Ziegler: Top 30 In-Person Visits Beneficial Prior to Draft

With COVID-19 finally getting under control with vaccinations in place and normalcy returning, that also means normalcy returning when it comes to Top 30 visits.

Each NFL team is allowed to meet with up to 30 prospects for the upcoming NFL Draft.

This year was the first time since COVID-19 hit that teams were able to meet prospects in person.

For Las Vegas Raiders general manager Dave Ziegler, meeting in-person changes everything.

“Yea, I think the process this year felt I'd say back to normal of what it had been in the past because the player access was there, the face-to-face communication was there, the one-on-one communication was there,” Ziegler said. “So, I think that provides a lot more value than the Zoom calls, and all that's beneficial too, but I think we all know being able just to sit down and sit across from somebody and get to know them. It's just more personal.”

Having a more personal interaction allows Ziegler and his staff to get to know a prospect better and turns out to be a very valuable interaction.

“With it being more personal, you get a better feel for the player and the person. And so, I think it's been a lot more valuable because of that one-on-one access and the one-on-one communication that we are able to have this year that we weren't able to have in the past.”

Outside of the Top 30 visits, scouts could go to Pro Days and actually visit these players on their campuses. Another upside to normalcy returning.

“Then there was also more opportunities to see the players,” Ziegler said. “There was more all-star game access, right? More pro days. You could go out and do private workouts and meet people one-on-one in an athletic setting.”

“It was a lot better process and I think it was helpful to be able to have that access this year compared to the last couple of years.”

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