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2016 Combine Thread

That was a great run by him, I just didn't see alot of it. More times than not, he was at lb level before anything happened. There are things I do like about him, I dont think he's as good a Gurley from last year. I guess it comes down to if he's considered a value pick. I think he's gonna test out well,but the coaches will have to evaluate him like those old Nebraska rbs. That zone read freezing lineman and rb coming downhill is going to be factored in the process.
 
FTR I have not studied Elliot enough to make a recommendation good or bad. Elliot's highlight reel has strong similarities to Ryan Mathews college highlight reel. Both had many great runs where no one lays a hand on them. The fault I had with Mathews is when he did get in traffic and engaged, Mathews legs went dead and he showed no real power. I don't know if this true about Elliot but it is something I would want to confirm good or bad before making a decision on where I would draft Elliot.
 
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Always interesting to me to watch these Combine player press conferences. The QB's always come off so polished because they've been doing this stuff for years. They've always been at the forefront and in the spotlight. Then the WR's come on and they're nervous as hell and shaking like a leaf in the wind.
 
Pancakes must have fallen asleep again. Hackenberg gets on stage and first question is about his familiarity/success with Bill O'Brien and his offense. 3 questions later McClain asks the same damn question. Hackenberg politely answers it again. McClain then asks yet another question about O'Brien but NFL Network feed mercifully moves away.
 
Running laterally and then one-cut and pop through hole

Working in tight quarters and creating his own yards

Obviously those are just two highlights, but I don't think anybody can really dispute his cutting speed and explosion through the hole.

His highlights always look like someone pressed fast forward. That dude can get on it!
 
I thought everyone knew that. A true test of strength would be testing a one rep max. Counting reps at an arbitrary weight is obviously a test of endurance.
 
Other Notes:
  • I will have a lot more on Saturday but the first-round buzz surrounding Florida safety Keanu Neal keeps getting louder.
  • After weighing in near 235 pounds today, teams are already rearranging their draft boards and moving Stanford's Devon Cajuste from receiver to tight end/H-back.
  • Chris Brown of Notre Dame may only run in the 4.5s on Saturday, but he has a good excuse. Brown has been shuttling back-and-forth between combine training in Chicago and the classroom in South Bend. As he's preparing for his combine workout, Brown has remained in school to get his degree.
  • Tulsa receiver Keyarris Garrett, who measured in at 6-3, 3/8, 220 pounds today, is expecting to run his forty in the 4.4s from what I was told.

NFL Teams Favoring Underclassmen in Interviews

Not a whole lot of news as players are still arriving, but the sense I'm getting is teams here in Indianapolis will spend the lion's share of their official interviews on juniors and players who did not participate in post-season bowl games.

For example...

Junior receiver Corey Coleman is interviewing with 18 teams, defensive end/linebacker Kamalei Correa has 25, Austin Hooper 20 and LaQuon Treadwell is the leader in the clubhouse thus far with 28.

Meanwhile players such as outside linebacker Kyler Fackrell, receiver Sterling Shepard (both Senior Bowl recipients) and offensive lineman Alex Lews (Shrine Game) all have about a half dozen interviews each.
Read more at http://walterfootball.com/combine2016rumors_tony.php#IcfHrXpsqk5Xt52K.99

Read more at http://walterfootball.com/combine2016rumors_tony.php#IcfHrXpsqk5Xt52K.99
 
I thought everyone knew that. A true test of strength would be testing a one rep max. Counting reps at an arbitrary weight is obviously a test of endurance.

Wait....Who doesn't know that? 225 is nothing.....


I'm just posting Combine info, what folks do with it is up to them. There will always be folks fascinated with the draft and become draftniks. When they get started there is a lot information they don't know. The Gabriel post was for them.
 
Definitely won't be surprised if Keanu Neal is the first Safety off the board after Ramsey. He has gone criminally under the radar compared to teammates like Hargreaves and Bullard.
 
I'm just posting Combine info, what folks do with it is up to them. There will always be folks fascinated with the draft and become draftniks. When they get started there is a lot information they don't know. The Gabriel post was for them.

