Practice Squad Make Up - Does it matter?

Rodrik David @RightStepAdv: It's Monday, September 28th, and this is Scouting the League. Last Monday, I got on my soapbox, talked about development from a complete organizational, really NFL franchise standpoint. Got some feedback on the private side, you know, text messages, phone calls from both those that agree heaven heavily that yeah, development is not happening, especially on the scouting front office side. And I had a few people try to tell me, hey, their teams kind of have it figured out though. Look at our track record, look at our success. Honestly, it was kind of a game of talking in circles about how it actually happened. I'm more convinced than ever that it needs to happen and certainly isn't to a wide degree. Again, there are some teams that do some specific things. I don't think it's complete. I don't think it's a full approach from ownership like it should be, but Again, there are some teams doing some little things right. So again, good job to you guys. Still gonna be pushing it, still trying to talk to people in front offices, still trying to lay my ideas out there. Go back and listen to that one if you have. And again, something I'm passionate about. Development needs to happen organizationally from a franchise standpoint. Front offices, scouting are certainly part about it. So make sure you head back. Today's not a soapbox, but we dive into the practice squad makeup as we talk about development, that theme of development. 32 NFL teams. What does their practice squad look like? Peek in to see kind of perhaps who is trying to develop players from as your average service time and beyond a little peek into 32 teams. Cause again, that is the way you have to look at these things. Everybody does it their own way, which is good. And again, as soon as there's a new head coach, a new GM, new ownership, it can change up a little bit. So again, lots of different ways to win, to to develop, to run that practice squad. We're gonna kind of talk about that today. But before we jump in, make sure you set your reminders and send your questions in. This week, Neil and I sit down with Jordan Reed, NFL draft analyst at ESPN. Jordan joins us to talk 2027 NFL draft prospects and more from a situation at South Carolina that looks pretty ugly to his view on quarterbacks in this class, wide receivers, the best player in the country, who he likes, who he doesn't like, and then get a little c in conversation on his Commentary as a as a play-by-play and color guy for some of these games across the country. So make sure you set your mind just for that one. That's gonna be Wednesday. Get your questions in right now so we can make sure we get him to Jordan, get him lined up for all of that. Tomorrow, back with 2027 draft, as we continue to march towards it. I dive in on everybody's hot play right now, Trinidad Chambliss. I am perhaps. Perhaps gonna throw little cold water on that one. So make sure you tune in. We'll have some film pulled up of the signal caller playing again. Stumble this week. Does that mean the grade's gonna fall? I don't think for a lot of people, my grade's just gonna sit where it is. So make sure you tune into that one. before we jump in on all things of practice squad today, though, make sure you head over, like, like, subscribe, share, wherever you're listening. Hopefully, watching that video portion on YouTube, gonna have a little graphic to show you. today with some of our practice squad stuff. So hopefully YouTube is where you can be for that. If you want to hear a player, again had somebody request printed ad, I believe it was on YouTube. Get requests on Twitter at right step ADV, wherever it's at, let me know what players you want to hear as we march towards the 27 draft or if you want to hear a 28 guy, let me know. Happy to do those as well. So wherever you want to comment, leave those in there as well. Quick note here on right step scouting. Head there, get your reports done today. I will have them right back out to you. Right stepscouting.com is a spot for that. And if you're a scout or an aspiring scout, you're fired up about this development stuff, want to get in touch, thescoutingcommunity.com is going to be the spot where we can get lined up and do a little bit more together. So make sure you go check that out, thescoutingcommunity.com. And then make sure you get the most comfortable, highest performing insoles out there, blue mocha.com, use code scouting20 at checkout. Let them know we sent you. From that performance non-slit to that comfort to that turf toe, whatever it is, blumacca.com has the answer for you. So go, go, go get those insoles today. So today we look at practice squads. Today we're gonna look at it by service time. How many years in the NFL have they been there? Again, a rookie, that's gonna be a big fat zero for them again all the way up to the number of years in league. So let's look at the chart here. there it is, a beautiful Excel sheet. Again, went through this. Is as of last week, I believe it was September 25th, 26th. Sorry, September 24th or 5th that I was putting this together. So again, the numbers are going to change a little bit. But again, as we look over here at our chart, again, a couple of things that really stand out to me. Again, oldest team right here, the Buffalo Bills down here in the AFC, three and a half. Years of average service time again, that number really stands out to me. Again, I'm immediately going. First time NFL HOT head coach. Get a little bit more depth, a little bit more experience, a little bit of that behind you. Takes a little bit off of your plate of having to get practice lined up if you have a bunch of guys that know how you're gonna go do things. Minnesota on the NFC side at 3.31 years. Again, really tipped the scales by two guys over 10 plus years, Kyle Van Noen. Van Noy and Jihad Ward. Again, really practice squad is becoming the spot for shortlist holdouts. So again, we see that here. Again, Minnesota with two, 10 plus bets, Buffalo with one of them, really