I wonder if the Bucs will try to interview the 2nd woman connected to Winston? If they want to be thorough, they can't leave any stone unturned. http://www.cleveland.com/browns/index.ssf/2015/03/red_flags_how_cleveland_browns.html How Cleveland Browns and other NFL teams weigh risks of drafting talented, troubled prospectsBy Tom Reed, Northeast Ohio Media Group March 04, 2015 at 9:48 AM INDIANAPOLIS, Indiana - As prospects arrived for media interviews at the recent NFL combine, former Buccaneers general manager Mark Dominik spoke of a scout who did some of his best work at happy hour.It was the spring of 2012 and the Bucs were considering Oklahoma State receiver Justin Blackmon in the draft. He was an immense talent, but one who had a history of off-field concerns including a 2010 arrest for impaired driving.Scouts supply information ranging from player critiques to character references. Dominik was in search of a different kind of draught analysis. He instructed his man to catalog Blackmon's visits to a certain bar and how many drinks the two-time All-American consumed.The assignment lasted a week."He's a really talented football player, but we had to take him off our (draft) board," Dominik said. "You have to collect as much information when it comes to making important decisions."Each year at this time, NFL teams wrestle with the character conundrum, weighing the risks and rewards of drafting players carrying off-field red flags. The Bucs, under different management but same family ownership, are faced with the dilemma of deciding whether they want to make star quarterback Jameis Winston, accused of sexual assault, the No.1 overall pick.Meanwhile, the Browns have been scrutinized for the turbulent rookie seasons of first-round picks Justin Gilbert and Johnny Manziel and the continued travails of Josh Gordon, who's serving an indefinite league-imposed suspension for violating its substance-abuse policy.It's unclear if the Browns or any other club employed surveillance tactics similar to Dominik's when scouting Manziel. Browns general manager Ray Farmer said two weeks ago he's not offering "people insight as to what you do in the process."Manziel entered the league with questions surrounding his affinity for nightlife and celebrity. Last month he checked himself into rehab for possible substance abuse. Browns coach Mike Pettine said it's easy to look back and wonder if the franchise missed a "deeply rooted" issue, but conceded it "felt very comfortable with (the quarterback's) background, certainly enough to draft him."Three years ago, the Buccaneers went the other way on Blackmon.They traded down two spots and picked up an additional fourth-round choice, allowing the Jaguars to select him at No. 5 overall. The wideout has played just 20 games in three seasons. He's been arrested three times for drug- and alcohol-related offenses, and like Gordon is serving an indefinite ban."So how do you not mess up?" NFL Network draft analyst Mike Mayock said rhetorically. "That's your question. I'm not sure there is a right answer other than being a little more conservative. And I think we all get overwhelmed with talent and you want to buy into the fact that your building or your organization can change people when most of the time statistically, it can't."As Dominik discussed the talent-versus-trouble debate, an NFL combine staff member announced Missouri's Dorial Green-Beckham was about to speak with reporters.The 6-foot-5, 237-pounder might be the draft's most physically gifted receiver, a position of great need for the Browns. He also comes with numerous off-field issues, including marijuana-related arrests and allegations of pushing a female student down some stairs during a burglary. The wideout was never charged for the incident, according to a report, because witnesses feared retribution or harassment.Standing in the back of the media center, Dominik recognized the irony surrounding the timing of Green-Beckham's arrival."You might want to listen in on that one," the ESPN analyst said. "He's super talented and he's going to require a lot of homework by teams." 'I can't read his heart' Every organization wants players of high character and most 53-man rosters are filled with it, including the Browns. The question whether to gamble on prospects lacking that virtue is almost as old as the game itself. The dilemma, however, has taken on greater significance in recent seasons Penalties for code-of-conduct infractions have increased. So, has the national attention paid to violators.The NFL is coming off a traumatic year highlighted by several major domestic-violence cases. The Ray Rice, Adrian Peterson and Greg Hardy sagas dominated news cycles. Tougher punishment, including a six-game ban for first-time offenders, was enacted.As the draft beckons, the potential top pick is a quarterback no stranger to negative headlines. Winston was involved in multiple off-field incidents at Florida State, featuring an investigation into a 2012 alleged sexual assault for which he was never charged.Winston and Green-Beckham are considered the highest-profile character risks in the draft, but they aren't alone. The league-sponsored website ran a story recently detailing seven prospects who might give teams pause."I say this all the time, we miss more so on the person than the player," Cardinals general manager Steve Keim said. "I can watch tape and see a player's foot speed and his movement skills, his athleticism. I can't read his heart and his mind." The Cardinals drafted Tyrann Mathieu in 2013 after he slipped to the third round due to off-field concerns. The safety hasn't suffered a significant slip-up since joining the organization and has helped Arizona reach the playoffs last season. "We got to know Tyrann as a person," Keim said. "He's one of the best leaders in our locker room right now. If they are passionate and love it enough, you have a chance to get them pointed in the right direction." Mathieu is hardly the only troubled prospect who's rewarded his franchise for selecting him. Character questions dogged former NFL receiving great Randy Moss and Hall-of-Fame quarterback Dan Marino entering the draft. Each enjoyed lengthy careers. Pettine believes as long as teams do their homework and feel good about the findings they can take some calculated risks."There's a danger in that, that if you just say, 'We're only going to add players to our roster who are in the National Honor Society and the school choir,'" he said. "You look across the league, it's not just the league, it's society in general. It's rare you're going to have somebody who has impeccable, clean character. It's all risk-reward, you've got to weigh it." 