Two recently created Twitter accounts, Angry Scouting Veteran and Angry Scout 2, have gotten a lot of attention in the scouting community and, to a lesser extent, in the media. I’ve become a fan of both accounts because of their straight talk and bracing opinions expressed. While some have questioned whether or not the accounts are actually manned by real NFL scouts, I believe they are. I think the authenticity and the views expressed are unmistakably legitimate.

Last week, I reached out to Angry Scouting Vet to ask if he’d answer a few questions. He agreed, so I sent him a few questions that I felt would really give him a chance to express his opinions in longer firm. He didn’t disappoint. All of his answers were insightful and some quite detailed. Rather than edit them down, I decided to run them in their entirety. I’ll be spooling them out in this space all week. What follows are the first two questions and answers.

Why did you decide to start a Twitter account? What do you hope to accomplish?

“Initially, to be honest, I just needed a forum to vent (laughs). Then, after that initial vice was satisfied, I thought to myself that this would be a very good way to both educate people both in and outside of the scouting business, as well as voice legitimate concerns to anyone who might be reading. I had a personal Twitter account a few years ago, and I didn’t generate near the amount of interest that Angry Scout has. My number of followers isn’t anything monumental at this point, but it grew instantly and keeps adding followers daily. I love the scouting profession, but there are a lot of things that should be fixed and/or improved about it. If this Twitter account informs and/or influences ANYONE in that regard, then to me it’s already a success. Obviously, I would like many of the wrongs I identify to actually be righted for real, not just by likes and support on a social media page, but Rome wasn’t built in a day and baby steps are better than none at all.”

You take some pretty strong stands and say things without a filter. Do you think the things you say are the things most scouting veterans would like to say?

“ABSOLUTELY! The NFL is a small league, and it’s filled with (sycophants), bad people attracted to it because of money and/or prestige, and people that can’t handle the truth. I’m a very blunt, direct, and exclusively honest person to begin with, so it’s really easy for me to say the things that I do. I firmly believe them and am passionate about our business. Some guys might rip me for being anonymous, but I am not independently wealthy enough to be blackballed from my chosen profession because a bunch of rich elitist (jerks) or delusionally uninformed people can’t handle the truth of what I’m saying, so that’s why I have to remain anonymous. However; if I were to round up every scout with 10-plus years of experience and beyond that’s not a sell-out or a (sycophant), I’d bet at minimum a few month’s pay that they would agree with and support no fewer than 98% of what I’m saying. There really should be a scout union, and because the owners would be terrified of such a thing and never let it happen, at the very least there should be some kind of scout council at league meetings. We have zero voice in this entire process, and that is beyond ridiculous and unacceptable.”

More tomorrow.