tipping the scales for them. Again, things with Minnesota, though, you still got six guys that are rookies that are on your practice squad. So again, that's going to stand out. On the young side, Tampa Bay and the Rams, both with just 1.4 years average service time. Again, with both those teams. you've got really young practice squads. Again, Tampa, it's impressive. Again, you see this 14 players that are two years or less experienced. Again, you've got a couple seven-year vets, probably your short list guys, guys that know situations. Maybe there's something you're planning on doing on the roster, getting a peek at some guys early. So Tampa Bay with eight players. again, the Colts also on the on the AFC side, eight rookies on that practice squad. Again, you see some really nice. Numbers, guys, that they signed as UDFAs, like like the traits, want to develop them. So again, you see Tampa Bay and the Rams, both which is 1.44. Overall, that NFL average is 2.4 years. Again, two and a half years of average service time. Probably my guess is as these practice squad. Again, I don't have the analytics, don't have the data to run back and look, hey, again, prior to 2017, 2018, I would guess. These numbers would be younger. More rookies, more young guys would probably be closer to that one five to two for the average service time. Just to guess, just on my experience of working a practice squad, working a short list and with my time with the Falcons, but again, just to guess there. again, a couple other things that stand out to me. Cincinnati, again, a an impressive one. 14 of their 16 players on this practice squad, four or less service time. Again, they really get Josh Johnson, who Again, they love the veteran backup quarterbacks, Josh Johnson, Joe Flacco. They don't need practice time. They're gonna be able to step in and play behind Joe Bar Joe Burrow if needed. Again, maybe you take away that development piece. Hey, we don't need to develop behind Joe Burrow. He's gonna be our quarterback for a long time. A different philosophy than maybe a Ron Wolf, a a Green Bay, or traditional, hey, draft develop quarterbacks, flip them for value. Again, not the way Cincinnati's working. But again, you've got a bunch of guys on this roster. despite having only two rookies on your practice squad. Again, maybe that goes back to the way Cincinnati operates. But again, you've got fourteen of sixteen guys that are young players. Not a ton of service time tipping in there. as far as rookies go, you've got the Giants with just one rookie on their practice squad. Again, that tells me something about the way they're wanting to develop this team. Again, not that they're necessarily really old when now they're approaching nearly three, but they've got a Pretty wide mix, but again, only one rookie again would love to go back and know what those conversations about their undrafted free agent class. Was it something they basically said, hey, we are not worried about it. We don't want to develop these guys. Let's not spend time on their undrafted free agent class. Or is it, hey, just the way it worked out? We had a bunch of older guys again, maybe some guys that Coach Harbaugh brought over from Baltimore that he thought, hey, these guys are gonna be better fits for us, even if Hey, I liked him last year as rookies. Maybe that's our ones, our twos, our threes that Coach Harbaugh's brought over. Again, really surprising though for a team that in a first year with a head coach, you typically see, hey, we're gonna be a little younger, develop a little bit more, and see how everything shakes out. Again, with Miami, that's again not the case. You've got a first year head coach, new GM. Now you're not real old at two, three, but again, you've got a lot of players here that are on the younger side. So again, Little surprising. You've got Carolina, Arizona, Pittsburgh, Cincinnati, Buffalo, all with just two rookies. Again, you think about this. Again, it's another mix. Pittsburgh, you feel like a little bit more veteran team, a team that, you know, with Aaron Rodgers, we're gonna win now. Cincinnati, this is a win now team. Buffalo, new head coach, Arizona new head coach. Carolina's kind of in that middle area where hey Canales has been there. Morgan's been there. They have started to kind of figure things out. So having a few less rookies, maybe not surprising. has some certainly a number of players in that first, second, third year that hey, this is our core of guys. We've continued to grow those out. Not a ton of older vets. So again, you have these teams with different philosophies on how you build it. Again, not a ton of of the zeros for some of these teams. But again, you've got still a lot of young players on these rosters. Rams, one of these teams, again, being one of the two youngest teams out here. We've got a lot of players again, 13 to the 16, two or less years in the NFL. Again, that tells you hey, this is a team that likes is fine with young players. Now, this is a go for it all, though the results haven't been there. Miles Garrett gets hurt, the offense hasn't quite clicked the way they expected it to. This is a team thinking a little bit more about end of the year getting into the playoffs. But again, they have a system, they have a practice plan. They have coaches in place where we can be maybe a little bit veteran on the field and be really young developmental growth mindset. We want to teach these guys our way in LA and get them going. Again, that tells you a lot about how efficient and you know they've got a system in place there in the Rams. Again, that is what it tells me for a team that is so veteran. They are fine with rookies, which isn't always the case on these teams that are going for it. Seattle is another one of these where again they're on a little bit of that older side probably about league average they've got a couple 10 six five five but again they've got a bunch of guys here what are we looking at eleven players either in the rookie or first year in the NFL so again you've got guys that are