Playmakers: how the NFL really works (and doesn't)

Introduction

Part I: the draft

Tom Brady proves the draft is an inexact science

At its core, the draft is anti-American

The draft is the safest place to find a franchise quarterback

The pre-draft process focuses on all the wrong things

Draft picks have incredible value to teams, before they're used

The temptation to tank is real

The Commissioner's conundrum

The draft becomes an accidental road show

Owners often get involved, without getting involved

There's a huge benefit to discretion

Part II: free agency

Free agency rarely makes a huge difference, for any team

The franchise tag hurts players more than fans realize

Thanks to free agency, players often can't stay put

Players should be celebrated for trying to get more

The Albert Haynesworth debacle

Running backs aren't valued, and for good reason

Peyton Manning's foray into free agency

Kirk Cousins cracks the franchise tag code

Le'Veon Bell's lost season

Tom Brady leaves town, after 20 years

Part III: quarterbacks

The death of Johnny Unitas

The rise of Mike Vick

Aaron Rodgers sits for three years

The Brett Favre retirement odyssey

The Donovan McNabb trade

Ben Roethlisberger's redemption

Tebowmania

Andrew Luck retires

The college offense revolution

Patrick Mahomes changes everything

The quarterback takeover

Part IV: coaches

The Jon Gruden trade

The Rooney Rule

The Randy Ratio

The Peter Principle, on repeat

The resentment of Bill Belichick

The unreality of the NFL's reality show

Jim Harbaugh vs. Jim Schwartz

The near-trade of Jim Harbaugh

Another generation of Belichicks

Matt Rhule blows the salary curve (and it doesn't matter)

Part V: owners

The hiring of Matt Millen

The Commissioner

Daniel Snyder

The lockout

The misadventures of Jimmy Haslam

The suspension of Jim Irsay

Jerry Jones vs. Roger Goodell

Robert Kraft wins one for the little guy

The Green Bay dynamic

The rise of analytics

Part VI: health and safety

The death of Korey Stringer

The Roy Williams rule

Chris Simms nearly dies on the field

The concussion epiphany

Defenseless receivers

The concussion lawsuits

The minimization of the kickoff

Lowering the helmet

The Pro Bowl

The in-game concussion conundrum

Part VII: off-field player misconduct

The Whizzinator

The love boat

Reggie Bush

Pacman Jones

Mike Vick

Plaxico Burress

Brett Favre

Aaron Hernandez

Ray Rice

Ezekiel Elliott

Antonio Brown

Deshaun Watson

Part VIII: major scandals

The Janet Jackson incident

Spygate I

Spygate II

Bountygate

Bullygate

Michael Sam

Deflategate

Colin Kaepernick

Jerry Richardson

Spygate III

Part IX: officiating

Replay review

The tuck rule

Super Bowl XL

Scott Green's irrelevant (not really) mistake

The Santonio Holmes missed call

The Fail Mary

The index card incident

The catch rule

The Rams-Saints debacle

The worst rule in football

Part X: the future - The proliferation of sports betting

The injury report

The Tim Donaghy dynamic

Sky judge

The playoff seeding formula

Expansion

The best approach to overtime

Protecting the mental health of players

Global domination

Corporate ownership

Alternative leagues

Acknowledgments.