INDIANAPOLIS – A handful of NFL scouts with more than 90 years of experience chatting about the team's draft picks?
That is what Colts.com had earlier this offseason in a roundtable with five Colts scouts.
The five names listed below traveled all over the country scouting college prospects last season. They have seen these draftees several times throughout their college seasons, at games, school visits and at their Pro Days.
T.J. McCreight (Director of College Scouting)
Todd Vasvari (Assistant Director of College Scouting)
Matt Terpening (National Scout)
Dave Razzano (Senior Scout)
Jamie Moore (Area Scout)
What were your thoughts on fifth-round pick Joe Haeg (North Dakota State)?
McCreight: "He's a late bloomer. He goes to a small school out of high school. He wasn't quite the size the colleges are looking for. Then he grew, he matured, now he's matured himself into an NFL offensive tackle. He's another guy we were really happy that he was there at our pick just with his movement skills, his athleticism. He can play right or left tackle. It was another high-five (type pick), not a hand shake."
Terpening: "A four-year starter. He can bend. He's 6-6. He's got long arms. He's tough. I think that's one thing about where he came from, his school, how much they win there, how competitive those players are. This guy had a great career. Was at the Senior Bowl. We interviewed him at the Combine. He did really down (at the Senior Bowl). We were ecstatic he was there at our pick."
Vasvari: "I was actually supposed to go to his Pro Day and got stuck in the Chicago Airport because of a blizzard. Then we had (offensive line assistant/quality control coach) Frank Giufre go up. Frank did a great job with Denzelle (Good) last year, going out and working him out. We liked Haeg and (Giufre) came back and said, 'This kid is going to be a really good player.' He worked him out and put him on the board. He did really well. He's a really smart and competitive kid. It's going to take some time. He needs to get a little bit bigger, a little bit stronger. But I think mentally and athletically he's going to be a really good player. He's got it."
Moore: "I didn't scout the kid personally but I interviewed him at the Scouting Combine. I usually hang around outside and guys that aren't in my area, I usually hang around and chit chat with them, kind of feel them out. Just talking with him, you can see he's our kind of guy. From a makeup standpoint, personality standpoint."
Terpening: "At this level, the conference they are in is probably one of the best conferences in I-AA. But a lot of times, you don't get to see him go against elite pass rushers. So when he has an opportunity to do that down at the Senior Bowl, he's playing against bigger guys, guys that he's not used to and he really held his own."
Vasvari: "He only got one day in (at the Senior Bowl) because he got hurt, but he was trending in the right direction. During the season he went against Tyrone Jackson, who was drafted by Jacksonville, ended up with 18-20 sacks this past year. At his school, I was having trouble finding (Haeg) against really elite pass rushers and speed so one thing I did was I went back to his junior year and pulled out some practice tape from the school and watched him go against Kyle Emmanuel, who was drafted in the fifth round by San Diego. He was another sack guy. (Haeg) won some and lost some in that battle, but I saw him at least go against a guy who I knew was a NFL player. That helped define what Joe was."