young that are continuing to grow with really no one in between that was one of the things stood out for Seattle you go from zero and one all the way up to five years really that two three and four again Or a bunch of those players down here with Las Vegas. Well, there's a nice mix there. Again, would have to track those to see where they went. But again, you see again a big gap there with no players going from two, three, or four. So again, an interesting thing that looks at when you all of a sudden you don't really have any players in that window. We've moved on. You get two years to show us that you can develop in Seattle. Otherwise, we're just moving on from you. Again, these guys at five, six, seven, and ten years. Those are probably more your short list players. Everybody's stashing Again, eight players on practice squads with more than ten years. Again, got them noted here again. Van Noy, Ward, Bobby Hart there, Ogba, Shaq Thompson, Sterling Shepard, Josh Johnson, tied Nick Vanette, the tight end. So again, you got a bunch of ten plus year players, which again you used to have to manipulate your practice squad a little bit to make sure you kept those vets on. You had to be full. Yeah, only were allowed a number of them. But again, when you get that many players, probably making to the top end of what that practice squad dollar could be. They know how to practice, they're probably really good in the room. This is where you want to pay for leadership. NFL teams should not, in most situations, be paying for leadership on their 53. Those should be players that are contributing. This would be the argument to be if you need. If you're a young team and you need to pay for leadership, stash some of these guys on your practice squad. It's not going to hurt you on game day. You can keep those guys around for a couple weeks. They can be really good in the room. They can be really good for young guys. This is where to pay for them: is on the practice squad with 16 spots now, a 17th if you use that IPP, which I didn't count in these numbers. but again, that's where you want to stash these guys. And I think that is the case for some of these teams, like a Minnesota. You are stashing. shortlist players there for a team that could you know really plug those guys in again they maybe live in Minnesota they like coach Flores they like the system two defensive players they want to play with him know him all that kind of good stuff again you see these nines elevens eight six these are practice squad shortlist players where these used to be Tuesday workouts bring these guys in let's kick the tires on them if you want these guys in your building well you've got to make a move more than likely on your active roster. That's certainly not the case anymore. again, the general consensus for these is about a third of that team should be rookies, should be young guys developmental. Maybe a third should be you know, your shortlist guys. Again, that is the way things are trending. They are using these spots. I would ask the NFL, I'm curious if it's going to go the way of limiting the number of. times, number of weeks, the number of years, a vet, again, you get maybe six plus years, eight plus years. Hey, you can only spend six weeks, eight weeks, half a season on the practice. I think this is to be an interesting conversation as we are arguably seeing less development at the college and NFL level. The NFL says, hey, it's getting a little bit out of hand here on these practice squads. We want these young guys to develop here in our buildings. Let's limit again, you can only have two players with 10 plus. You can only have four players with six plus. Let's get these young guys developing. Is the NFL going to come to an official agreement with the UFL, with the CFL to develop their guys there? No, I don't think so. They want to develop their guys in-house. This is going to be the way to do it. You may have to write some rules in as they kind of tweak these practice squad things, but again, it's going to happen. Less development from a skill standpoint, more about learning scheme. That is what a lot of these players with four plus years, again, you've probably hit your development peak in terms of true raw traits, but now it's about learning the way we want to do things. It's going to be a lot learning the way the Rams, the Seahawks, the Raiders, whoever it is, the way we do things. That's why we're going to bring you in as a fifth-year guy who, again, you're only going to improve. ever so marginally in the the the traits, the skills, the techniques, but to do it our way, that's what we're teaching you. Again, coaches, teams, great teachers, perhaps going by the wayside more are certainly needed. Everyone wants to be a great play caller, sound like an offensive genius, sound like a guru, but again, the elite technicians, the coaches that surround themselves with people that do all the little things right and allow everything to work. Those are going to be the teams that go ahead that continue to, in my opinion, get younger on the practice squad and do the right things outside of just stashing away your short list, guys. Get that 53 right. If you need a couple spots for those practice squad veterans, certainly stick them there, but be on the younger end of this list. And I think it's going to play, pay dividends for you in the long term. But again, that's just a snapshot. What do you think when you start looking at these numbers, what stands out to you? Who are the teams that are doing it right, doing it wrong, maybe trying to figure it out? Who or what are we going to see with these trends? Let me know at right step ADV. Let me know your practice squad thoughts. Let me know what you want to hear in the future, whether it's Monday, whether it's Tuesday draft series, whatever it is at right step ADV. Make sure you follow us. Leave those thoughts and comments for Jordan Reed as we sit down with him. Everything we do, head over to rsafootball.com for everything and make sure. Whatever you're doing, you keep scouting.