How important is the Combine?

The NFL combine is just a few days away from getting underway. This is a time where Coaches,GM'S and Owners have a chance to see the top 320 NFL prospects under one roof. Although there is a select group of prospects every year that opt not to do the on-field drills whether it's due to prior injuries or because the prospect's might not want to hurt there draft stock. But at the combine running 40's,lifting, getting poked and prodded isn't the most important part of the process. These prospect's have three plus years of game film that every team will break down over the next month and a half. But the main thing these Coaches, GM's and Owners want is to interview the athletes face to face to see first hand and gauge what he is or isn't all about. They also want to see each players medical records and see if everything checks out physically and mentally.
In the 1998 draft the Indianapolis Colts drafted a guy by the name of Peyton Manning (some of you may have heard of him) anyway, that choice wasn't easy at the time, as hindsight might have made it seem. Colts president Bill Polian had a tough decision to make with the number 1 overall selection in a "hype" heavy '98 draft at the quarterback position. "Ryan Leaf or Peyton Manning, Ryan or Peyton?" this was a question that came down to the eleventh hour in the colts war room the night before the draft. The colts honestly didn't know who to pick, both players in college had accolades for days and physical tools that were pretty much a wash. So what did it come down to for Bill Polian and the Colts to select a future Hall of Famer over the NFL's biggest bust of all time? It was the interview process. Both quarterbacks were asked "If we make you the first overall pick in the draft,what's the first thing you're going to do?" Manning replied he would immediately ask for the Colts playbook so he can learn the offense as fast as he could and that he would do everything in his power to start as soon as possible. Leaf on the other hand said "Oh man. If I'm the number one pick, the first thing I'm gonna do is call up my buddies and we are going to Vegas".If that wasn't as a sign,then I don't know what is. These are the types of answers "Big wigs" in each organization use to evaluate the prospects, along with the film compiled over the course of a career and combine evaluations. Over the next month we will hear a lot about the NFL Draft stock market, many stocks will rise and many will plummet, it will be very interesting to see if teams are buying, what these players are selling.