Good Insight to NFL Draft Day

Rating: 7/10 (3 September 2014)

NFL General Manager for the Cleveland Browns, Sonny Weaver (Kevin Costner), agrees to give away 3-number-one picks in succeeding years in order to get the number one rated College Quarterback in the nation. The rest of the movie he is trying to find out if he made a good or bad deal. All of his coaching staff believe he gave away too much, but owner Anthony Molina (Frank Langella) wants that QB so Cleveland can make a "splash" in the NFL. How will this end? Inquiring Minds are on the job once more.
This gives us some insight to the inner workings of the NFL drafting of college players who want to join the NFL. Okay, okay, it's somewhat like the MONEYBALL movie.
There are fabulous shots of various NFL stadiums and there were many split-screens throughout and this gave credence to the story. The way it was done was impressive. The photography all around was excellent. Kudos.
We see many nationally recognized football analysts (Jon Gruden, Chris Berman, Dion Sanders, Mel Kiper, Mike Mayock, to name just a few). Roger Goodell, the Commissioner of the NFL, also participated in the movie. There are some excellent flashbacks to other great NFL games when someone is trying to make a point regarding the present situation.
Other supporting cast members include Chi McBride, Jennifer Garner (as Salary Cap Specialist and Sonny's girlfriend who is pregnant with his baby), Denis Leary (Cleveland coach), Sean Combs as Chris, an agent, and Sam Elliott as the coach who coached that Number One QB that Sonny makes that deal for.
There are minor sub-plots that Sonny has to deal with: the pregnancy, of course, (but there isn't much of a love story here), his mother (Ellen Burstyn) wants to spread her husband's (he was the former coach of the Browns) ashes on the 50-yard line on a practice field, the current QB who fears losing his job if that Number One QB is taken, and a son of a former Cleveland Brown player who wants to be a Brown.
And then there is Sonny who is trying to make his mark and you see his concerns dealing with everything trying to stay focused on this Draft Day as he calls other NFL GMs to learn more about that number one QB and to make possible deals too. As you would expect the pace picks up near the end and it is here that Kevin Costner earns his money. He did a good job.
All in all a good movie, maybe a little slow, at times, but when you see the pressures an NFL General Manger goes through you will understand and enjoy this. And, if you are a true football fan, you will enjoy even more. (7/10)
Violence: No. Sex: No. Nudity: No. Language: Only one F-bomb uttered.