At the NFL Combine, football skills and talent are not the only things that college players are judged on by the professional teams and coaches through tests such as the 40-yard dash. Game strategy and knowledge are tested through an actual pencil and paper exam. Media presence and composure are examined through several press conferences and intense interviews. And character is assessed through not only the effort exemplified by the players throughout the entire grueling process including the personal interviews, but by social media as well.
Because of several scandals caused and/or revealed by social media involving several of these players the past couple of years, including the most noteworthy story involving the catfishing hoax with former Notre Dame linebacker Manti Te'o, many NFL coaches and team personnel agree that social media has never been such an important part of the combine process as it is this year. One coach even noted in an interview with USA Today that he has several members of his staff whose jobs are to keep track of every potential players' social media accounts in order to get a better look at who this person really is on and off the field.
While pictures of illegal paraphernalia and activities will obviously contribute to ruining the chances an athlete has of being recruited, coaches have commented that too many "goody-goody" posts can be somewhat annoying as well, such as tweets about getting up at 3 a.m. to work out when the typical combine day doesn't start until later in the morning. Overall, coaches are saying that they want to recruit guys who show that they have a good balance in all acts of their life and that the media will be publishing stories more about what they're doing on the field rather than what they're tweeting about.
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