So what has he been focusing on while evaluating prospects leading up to the NFL Draft, which starts two weeks from Thursday

''It could be anything. It's just effort or lack of effort,'' Heckert said. ''The day after the draft, you get all those grades from all the media people. You can throw those out the window 'cause no one knows. We don't even know. But I just think the more tape you watch, the more little things you can find. Everybody knows if the guy's a really good athlete or if he's a bad athlete. That stuff's easy. It's the other stuff.

''And it's not just the tape watching. It's the interview process and talking to the coaches. You have to find football players. They don't have to be what everybody writes about: 'Oh, this guy has 15 sacks.' That's great. If you can get the guy that has 15 sacks and he's tough guy and he's smart, that's the perfect guy. Those guys don't exist very much.''

New Browns coach Pat Shurmur said he and Heckert have similar opinions about the types of players the team should draft. The duo established an understanding while working together for the Philadelphia Eagles.

''We're looking for football players that are passionate about their sport, are productive and then basically are people that the Browns can be proud of,'' Shurmur said. ''But it all comes back to them being able to play the game and play it at a high level.''

Heckert doesn't want the Browns' needs at certain positions to dictate which prospects he chooses. Instead, he wants to select the best player available, especially when the Browns are put on the clock with the sixth overall pick.

The objective is easy enough to understand, but how does Heckert determine which players are better than others?

''There's a lot of glamorous picks that everybody can make,'' he said. ''If you stick to what you believe in with the character stuff and with the love of the game, [you'll narrow down the candidates]. If you have eight draft picks, like we do this year, you don't need to pick eight superstar athletes.

''They have to be good football players, and I think sometimes people lose track of that. They want the guy that ran really fast, and had some character [issues]. They say, 'Well, he'll be fine when we get him here.' I don't believe in that.''

Heckert is also skeptical of players whose performances at the NFL Scouting Combine overshadow their production in college.

''You go back and look at [tape], and then you make the decision,'' Heckert said. ''You say, 'Well, maybe I did miss on him.' Or you say, 'Nope. He's a great workout guy, but he's not a very good football player. He's not as good a football player as some people think he is.' You do have to at least check it out, but you can't just go by whatever happens at the combine.''