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Troutwine is a Missouri psychologist whose consulting firm performs psychological assessments of players for NFL franchises, helping them put together teams that are mentally as well as physically fit. Troutwine has worked for 17 teams since breaking into big-league sports psychology in 1984. During each year's college draft, he gives clients guidance on their picks by working up psychological snapshots of the various hot-shot players coming out of college.

Through one-on-one interviews and written tests, Troutwine draws a picture of each player's mental condition and leadership potential. "It's structural behavioral interviewing," he explains. "I dig for specific behavioral examples of what they've done in the past. I'll say, 'Give me an example of a time when you impacted another player's performance.'"

In one interview, a quarterback responded to that question with the story of how he affected a particular teammate -- a wide receiver who was slacking off during a game. When the QB saw the receiver jogging through his route, he went to the sideline and told the coach. Bad move, says Troutwine: "That's like running to mommy." If you're a coach, he says, you don't want that; instead, "you want someone who's going to be a leader on the field."

NFL teams eat up Troutwine's player assessments, but psychological profiles don't always provide an accurate forecast of future performance, says Andy Meyers, president of the Association for the Advancement of Applied Sport Psychology and chairman of the psychology department at the University of Memphis. "It's always been a dream of psychologists that we could use assessment strategies to predict performance," Meyers says. "But the historic evidence on these tests has not been impressive."

According to Troutwine, his results have been impressive enough to keep clients coming back season after season: "Believe me, you don't last 16 years in the NFL if you're not successful."

Peyton Manning is one of Troutwine's most memorable success stories. In the 1998 draft, the Indianapolis Colts had the No. 1 pick. They wanted to select a quarterback who would not only perform at a high level athletically but who would also fit into the team's close-knit, family-like organization. Troutwine helped the Colts settle on Tennessee's Manning over Washington State's Ryan Leaf.

"They graded out almost identically on physical attributes," Troutwine says, referring to the size, speed and arm strength of the two star quarterbacks. But Troutwine saw another kind of difference. "Manning had a lot more maturity -- mentally, emotionally. You saw a lower level of maturity in Leaf." Manning was more stable, too. According to Troutwine, "He's the kind of guy you'd have over for Thanksgiving dinner."

Troutwine's assessment has been dead on so far. Since the two quarterbacks entered the pros, Manning has become a reliable, productive player for the Colts; Leaf, on the other hand, who was drafted by the Chargers, has struggled with the team, alienating teammates and lashing out at journalists and fans.

Next page | "This is a very violent game. You've got to have a love of collision"