So you are a GM or a VP of Player Personnel of an NFL team, and you like your job. Stay away from Manti Teo, he’s the type of draft pick that if chosen high can set you back or cost you your job. This past season at Notre Dame will be one of the most significant backdrops to one of the more peculiar draftees to ever hit the NFL, and I’m here to tell you the foreshadowing has already begun. Teo blamed his slow 40 time on stress… yes stress. I happen to work with a guy who went through the combines, then went on to set records for the Giants, on his way to winning a Super Bowl. To say Amani Toomer had a laugh at the “stress” of the combines, well that would be a major understatement. The reality here with Teo is a major red flag has gone off with his own admittance that pressure is getting to him. This was his first real exposure to the NFL media, guys who are a long ways from some softies you run into throughout your college career. They grilled Teo, and rightfully so, there are still a lot of questions I know I have that are unanswered. But this is just the final nail in the coffin for me, no my mistrust of this draft pick is a complete body of work.

Let’s work in reverse, clearly there’s the issue of Teo’s inability to deal with the combine pressure. That’s him, not me. Teo told the NFL Network the combine is a “very exhausting process,” with mentions that he was up late and then early the next day. So, the stress of working out for NFL teams is so much that he can’t get to bed on time, then underperforms as a result of it. This is not the guy you want right now with pressure on his shoulders heading out every Sunday, at least right now. Saying things will get better at the Pro Day is twofold, first there is already mounting pressure on you as the days go on. Underperform at the Pro Day after that, and you may slide to the 6-7th round. Second, there’s also the matter of this being controlled, far from the chaos of the combine. This is something the teams look at, how you handle being thrown around from setting to setting, handling interviews as well. As my partner said on the program last night, this is about testing you mentally as much as it is physically. Not a good look.

The timeline for Teo falling has been right in line with when he “found out” about the hoax. Everything since has been a disaster, think about it. He was, what most will tell you, uncharacteristically bad in the title game. He and others refused to blame this cover up … hoax situation on poor play, simply blended in with the rest of ND’s poor performance. You have the two interviews he did, the first off camera disaster followed up by the on camera nightmare. The last thing either one of those interviews did was clear the air. But as things came out, Teo quit twitter and focused on the combines. Even that should be another red flag right there. Amongst all the negative and speculation surrounding him, Manti Teo left social media and began focusing solely on his next career. That clearly didn’t work.

So now if you are a person who has influence in your draft, I warn you. Be especially careful of Teo, maybe more so when specifically you are thinking of drafting him. One thing I can deduce, and it’s far from atom splitting, is that the kid hasn’t responded to pressure yet. To make matters worse, it appears he’s crumbling as the lights get brighter. Why on earth would you draft this kid in the first or second rounds, knowing the tag of pressure that comes with it? I’d go as far as saying 3/4th round as well. Here’s my bottom line, you need to bring this kid on your team with as little focus/pressure/spotlight as possible. Draft him in the 6th round and have the goal simply to make the team, as opposed to what side of the 3-4 will he start on. In any business, when you bring someone new in, the more baggage or justification you have before that person starts, the lesser the chance it’s going to work out. Any GM who brings this kid in after taking him in the first four rounds, will be explaining away more before Teo even puts pads on. Talk about a disservice to the team, the fans, and Manti Teo.