I wasn't talking about anyone here.


I was wondering "out loud" which analysts the tweet was referring to.
 
Jason Spriggs winning the Combine from the OL position.

Me and @bah007 have had him as the #1 guy behind Tunsil/Stanley all year long. I expect the mock drafters who have had Decker/Conklin there to change that coming out of the Combine.
 
Jason Spriggs winning the Combine from the OL position.

Me and @bah007 have had him as the #1 guy behind Tunsil/Stanley all year long. I expect the mock drafters who have had Decker/Conklin there to change that coming out of the Combine.
You were the one that brought him to my attention early on. I'm impressed with the overall athletic ability of this OL class.
 
You were the one that brought him to my attention early on. I'm impressed with the overall athletic ability of this OL class.

OL are getting more athletic by the year because of the prevalence of spread offenses. The downside is they have limited exposure to different blocking schemes.
 
David J. Chao, MD ‏@ProFootballDoc 5h5 hours ago

David J. Chao, MD Retweeted Charles Robinson

Analysis of @CharlesRobinson four medical red flags here. http://shar.es/1CXgWX Jaylon Smith and more.

David J. Chao, MD added,


Charles Robinson @CharlesRobinson
There were a litany of character/medical red flags in last year's #NFL draft. Here are 10 entering the 2016 combine. http://sports.yahoo.com/news/top-10-re

Smith was initially reported as having no nerve or vascular damage at the time of surgery. This type of damage accounts for the potentially most serious complications of a knee dislocation. Despite the original report, Smith is now walking around with an ankle-foot brace. This type of brace essentially holds the foot up, and is commonly used when there is injury to the peroneal nerve (the most common motor nerve damaged with a knee dislocation) which results in a foot drop (inability to dorsiflex [elevate]) the foot. How much that nerve regenerates, and how long it takes to find out where that return maxes out may be at least 2 years. This makes Smith's future and value in this Draft at best questionable.
 
Smith was initially reported as having no nerve or vascular damage at the time of surgery. This type of damage accounts for the potentially most serious complications of a knee dislocation. Despite the original report, Smith is now walking around with an ankle-foot brace. This type of brace essentially holds the foot up, and is commonly used when there is injury to the peroneal nerve (the most common motor nerve damaged with a knee dislocation) which results in a foot drop (inability to dorsiflex [elevate]) the foot. How much that nerve regenerates, and how long it takes to find out where that return maxes out may be at least 2 years. This makes Smith's future and value in this Draft at best questionable.

Hope he can return to form, i thought he could be a really special linebacker in this league
 
Jason Spriggs winning the Combine from the OL position.

Me and @bah007 have had him as the #1 guy behind Tunsil/Stanley all year long. I expect the mock drafters who have had Decker/Conklin there to change that coming out of the Combine.

When I was out to lunch I happened to see his change of direction drill. He clearly set himself apart from the other guys doing the drill. Very fluid and great footwork.
 
When I was out to lunch I happened to see his change of direction drill. He clearly set himself apart from the other guys doing the drill. Very fluid and great footwork.

Spriggs and Tunsil were on a different level with their fluidity. Stanley and Whitehair were probably the next tier. A little more stiff than those other two guys but still looked real smooth. Stanley has a wide base that makes him a little stiff but his footwork is really good. Tunsil's footwork is superb. He moves like a DB in his backpedal.
 
Hope he can return to form, i thought he could be a really special linebacker in this league
Nerve damage is funny......in some instances, return can be fairly quick, but in many case, return is slow.......and again the end point can remain elusive. I hope Smith falls in the former category, but even so his Draft spot will be affected.
 
Elliott didn't get many passes his way at Ohio State because they just do not really use RB and TE at all in the passing game. Watching the drills and he is not a natural hands catcher. He doesn't extend his arms. Lets the ball get into his body. Same thing with Henry. Kelvin Taylor had a lot of trouble catching the ball in every drill.

Best pass catchers I saw were Washington (Texas Tech), Smallwood (West Virginia), and Vitale (Northwestern).
 
