NFL Combine Discussion

[ThomasTomasz]

The 40-yard dashes, vertical jumps and bench press reps are all important exercises, but the on-field positional drills at the NFL combine are just as, if not more, important. And on Sunday morning in the first group of wide receivers and quarterbacks, Central Florida QB Blake Bortles and LSU WR Odell Beckham stood out above the rest.

I spent almost two hours in the stands at Lucas Oil Stadium Sunday morning watching the first group of passers and pass-catchers and several stood out – some good, some bad.

With Johnny Manziel, Teddy Bridgewater and Derek Carr choosing not to throw at the Combine, Bortles had the stage to show why many, including myself, have touted him as a possibility to be drafted No. 1 overall by the Houston Texans. And he didn't disappoint with the spotlight on him, displaying his smooth set up and release and tossing darts down the field. Bortles' accuracy and footwork on his three-step drops were excellent, showing very good rhythm, timing and precision to rip it with very good target placement. He was a tick late with his seven-step drops and has room to improve his feet and balance in this area, but Bortles was still able to be accurate down the field, especially on deep bucket throws.

The wide receivers in the first group included several possible first rounders, including Texas A&M's Mike Evans and Florida State's Kelvin Benjamin, who both did well, but it was Beckham who looked the most impressive Sunday morning. He was terrific in the gauntlet drill with his quick, strong hands and easy extension to snare throws away from his body. While most receivers in that drill allow themselves to get wild and off balance, Beckham accelerated well and stayed in a straight line on the white, staying precise and making it look extremely easy. He needs to be more controlled in his cuts, going too fast at times in his breaks, but that's nit-picking. Oregon State's Brandin Cooks also performed well in the first wide receiver group.

Other notes from the QB/WR positional workouts:

WR Martavis Bryant, commonly referred to as the “other” Clemson wideout, was very up-and-down during the positional drills. He was clearly one of the fastest on the field with his long, fluid strides and length to extend and pluck the ball. But Bryant slowed at the catch point too often and had his share of drops, something that plagued him in college. During drills, he looked like A.J. Green at times, but then followed it up with a drill where he looked like A.J. McCarron trying to catch the ball.

Speaking of Alabama QB A.J. McCarron, he had a solid morning throwing the ball. He showed streaky ball placement on 10-yard out routes, but displayed good deep touch on bucket throws. McCarron and Eastern Illinois QB Jimmy Garoppolo were the next two most impressive passers Sunday morning during QB drills after Bortles.

On the flipside, it wasn't a strong showing for Clemson QB Tajh Boyd or Northern Illinois QB Jordan Lynch, who both battled accuracy and touch issues on most of their throws. Boyd's slinging arm motion was wild on the 10-yard out routes to his left and inconsistent deep touch showed on the vertical routes. Lynch was very wild with his accuracy and his deep touch was inconsistent, struggling with his trajectory and overall feel.

Wake Forest WR Michael Campanaro missed a good portion of his senior season and has his durability issues, but he reaffirmed Sunday morning just how talented of a pass-catcher he is with smooth athleticism and reliability catching the ball. He did have a drop off his hands on a comeback route, but he was one of the few who truly worked back to the ball during drills and attacked it in the air. Campanaro showed subtle, coordinated footwork and the game appears to slow down for him at the catch point, looking the ball into his hands. Coastal Carolina WR Matt Hazel also impressed with his natural body control, extension and hands. Both prospects had strong Sunday morning workouts.

http://www.cbssports.com/nfl/draft/...les-beckham-show-leads-qbwr-positional-drills

 

[Hasselbeck]

Dri Archer 4.26/40 .. narrowly missed Chris Johnson's record at 4.24

 

[ThomasTomasz]

INDIANAPOLIS -- Central Florida's Blake Bortles took advantage of the spotlight provided with the other high profile quarterbacks opting not to compete at the combine, impressing with his poise, accuracy and arm strength during passing drills.

