Former Pro Bowl OL LeCharles Bentley tabbed as NFL's senior advisor for player performance and development

Once one of the top interior offensive linemen in the NFL, former two-time Pro Bowl offensive lineman LeCharles Bentley is now the NFL’s senior advisor of player performance and development, the league announced Friday.

Bentley will work in an advisory capacity with NFL executive vice president of football operations Troy Vincent on player performance and the development of enhancements, metrics and resources and the best practices to enhance the sport.

“I’m honored to be able to use cutting-edge research and data to assist leadership at the NFL in player protection and risk reduction throughout all levels of football.” Bentley said. “Under the leadership of [Commissioner] Roger Goodell and Troy Vincent, along with head coaches around the NFL, we are committed to growing and enhancing the game of football all over the world.”

Bentley’s other tasks will see him work with NFL youth and high school football to grow the game and to expand the NFL Way to Play initiative, which seeks to protect players from unnecessary risk and bring about a culture change across all levels of football. Bentley has worked with NFL Way to Play since its inception, hosting clinics, enhancing the curriculum and creating myriad videos focused on assisting players and coaches with the best position-based drills for using proper technique.

“The game of football continues to evolve by applying science, technology, and rules in its ongoing effort to advance player protection and remove unnecessary risk from the game,” Vincent said in a statement. “LeCharles Bentley is a world-class thought leader in analyzing the metrics and developing improved playing techniques.”

A second-round pick of the New Orleans Saints in 2002, Bentley, a guard and center, was a two-time Pro Bowler in four seasons with the Saints before moving on to the Cleveland Browns. However, Bentley never played for Cleveland as his career was cut short due to injury.

Now, Bentley, 41, is taking the lead on improving players’ performance and growth, along with elongating their careers and growing the game as a whole.

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