DL did interviews today and apparently Nkemdiche kind of threw his teammate Tunsil under the bus. Nkemdiche had the incident where he was on drugs and fell off a balcony. Naturally he got asked about that a lot. He (unsolicited) said that Tunsil was in the room with him when it happened (which kind of implies that Tunsil was doing drugs too).

Now scouts were already aware of this but the media at large was not so Tunsil may get some questions about it now. However, it's not a good look for Nkemdiche to get pressed on character questions like that and try to push the pressure onto a teammate instead.

Nkemdiche also said he fell because he was drunk and was not on drugs (despite currently facing a marijuana charge stemming from the incident). He also said he was the 'fall guy' for the group of guys that were involved because the room was under his name and nobody would step up and share responsibility (for him falling out a damn window).

This idiot did himself no favors today.
 
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O-LINE Top Performers

40-Yard Dash
1. Jason Spriggs (OT, Indiana) - 4.94
2. Joe Thuney (OG, NC State) - 4.95
3. Caleb Benenoch (OT, UCLA) - 4.98
4. Jack Conklin (OT, Michigan State) - 5.00
5. Jake Brendel (OG, UCLA) - 5.01

Bench Press
1. Christian Westerman (OG, Arizona State) - 34
2. Connor McGovern (OG, Missouri) - 33
3. Stephane Nembot (OT, Colorado) - 32
4. Jason Spriggs (OT, Indiana) - 31
5. Five with 30 (Drango, Garnett, Redmond, Robertson, Turner)

Broad Jump
1. Jason Spriggs (OT, Indiana) - 115
2. Halapoulivaati Vaitali (OT, TCU) - 113
3. Brandon Shell (OT, South Carolina) - 112
4a. Joe Haeg (OT, North Dakota State) - 111
4b. Alex Redmond (OG, UCLA) - 111

3-Cone Drill
1a. Jake Brendel (OG, UCLA) - 7.31
1b. Tyler Johnstone (OT, Oregon) - 7.31
3. Cody Whitehair (OG, Kansas State) - 7.32
4. Isaac Seumalo (C, Oregon State) - 7.40
5. Two with 7.47 (Haeg, Thuney)

20-Yard Shuttle
1. Jake Brendel (OG, UCLA) - 4.27
2. Jason Spriggs (OT, Indiana) - 4.44
3. Joe Haeg (OT, North Dakota State) - 4.47
4. Isaac Seumalo (C, Oregon State) - 4.52
5. Austin Blythe (C, Iowa) - 4.53
 
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RB Top Performers

40-Yard Dash
1. Keith Marshall (Georgia) - 4.31
2. Tyler Ervin (San Jose State) - 4.41
3. Kenyan Drake (Alabama) - 4.45
4. Daniel Lasco (California) - 4.46
5. Three with 4.47 (Coprich, Elliott, Smallwood)

Bench Press
1a. Andy Janovich (FB, Nebraska) - 30
1b. Dan Vitale (FB, Northwestern) - 30
3. Soma Vainuku (FB, USC) - 26
4. Keith Marshall (Georgia) - 25
5. Two with 24 (Madden, Washington)

Vertical Jump

1. Daniel Lasco (California) - 41.5
2. Tyler Ervin (San Jose State) - 39.0
3. Dan Vitale (FB, Northwestern) - 38.5
4. Kenneth Dixon (Louisiana Tech) - 37.5
5. Derrick Henry (Alabama) - 37.0

Broad Jump

1. Daniel Lasco (California) - 135.0
2a. Tyler Ervin (San Jose State) - 130.0
2b. Derrick Henry (Alabama) - 130.0
4. Paul Perkins (UCLA) - 124.0
5. Two with 123.0 (Drake, Vitale)

3-Cone Drill
1. Wendell Smallwood (West Virginia) - 6.83
2. Shad Thornton (NC State) - 6.85
3. Kenneth Dixon (Louisiana Tech) - 6.97
4. Peyton Barber (Auburn) - 7.00
5. DeAndre Washington (Texas Tech) - 7.03