For a quarterback too often characterized as raw, Bortles was smooth in his set up and release, tossing darts down the field. His accuracy and footwork on his three-step drops were excellent, showing very good rhythm, timing and precision to rip it with very good target placement. He was a tick late with his seven-step drops and has room to improve his feet and balance in this area, but Bortles was still able to be accurate down the field, especially on deep bucket throws.

His stellar throwing session could help vault him into the No. 1 overall pick.

Unfortunately, the workouts weren't as impressive for some other high profile players, including Arizona running back Ka'Deem Carey, who was officially clocked at 4.70 seconds in the 40-yard dash.

These were the five biggest takeaways of the day:

5. Clemson wide receiver Sammy Watkins provided some quantitative evidence of his explosiveness, running the 40-yard dash in 4.43 seconds at 6-feet-1, 211 pounds. Watkins' burst is obvious on tape and therefore the impressive speed in Indianapolis confirms his top-10 status rather than pushing him into it.

Two other underclassmen whose impressive workouts Sunday could push them into the first round are Oregon State's Brandin Cooks and LSU's Odell Beckham.

The 5-10, 189-pound Cooks was the fastest receiver tested in Indianapolis, clocking in at a sizzling 4.33 seconds in the Combine's premier event. Beckham, 5-11, 199 pounds, wasn't quite as fast at 4.46 seconds but starred during the positional drills, demonstrating remarkable athleticism, body control and sticky hands.

Small-schoolers John Brown (Pittsburgh State) and Jeff Janis (Saginaw Valley State) proved their athleticism by clocking in 4.34 and 4.42 seconds, respectively.

4. The 40-yard dash generates the most buzz but it was the all-around explosiveness demonstrated by Baylor's Tevin Reese and Georgia Southern's Jerick McKinnon that resulted in the day's most impressive individual workouts.

Nicknamed "Sweet Feet," Reese lived up to his reputation, leading all wide receivers with a 41-inch vertical jump and an 11-foot broad jump after clocking in at 4.46 seconds in the 40-yard dash.

As the numbers suggest, Reese is a phenomenal athlete. Better yet, his athleticism translates onto the field, where 22 of Reese's 25 career touchdowns covered at least 40 yards. As one might expect given his rail-thin 5-10, 163-pound frame, however, Reese relies on his speed to beat defenses over the top, demonstrating little physicality or grit. He predominately ran vertical routes at Baylor and projects as strictly a big play threat in the NFL.

McKinnon, a 5-9, 209-pound former option quarterback who will be asked to play running back in the NFL, also showcased remarkable athleticism, matching Reese in the broad jump and posting a 40½-inch vertical jump -- one inch lower than another Baylor Bear, Lache Seastrunk, to lead all running backs. McKinnon led all backs with 34 repetitions in the bench press and was unofficially clocked at 4.35 seconds in the 40-yard dash, the third best time among runners.

3. As predicted in this space yesterday, South Carolina's Jadeveon Clowney was not as impressive in the bench press drills as he'll prove in the 40-yard dash and vertical jump. The 6-5, 266 pounder lifted the bar "just" 21 times -- a number topped by seven running backs.

It is important recognize that the bench press measures strength and endurance -- not necessarily the explosiveness so obvious in Clowney's game. Further, the bench press isn't an apples-to-apples comparison as Clowney's extremely long arms (34½ inches) make lifting the bar more difficult for him than for most.

Finally, it is worth recalling how some of the NFL's elite defensive ends fared in the bench press during their respective Combine workouts. Julius Peppers (Chicago Bears), Jason Pierre-Paul (New York Giants) and Robert Quinn (St. Louis Rams) registered 24, 19 and 22 reps.

2. Jason Verrett entered the 2013 season as arguably the top senior cornerback prospect in the country, but a shoulder injury suffered in game three vs. Texas Tech spoiled his final season at TCU. Now with his collegiate career in the rearview mirror, Verrett can focus on draft preparations, but that shoulder issue still lingers.

"I had a torn labrum, the back of my labrum," Verrett said about his shoulder injury. "But I played the rest of the season."

