how he tests on drills. The better a guy does at the combine, the more favorably he’ll do in the draft. You always look at how a player performs on film, but you absolutely take how they do at the combine into account.”

For the nearly two dozen players participating in one of their final training sessions Wednesday night, their draft-day hopes will be tied to how well they perform when the scouts are watching this week.

They will have completed two months of training under the watchful eye of former NFL players, as well as the intense regimen of noted trainer Bill Parisi of Fairlawn, N.J. He owns and operates the Parisi Speed School and works with renowned trainer Martin Rooney to prepare the players for the combine and, ultimately, the NFL.

“This is like an SAT prep course for the combine,” Parisi said. “It’s very calculated. These guys are like finely tuned racecars, so you need to tune them up. We’re not talking about rebuilding them. It’s refining what they already have.”

One of the main principles of Parisi’s system is determining an athlete’s center of gravity during their movements. He demonstrates by placing his feet a few feet apart and dangling a stopwatch from around his neck.

“When I stand like this, my center of gravity is this stopwatch at my navel,” he said. “But when I go to my right foot, my center of gravity actually moves forward. So if I want to move real fast to my right, if I need to break to close on the football, I’ve got to get to my center of gravity.”

He then moves to his right on one leg, and the stopwatch moves forward, well past his stomach area.

“It’s about understanding how to get from here to there, and how that first step has to be taken,” said Parisi, a former All-American track and field athlete. “By managing the center of gravity, we teach the players to be more in control and perform their skills more efficiently. When they do this over and over again, they can become better football players.”

Parisi has worked with hundreds of players over the years, starting with former Giants quarterback Phil Simms in 1989. Parisi helped Simms increase his strength through the use of a medicine ball and other exercises that improved his throwing motion. Parisi also worked with former Jets receiver Wayne Chrebet and now is one of the country’s most respected football trainers.

Many Sportstars clients have dramatically improved their draft status over the years, including a slew of former high-round picks: Texans cornerback Dunta Robinson, Chiefs defensive lineman Tamba Hali, quarterback-turned-receiver Matt Jones of the Jaguars, linebackers David Harris and Bryan Thomas of the Jets, and cornerback Johnathan Joseph of the Bengals.

“It’s a way to take elite college athletes and maximize their ability and performance at the combine,” said Brian Mackler, another of the Sportstars agents. “You can dramatically improve your ability to get drafted high.”

It’s not cheap.

Training, housing and feeding more than 20 players, not to mention renting out the Giants Stadium facility, runs into the hundreds of thousands of dollars. (Giants officials are not permitted to attend these sessions, although their training facility is available for rental through the New Jersey Sports and Exposition Authority.) The payoff appears to be worth it, especially if the players’ draft-day status — and thus their money-earning potential — improves.

Having former NFL stars offer instruction is another way to prepare the draft-eligible players. The four players in attendance at Wednesday’s session totaled more than 50 years of NFL experience and six Super Bowl championships.

“A lot of it is about technique,” said Williams, a four-time Pro Bowl player for the Cowboys. He won three Super Bowl championships in the 1990s. “It’s footwork, leverage, pass sets, things like that. I try and have them work on the balls of their feet rather than back on their heels. That takes time and repetition, but when you do it over and over, it becomes second nature.”

Proehl, from Hillsborough, won Super Bowl titles with the Rams and Colts during a 17-year career. He believes the expertise he and his former NFL colleagues impart can be invaluable.

“I tell you what, I wish I had something like this when I came into the league,” said Proehl, a third-round pick of the Cardinals in 1990. “It’s a great way for these players to kind of learn the ropes before their careers. Football isn’t just about 40 times. There’s a lot more to it. I remember when I went to the combine, I was a basket case, just trying to do whatever they told me. But when you’re prepared, you’re going to be a lot more confident.”

Rice sure hopes so.

“This has been great preparation for me,” the New Rochelle product said. “I think it’s going to help me a lot. I know I’ve improved ever since I’ve been doing this.”

How it translates on draft day remains to be seen. But Rice believes he will surprise a few scouts this week.

“People expected me to run a 4.55 (in the 40), but I’m already down to a 4.4,” he said. “You never know what people are going to think, but I’m hoping to convince people I’m worth taking. Whatever happens happens.

“But at least with this, I know I’m as prepared as I’m ever going to be.”

Distributed by the Los Angeles Times-Washington Post News Service