"All you had to do was call": When Nick Saban called out NFL front offices for a major flaw in Bill Belichick's presence

Nick Saban and Bill Belichick, both featured in the HBO series, “Belichick and Saban: The Art of Coaching,” in 2019. The documentary delivered an inspiring and insightful exploration of the minds of two of the most accomplished coaches in football history.

One of the things discussed by the two in the series was draft selection. Nick Saban faults the majority of NFL front offices for not reaching out before deciding to draft his players. This would have provided them with some insights that couldn't have been discovered through scouting.

“One thing that you do, that a lot of the NFL guys don't do – I don't know that you've ever picked one of our players that you never talked to me before you picked them,” Saban told Belichick (timestamp 0:00). “And there are a few other guys in the league that do that.

“But then, there's another 30 teams that I never hear from, and they pick somebody, and I'm saying, ‘How could you pick that guy?’ Then they come back and say, ‘Well, we didn't know this.’ Well, all you had to do is call. I would’ve told you the good stuff and would've told you any issues.”

A lot of draft busts have been witnessed over the years in the NFL. Many players find it hard to adapt to the system in a particular team, placing their professional career in jeopardy. Saban believes reaching out to their college football coaching staff would do a lot to avoid this.

Nick Saban believes he always gives candid information on draft prospect

For the few NFL teams that had the wisdom of reaching out to Nick Saban before drafting his players, it has often paid off. The coach acknowledged he always provided insight on both the positive and negative side with immense accuracy, ensuring teams make good picks.

“I'm an ‘and’ and ‘but’ guy," Saban said (timestamp 0:30). Whatever comes behind ‘and’ is usually good, and whenever they give this great recommendation and then you get ‘but.’ It's never ever not been correct. Whatever comes behind but usually isn't good, and it always turns out that it's there.”

Nick Saban produced a lot of draft picks as a college football coach, especially during his time at Alabama. His tenure in Tuscaloosa produced 133 draft picks, including 47 first-round selections. This steady amount of production showcased his good work with the Crimson Tide.

Saban’s assertion was an eye-opener, not only for teams but fans alike, on why a lot of draft mistakes have been made over the years.