Now, finally, it seems safe to turn the page from the veteran NFL free-agent and trade market to the draft. But before we get there, ex-Vikings general manager Rick Spielman, who’s been following the class a lot longer than the rest of us, has his own thoughts on the chaos.
In fact, he brought it up on his own, as he and I talked just after he’d finished a 25-hour drive to complete his move from Minnesota to the Gulf Coast of Florida, and I asked whether he misses the fray.
“You do miss the evaluation part, especially the draft, putting the board together, working with the coaches and the scouts,” Spielman said. “That part, you do miss. But boy, just watching what’s happened in free agency, and how things are changing, and I’ve talked to other GMs, had numerous calls from GMs in the league, BSing through the free-agency period, it’s a lot different than it was even three or four years ago.”