Verrett is scheduled to have surgery after his on-campus pro day on March 21, following a similar path as New York Jets' cornerback Dee Milliner who had labrum surgery after his pro day a year ago. There were some concerns about Milliner's shoulder issue, but that didn't stop the New York Jets from drafting him ninth overall.

When asked if he considered sitting out to heal the injury, Verrett said "not at all" and downplayed the injury, explaining that it's a physical game and sometimes you have to play through the pain.

"I feel like I showed toughness throughout my whole career," Verrett said. "Being the size that I am, I'm going to have to be a lot more physical than the bigger guys."

Size is the "biggest" concern with Verrett who likely will be relegated to nickel duties after measuring in at 5-9, 189 pounds in Indianapolis. He's a tenacious and instinctive player who could challenge for a late first round selection if teams are confident in his recovery from the surgery.

1. The 2013 draft was the first time in 50 years that a running back was not selected in the first round. History appears likely to repeat itself, especially given shockingly slow times from some of the highest regarded running backs, including Carey, NFLDraftScout.com's top-rated back, whose 4.70-second time ranked him 29th out of the 33 running backs tested Sunday.

The 5-9, 207-pound back's staggeringly slow time will certainly drop his draft stock, though he plays much faster than this workout indicates. He's an instinctive, determined runner with good quickness whose soft hands and grit as a pass blocker make him a weapon on all three downs.

Though not as slow as Carey, LSU's Jeremy Hill and Ohio State's Carlos Hyde didn't necessarily help their cause either with each clocking in at 4.66 seconds in the event. Even highly touted speedster De'Anthony Thomas (4.50) and Seastrunk (4.51) came in slower than expected.

On a more positive note, the position provided the fastest player yet to test, with Kent State's Dri Archer covering 40 yards in a blistering 4.26 seconds -- .15 faster than any other running back. Archer, who split time at running back and wide receiver for the Golden Flashes, offers Tavon Austin-like elusiveness and acceleration -- traits that could help him move up the board quickly, though at 5-8, 173 pounds, he's not someone an NFL team is likely to utilize on more than a handful of plays per game.

West Virginia's Charles Sims (4.48) and Washington's Bishop Sankey (4.49) showed better straight-line speed than expected. Also helping their cause is that each is a terrific receiver out of the backfield.

http://www.cbssports.com/nfl/draft/nfl-draft-scout/24454779/nfl-combine-five-takeaways-from-sunday

 

[MrBill]

Dri Archer 4.26/40 .. narrowly missed Chris Johnson's record at 4.24

Dri Archer is having an outstanding career for my team in Madden :yep:

 

[JimLeavy59]

If the Packers can get one of these receivers I would be okay with letting James Jones go.

 

[ralaw]

Dri Archer 4.26/40 .. narrowly missed Chris Johnson's record at 4.24

Which VSNer is he?

 

[JeremyHight]

Sammy Watkins just solidified himself as a top 10 pick. I hope he falls to the Lions who need help at WR (and LB, DB, and a lot of other positions), but he'll be taken before 10.

 

[HardHittnOzone]

NFL Combine Discussion

Dri Archer 4.26/40 .. narrowly missed Chris Johnson's record at 4.24

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[spursup]

Sammy Watkins just solidified himself as a top 10 pick. I hope he falls to the Lions who need help at WR (and LB, DB, and a lot of other positions), but he'll be taken before 10.

Watkins will be off the board before the Lions pick. Their best bet will probably be Mike Evans if they really want a wide receiver that badly.

 

[Hasselbeck]

Sammy Watkins just solidified himself as a top 10 pick. I hope he falls to the Lions who need help at WR (and LB, DB, and a lot of other positions), but he'll be taken before 10.

Watkins likely isn't slipping past Tampa at 7 anyway.. should he even get that far.. Cleveland and Oakland could also be interested in Watkins and the 49ers have 12 picks in this draft with very little positions of need to fill so they are a candidate to move up should one of these teams want to move back.

