I’ve been watching the NFL Network for a little over a year now and though I watch the channel quite often they still have lots of room for improvement. In the name of offering constructive criticism here are some of my ideas for improving the networks offering.

Game Replays
Last season game replays are ok but they would be more interesting if they included the pop-up stats and facts like VH1’s Pop-Up Video. For example, if Steve Smith scored a TD a little balloon could pop up stating something like "Smith finished the season with x TD’s" or yds or whatever, you get the point.

Scouting Combine
On three occasions I was inclined to watch one of the sessions looking for footage of a prospect that was on my mind. In all three cases I found the coverage of the combine insufficient. Where’s some ideas that would help:

The current format is fine for the live coverage but they should then include post-combine coverage where they string together the footage of the top 5 tackles for instance. They could do it for each position and run a series of specials on it.

There were times when they would show a prospect run a drill but never tell you who it was. Sure, some of them are recognizable but not most. They need to be more diligent about identifying prospects.

The analysis team during the combine was composed of too many former players. They need to include more former scouts and their opinions and let them offer their opinion on players as they perform.

I can understand combining the DE & DT’s to run the various drills but when they list the top performances they need to separate them back to DE and DT. The reason is that when you show the ten fastest 40 times, guess what, their all DE’s. What if I want to know who the top 5 fastest DT’s? Sure you can get the info elsewhere later but why not immediately?

Replay Frequency
It was more noticeable last season but it seems the network still repeats programs too many times. You can say the same thing about the commercials but hey, I know they have to make money.

NFL Sunday Ticket
On a positive note the stat feature is fantastic, especially for fantasy nerds like me. I would like a little more pre-game show but otherwise the ticket is....the ticket. It is pricey in my view and given I’m in the Panthers viewing zone I may not renew the ticket next season. It seems I only used it to watch other games sparingly.

The Future
As the network matures I’m sure they will address some of these issues since some it seems fairly obvious to me. I want to reemphasize that overall I do like the network and know that it is here to stay. I also think in the end the NFL will win its current battle with the cable companies. The NFL brand has become a powerhouse in popularity and international awareness. If they want to take the next step up and actually compete with ESPN then they still have work to do.

What other improvements can anyone else suggest?