Apple's iPad Has Revolutionized the NFL Playbook
Tuesday, September 6, 2011
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| Apple.com |
Guest Contributor
BOOM! Did you hear that? Playbooks just crashed into the twenty-first century with the iPad in-toe.
When former Apple CEO Steve Jobs first thought of an enlarged iPod Touch, do you think he envisioned a major pro sports league using it as a critical tool in their repertoire?
After the announcement of the iPad, newspapers and blogs flooded the media denouncing Apple's ability to elevate the tablet market. Two years later, the dominance of the iPad hasn’t been shaken by any major competitor.
The NFL’s prolonged lockout caused many coaches to rethink the way players receive, study, and practice their plays. The major change seen this season was the introduction of tablets in the locker room. The choice of tablet: Apple’s iPad. The benefits are incredible compared to the old ways of pens, papers and video reels.
Atlanta Falcons head coach Mike Smith saw the iPad’s capability in the pre-draft interviews. Each potential player answered a checklist of questions which the iPad formatted into a readily accessible profile. This type of program highlights the ability of technology to creatively alter the way information is processed and used. If a program like this standardizes the planning and organizing of draft picks, every team is going to want one.
Most recently, Tampa Bay Buccaneers head coach Raheem Morris first thought of using the technology as a way to help players learn faster and more efficiently. Morris pointed out how easy it is to just “flick through, and if that play doesn’t apply to me, I just touch it and get out of there and go here, and there’s third down. Get out of there, and let’s go to the red zone. Okay, there’s the nickel. It’s a different deal now.”
Players are able to easily access their videos and plays on the field, in the locker room, or at home 24/7.
Coaches aren’t the only ones on the team who find the iPad be an efftective tool. More players are seeing its use as a way to quickly analyze games and plays. Tampa Bay’s second-year safety Cody Grimm is amazed by “how much technology has changed the game.” Grimm said, “It's convenient. It’s fast. I was snacking out on the couch and watching some film, and realized I was, like, two quarters through the game already.” No longer do players have to sit down in a dark room with a video reel and projector to watch games.
On top of the iPad’s ease of use and accessibility, it also increases the safety of the team’s most protected secrets. Even now, playbooks have to be monitored and accounted for constantly. With the possibility of a player leaving the team with it or a player forgetting where he placed it, it won’t matter with the iPad. Coach Morris used the feature of wiping “[everything] off with the push of a button” as a way to sell his pitch of buying iPad’s for his 90 player roster to co-chairman Bryan Glazer.
As we watch how these teams utilize the iPad, it's only a matter of time before the rest start seeing its unmatched benefits. If I were Tim Cook, the new CEO of Apple, I would begin development of specialized iPad’s for NFL teams and other major league sports before someone else jumps on the wagon.
Follow National Football Authority on Twitter: @NFAuthority & @TommyHeiser.
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Coaches aren’t the only ones on the team who find the iPad be an efftective tool. More players are seeing its use as a way to quickly analyze games and plays. Tampa Bay’s second-year safety Cody Grimm is amazed by “how much technology has changed the game.” Grimm said, “It's convenient. It’s fast. I was snacking out on the couch and watching some film, and realized I was, like, two quarters through the game already.” No longer do players have to sit down in a dark room with a video reel and projector to watch games.
On top of the iPad’s ease of use and accessibility, it also increases the safety of the team’s most protected secrets. Even now, playbooks have to be monitored and accounted for constantly. With the possibility of a player leaving the team with it or a player forgetting where he placed it, it won’t matter with the iPad. Coach Morris used the feature of wiping “[everything] off with the push of a button” as a way to sell his pitch of buying iPad’s for his 90 player roster to co-chairman Bryan Glazer.
As we watch how these teams utilize the iPad, it's only a matter of time before the rest start seeing its unmatched benefits. If I were Tim Cook, the new CEO of Apple, I would begin development of specialized iPad’s for NFL teams and other major league sports before someone else jumps on the wagon.
Follow National Football Authority on Twitter: @NFAuthority & @TommyHeiser.
For more NFL coverage, follow @NFA_NFL.
And "Like" us on Facebook too!
Posted at 10:00 AM.
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You can add the Ravens to the list as well, as they announced last week they are using them as well.. I agree that it is a great idea, especially with technology growing everyday.