Is Rising & Falling Bologna?

From Feb thru the draft, the draft "experts" are constantly talking about rising and falling prospects. The GMs I have heard consistently state that their draft boards are complete before the combine and change very little after that time. I tend to believe the GMs. I think all the rising and falling stuff in the minds of the "experts". Excepting undisclosed stuff coming out like DUIs or injuries, I doubt players jump on the teams' boards from the end of the first round to the top after wonderful performances at the Senior Bowl or Combine. For example, if Floyd or Ansah go in the top five picks, I cannot imagine they rose up on GMs boards from the bottom of round 1 (where they were in mocks I saw a month or two ago).

Floyd and Ansah could creep their way into the top 10 if previous top 10 players showed red flags. Combines, interviews, and pro days play a huge part in the rise or fall of draft prospect. If I was a coach I would look for 3 things in a draftable prospect; instincts, fitness, and character. Technique isn't as important to me as some people make it and I don't think it is to coaches because as a coach you should be able to pride yourself in being able to take a raw ore and turn it into a precious metal so having a healthy and physically impressive player is exactly what your looking for. His game tape may not be incredible comparatively but he has the physical attributes to be a dominant player. Thats what makes a player rise or fall after the combine and pro days. Now some people will disagree that the combine is not important but something that has stuck into my head was Jim Harbaughs look after Manti Teo ran a 4.8something. Its not college anymore. All the players are as fast and as strong as you so exceptional athleticism can never be understated and lack of fitness is a huge red flag.