It can get obsessively technical and detailed at times, particularly when they start talking about three-cone drills, 40-yard dash times in relation to 10-yard splits and whether or not a prospect can open up his hips.
But sometimes, the most impactful analysis of prospects under consideration for the NFL Draft comes off the cuff or from the heart.
Consider a sampling of what we've heard on the NFL Network from places such as Indianapolis and Mobile, Ala., as we continue counting it down to Round One:
-"You might as well stop after 20 (yards). If we're not going to block you in the first 20, we're not going to get you at 40." _ NFL Network analyst Shaun O'Hara on the importance of 40 times for offensive linemen.
-"You can't get through him, you can't get around him and in the run game it's an avalanche. When he down-blocks he just takes everybody with him." _ NFL Network analyst Daniel Jeremiah on 6-foot-73/8, 364-pound Louisville offensive tackle Mekhi Becton.
-"The best hustle play I've seen from any player in this draft was this kid against UCLA after an interception, running about 70 yards downfield to make a tackle." _ Jeremiah on Cincinnati tight end Josiah Deguara.
-"We were not going to let him catch the football. There are certain players that you must take out of the game, he was one of them. They were going to have to find another way to beat us. It's not only the deep ball, which he can catch and track. He can catch a lot of balls underneath and make it to the end zone, as well." _ Notre Dame head coach Brian Kelly on the NFL Network on holding USC wide receiver Michael Pittman, Jr. to four receptions for 29 yards in a 30-27 win over the Trojans in October.
-"He ran right through his face. When I saw that tape it just brought tears to my eyes. You don't see that as much anymore in college." _ NFL Network analyst Maurice Jones-Drew on Arizona State running back Eno Benjamin reacting to a defensive back who feigned an impending hit about 2 yards deep in the end zone after Benjamin had scored a touchdown against Cal.
-"He'd be one of the first off the bus." _ Jeremiah on the imposing physical presence of 6-foot-61/8, 311-pound Alabama defensive lineman Raekwon Davis.
-"Why don't you just outfit him for a cape?" _ NFL Network analyst Charles Davis on Clemson linebacker Isaiah Simmons' Superman-like physical characteristics and game.
-"Every coach up there in the stands right now is saying, 'I can work with that.'" _ NFL Network analyst Deion Sanders after Utah cornerback Javelin Guidry was clocked at 4.29 in the 40 at the Combine.
-"When you get got like he got had in that game and was able to stay focused and not give up and give in, that showed me a lot, man. So I love what this kid did and how he finished that game, I'll take him any day. He was there, he just didn't make the play but he didn't give up.
"You get beat like that on national TV, you go into a tank. Now the defensive coach has to fish you out of the darn tank the whole rest of the game. He did not do that, stayed true, got right up there and bumped-and-run and did his job, love it." _ Sanders on Clemson cornerback A.J. Terrell's response throughout what was a tough night against LSU and wide receiver Ja'Marr Chase (nine catches, 221 yards, two TDs).
-"He could tie his shoes standing straight up." _ O'Hara on 6-foot-83/8, 308-pound South Carolina State offensive tackle Alex Taylor's 88-inch wingspan.
-"He has power exuding from the bottom of his feet to the top of his hair." _ O'Hara of 6-foot-47/8, 320-pound Iowa offensive tackle Tristan Wirfs.
-"I admire his game, reminds me a lot of myself. I think he has a long, promising future ahead of him." _ NFL Network analyst and Ravens running back Mark Ingram on LSU running back Clyde Edwards-Helaire.
-"That's a pretty darn good ratio." _ Davis on Memphis running back/wide receiver Antonio Gibson, who had four rushing touchdowns on 33 carries and eight receiving touchdowns on 38 catches in 2019.
-"He was driving." _ Jeremiah on Missouri tight end Albert Okwuegbunam running a 4.49 40 at 258 pounds at the Combine.