'That second-guess moment'One of the biggest revelations from the combine concerned the Browns' top pick in the 2014 draft.Pettine and Farmer acknowledged Gilbert has been dealing with a "very personal" issue, one that might be rooted in the immaturity and lack of commitment teammates and coaches witnessed last season. With Manziel and Gordon, who flunked multiple drug tests in college, the warning signs were well publicized. Farmer said the Browns, however, were unaware of Gilbert's trouble before the draft and that it was only revealed through the course of the season. The club expects the cornerback to rebound once he deals with his off-field issue.But should the Browns have been aware of it before investing the No. 8 overall pick? "You always have that second-guess moment of 'could I have known, should I have known?'" Farmer said. "And I would tell you in that respect you always look to improve your decision-making process. So yeah, you'd like to think you can catch it or you can find it, but that requires resources or things that you've got to really, truly dig into. You don't find out every thing about every guy." Farmer has made substantial changes to his personnel department since last year's draft. --- He hired an executive chief of staff in Bill Kuharich, a former general manager with 23 years NFL experience. Kuharich had been Farmer's consultant prior to the draft. --- He added six senior player personnel associates - Ron Hill, Charles Bailey, Mike Hagen, Bobby DePaul, Scott Aligo and James Kirkland - who possess more than 100 years combined NFL experience.--- He boosted the staff of scouts/player personnel associates from 11 to 17 members. --- He hired a new team psychologist, who accompanied the staff to Indianapolis for the combine. "I will say we've made changes, we made our adjustments and I think we'll be more prepared this year because of the different time frame of me having the position for a year now instead of getting that appointment late February last year," Farmer said. The Browns did get solid production from another rookie who arrived in Berea with off-field issues. Farmer knew Isaiah Crowell's agent and his Alabama State coach, along with several other sources familiar with the halfback's story. They all vouched for his character and Farmer signed him as an undrafted free agent.Crowell rushed for 607 yards and a team-high eight touchdowns."I do think that it's all about recovering information and trying to create better relationships and bonds," Farmer said. "Inevitably everybody has a piece to this puzzle, so you only get information from the people that are willing to share it with you." 'This is a little creepy'Jameis Winston spoke at the same combine podium as Manziel did a year earlier.He sounded just as polished, acknowledging missteps while vowing to put them in his past. Seven times during a 12-minute news conference he told reporters he wants to be the "face of a franchise." "My job is to win games, hopefully win Super Bowls, and that's a big responsibility," Winston said. "That's a job up here. Whatever is behind me is behind me, so this is a new face." Winston is the most NFL-ready quarterback in the draft. He's won a national title, appeared in two BCS bowl games and led the Seminoles on a 27-game unbeaten streak spanning two seasons. But no player's character in the draft is under more scrutiny - or the subject of a documentary concerning on-campus rapes.In The Hunting Ground, his accuser Erica Kinsman recalls the process of trying to file a sexual assault report and how she believes police and university let her down, according to the Huffington Post. No criminal charges were filed. Winston also was cleared in a university code-of-conduct hearing. Will NFL teams interested in drafting the quarterback watch the documentary? Will they attempt to interview Kinsman? The Buccaneers, who changed management and coaching staff last season, own the first pick in the draft. Coach Lovie Smith said at the combine he's comfortable with the intel his team has received on Winston thus far, but cautioned it's early in the process. "With the information we have right now, we haven't taken him off of our list," Smith said.Teams can interview 30 players extensively at private workouts. They can speak to 60 players at the combine in 15-minute intervals, while also engaging them at all-star games and pro days. Most franchises also track prospects' social media accounts and can quiz them on objectionable content.But Dominik said many draft prospects with red flags have become so well coached in what to say in meetings with NFL personnel. The former Bucs GM used to instruct area scouts to take pictures of a player's house or neighborhood in hopes of drawing him into deeper conversation. "Sometimes, players would say, 'this is a little creepy,' but it's serious stuff," Dominik said. "It could go both ways. Sometimes, guys would open up and tell you a little bit more about where they came from." Every team employs a security director and psychologist. Dominik and former NFL general manager Bill Polian, however, agree the area scouts are perhaps the most important members of the research team. They are the ones with connections to the schools, communities and people who live in them."They are the ones who are in there all year, every year," said Polian, an ESPN analyst. "They know the culture of the programs. Many times they will know players and his background and who he hangs with. They are by far the biggest source of accurate information." Sometimes, right down to a prospect's drink of choice.
