A pair of standout prospects might be hinting at the future of football in more than one way.
Caleb Williams and Marvin Harrison, jr. are standout draft prospects that have been connected to Chicago for the entirety of the 2023 season. In a league where a solid passing game is frequently considered essential to sustained success, these two players–a quarterback and a wide receiver–represent hope for an improved team. Both have been praised as the most complete prospects at their premium positions in a long time.
However, the two men are united in other ways. Harrison, son of a Hall of Famer, does not have an agent. He is reportedly not going to perform in the testing at the end of the combine, and there has been word that he will not even test during his college’s pro day, either. Meanwhile, Williams also does not have an agent. He is reportedly not going to participate in the medical exams that are, in many ways, the basis of the NFL Combine. He declined to share his information with all teams–reportedly the first prospect to have taken these steps. For some, these behaviors are seen as red flags. Warning signs that they are difficult or that they are hiding something.
Williams has other “red flags” according to traditionalists, as well. For example, he has the audacity to have already made significant amounts of money off of name, image, and licensing money (note: paywall). His camp has even critiqued the way the NFL often sets up the best prospects for failure, especially at positions (like quarterback) where clubs treat players as a bandaid to solve roster problems created by general managers who frequently are no longer in the picture. These complaints have long been present, but until recently, college athletes who wanted to be able to access the profits generated by their talent have not had many choices. They needed to play along.
As Pro Football Talk explained last year, when discussing the continual cycle of supposedly private information–Wonderlic and then S2 scores–being leaked:
The teams have all the power. They select the players whose choice becomes play for that team or play for no one. It contributes to a dehumanizing of the entire process, because there’s simply no reason for teams to care about human factors when the human beings who become the draft picks are painted into a corner by the nature of the process.
As NIL money gives more and more players a way to move out of that corner, it is likely that more “red flags” will continue to be shown. After all, a red flag is frequently nothing more than a sign that a player is refusing to go along with the status quo. In a laundry league, fans frequently call for players to be cut after a single dropped pass or the moment their contract becomes unfavorable. Meanwhile, players are called on to be loyal, to give “hometown discounts”, and to avoid criticizing coaches or organizations in order to avoid being labeled as “divas” and so as not to be considered to be contributing to “drama”.
Even today, very few draft prospects have the power to push back against these structures. There is too much to lose by failing to comply with expectations. Even players like Caleb Williams and Marvin Harrison, jr are taking a risk by pushing back. Less of a risk than some, but still a risk. However, they are likely at the forefront of what is going to be a continued push for players to have more control over their own lives, be it their image or their health information.
For some, these changes will be the end of the NFL, just as the dawn of true free agency (in 1993) was going to be the end of the NFL. For others, these changes will mark another small shift and then the game will continue. Chicago Bears general manager Ryan Poles has frequently said that he wants to “do right” by players, a sentiment that echoes the words spoken by many clubs. It will be interesting to see which clubs adjust their definitions of what it means to “do right” by the players and go so far as to adapt to an era when players have a little more say in their lives. Even at the Combine.
You must be logged in to post a comment Login