The Lions defense is a mess.. WR is deep this year, I think they need to address that glaring hole at corner before they take another WR.

 

[seaplus]

I love football

 

[ThomasTomasz]

 

[buckeye]

There are some blazing 40 times by top 15 players... interested in seeing if teams start drooling even more.

Sent from my DROID RAZR HD using Tapatalk

 

[LiquidLarry2GhostWF]

What I can take away from the combine so far...the cream is just rising to the top.

Sammy Watkins just solidified a Top 5 pick. A ton of sources are saying he is a big possibility for the Rams @ 2 or the Browns @ 4.
Jadaveon Clowney just shut every one up about the "off the field" shit by running a 4.4 at 6'5" 265lbs.
The top three offensive linemen (Matthews, Lewan, Robinson) looked like the top three players and top 10 overall.
Aaron Donald, who had been considered a rising player his senior year blisters a 4.6 40 time at 290lbs while putting up 35 fucking reps.

Smaller schools guys that people expected to perform well like McKinnon and Dri Archer, did so. Solidifying themselves as really intriguing mid-round picks.

Bortles comes in and does everything...and might be the #1 QB off the board because of it.

The second tier WRs proved to be the real deal...Beckham, Cooks, Evans all looked like first rounders.

and then, on the other end of the spectrum...the running back position is known as one without a lot of high end talent...and it showed. None of the top guys did well.

 

[1ke]

The Rams would be absolutely brain dead to not draft Sammy with that 2nd pick right?

 

[Hasselbeck]

Michael Sam's stock is plummeting .. only 17 reps at 225, 4.9/40

With the media sideshow that comes with having him on your roster to begin with.. not good.

 

[LiquidLarry2GhostWF]

Michael Sam's stock is plummeting .. only 17 reps at 225, 4.9/40

With the media sideshow that comes with having him on your roster to begin with.. not good.

I kinda hate this word...it doesn't exist.

Teams already knew what Sam is/was...he is a DPR. Players of his ilk are drafted in Rounds 3-5. I fully expect that is where he is going regardless of his combine numbers.

 

[Aso]

I kinda hate this word...it doesn't exist.

Teams already knew what Sam is/was...he is a DPR. Players of his ilk are drafted in Rounds 3-5. I fully expect that is where he is going regardless of his combine numbers.

I've read he was always gonna be a mid-late round pick. Isn't there a good chance he falls somewhere between rounds 5-7 after these combine results?

 

[Hasselbeck]

I kinda hate this word...it doesn't exist.

Teams already knew what Sam is/was...he is a DPR. Players of his ilk are drafted in Rounds 3-5. I fully expect that is where he is going regardless of his combine numbers.

Yeah but that was before he just ran a slower 40 than a lot of offensive linemen, posted a terrible bench press number and has looked really poor in drills. Sam had the 3-5 grade because of the SEC POTY honor.. but after those drills + media shit storm to come.. I can see a lot of teams going for a player that's comparable before they turn to Sam.

Not to mention.. 9 of those 10.5 sacks we keep hearing about came against the likes of Arkansas State, Vandy and Florida.. the same Florida OL that managed to somehow block themselves on a play.

I think barring a major turnaround at the pro day he can find himself going undrafted now. Would say 6-7 round is his best case

 

[LiquidLarry2GhostWF]

Mack and Shazier showed why they are the top two linebackers in the draft. Two most explosive linebackers physically. Barr showed his skill set...his awesome bend. Not quite Dion Jordan in regards to bend and acceleration as he flattens out, but he is also a better more natural pass rusher.

Clowney and Donald were A+ combine performers. Donald just justified his Top 15 projection despite being small. Physically, he is elite.

I also liked how the second tier talent in the front seven showed they are up to snuff physically. Jeffcoat, Martin, Hageman, Marcus Smith.

That is what is going to make this draft "special"...those tier two guys proving they are indeed legitimate tier two players and they are showing their physical numbers are there.