For many passionate football fans, following the National Football League (NFL) is an enjoyable hobby. For Sixth Former Jack Bretl the NFL forms a core part of his academic studies. Bretl has transformed his interest in the NFL into an independent study project (ISP) at St. Paul’s that follows various aspects of the league. For Sixth Formers who want to pursue a subject not otherwise covered by the SPS curriculum, the opportunity exists to undertake an ISP. ISPs can be as short as a term or as long as a full year and can cover virtually any interest. In recent years, ISPs have included internships, job shadows, writing screenplays and designing and building a go-kart. ISP proposals are submitted to a committee of faculty, primarily led by the Director of ISP, Irene Kim, for approval and are overseen by a faculty adviser.
For Bretl, who played football as a child and is a fan of the Seattle Seahawks, the chance at St. Paul’s to create and implement a project around football was too compelling to pass up. Bretl’s project follows various aspects of the league, including how evolving “Name, Image, Likeness” rules impact the NFL draft, and how certain rule changes and safety initiatives have impacted the league. Until quite recently, the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) did not allow collegiate players to take compensation for their athletic skills. A Supreme Court ruling in June 2021, however, caused the NCAA to change their stance. As Bretl explains, “NIL, or (Name, Image, Likeness), is a relatively new concept that allows players in college to earn money based on their likeness and retain most of the proceeds. This incentivizes more players to remain in college longer and allows them to make enough money to help their family.”
This in turn affects the NFL draft; according to Bretl, “the most surprising thing that I have learned has been how NIL has affected the decisions that certain college football players have made regarding how and when to enter the draft.”
In addition, Bretl’s ISP has allowed him to study new rule and safety changes and how this has impacted the league. For example, the NFL has recently banned a type of maneuver known as the “hip drop tackle,” which resulted in a large number of injuries. Bretl explains that “a hip drop tackle is a certain type of tackle that was deemed dangerous and caused too many injuries. The ban caused a lot of controversy and arguments around the League, but it was done for the safety of players.”
As he gathers new research, Bretl makes an informational presentation every two weeks to his ISP project advisor, Andrew Inzer, himself a former professional football player. Although he is still in the midst of his research, Bretl’s project has informed and enhanced his knowledge of football. He notes that he “would love for people to understand more about the NFL draft and how much NIL will continue to change NFL drafts” and alter the composition of players going into the draft.
Ultimately, Bretl aims to learn more about the mechanics of how the League works, and better understand “the side of the NFL not many people talk about, the side that the casual NFL fan knows nothing about.”