20-Yard Shuttle
1. Dan Vitale (FB, Northwestern) - 4.12
2. DeAndre Washington (Texas Tech) - 4.20
3a. Peyton Barber (Auburn) - 4.21
3b. Kenyan Drake (Alabama) - 4.21
3c. Shad Thornton (NC State) - 4.21

60-Yard Shuttle
1. Wendell Smallwood (West Virginia) - 11.14
2. Daniel Lasco (California) - 11.31
3. Dan Vitale (FB, Northwestern) - 11.36
4a. Kenneth Dixon (Louisiana Tech) - 11.50
4b. Derrick Henry (Alabama) - 11.50
 
Why does the 3 Cone Drill have 4 Cones? :)

Tonight at 7:00PM there is a 3 hour Combine Primetime Show on NFL Network.
 
Watching Goff & Hackenberg in the passing drills just confirms what was shown in actual games. Goff - easy delivery, ball right on the money. Hackenberg - spraying the ball all over the field.
 
Watching Goff & Hackenberg in the passing drills just confirms what was shown in actual games. Goff - easy delivery, ball right on the money. Hackenberg - spraying the ball all over the field.

Yup ... pancakes predicted he would come out and blow folks away with his arm . He didn't throw the ball well and Kurt Warner alluded to he was trying to throw to hard .
 
Yup ... pancakes predicted he would come out and blow folks away with his arm . He didn't throw the ball well and Kurt Warner alluded to he was trying to throw to hard .
Pancakes is probably parroting what O'Brien is telling him. Which is scary. Passing is a "feel thing" as much as anything. Watching Hackenberg, it seems like he doesn't have the "feel". He's a paint-by-numbers QB. He'll look better with better coaching. But, he's not the real thing.

Goff is the real thing.
 
Pancakes is probably parroting what O'Brien is telling him. Which is scary. Passing is a "feel thing" as much as anything. Watching Hackenberg, it seems like he doesn't have the "feel". He's a paint-by-numbers QB. He'll look better with better coaching. But, he's not the real thing.

Goff is the real thing.

I would rather take a chance on Driskell or Brissett out of that group .
 
Goff is so clean. I can't believe that a lot of people are missing it. I know a lot of people do like him and he is rated high but I still think he's vastly underrated. I'm not one for hyperbole and I've got Goff as the third best QB to come out in the draft in about two decades behind Peyton and Luck.

I would trade an entire draft to walk away with just him. That's how sure I am about him.
 
Goff is so clean. I can't believe that a lot of people are missing it. I know a lot of people do like him and he is rated high but I still think he's vastly underrated. I'm not one for hyperbole and I've got Goff as the third best QB to come out in the draft in about two decades behind Peyton and Luck.

I would trade an entire draft to walk away with just him. That's how sure I am about him.

This is my belief - Goff is a difference maker.
 
I would trade an entire draft to walk away with just him. That's how sure I am about him.
I would be OK with that. One guy (especially a QB) can make a draft.

The sad thing is, the Texans probably don't have the ammo to move that far up. And there are too many QB hungry teams in front of them that do. I'm looking for diamonds in the rough. So far, I haven't seen one.
 
I would be OK with that. One guy (especially a QB) can make a draft.

The sad thing is, the Texans probably don't have the ammo to move that far up. And there are too many QB hungry teams in front of them that do. I'm looking for diamonds in the rough. So far, I haven't seen one.

What about Cook ?
 
I would be OK with that. One guy (especially a QB) can make a draft.

The sad thing is, the Texans probably don't have the ammo to move that far up. And there are too many QB hungry teams in front of them that do. I'm looking for diamonds in the rough. So far, I haven't seen one.
With as many QB needy teams, I wonder why they only project two, maybe three, being taken in the first round?
 
What about Cook ?
I wanted Cook to come out as a junior and have the Texans draft him. I don't think he took that next step this season. Maybe he doesn't have that in him? Maybe it's a case of seeing too much of a guy? I think Cook can play in the NFL. I don't know if he can star in the NFL.
 
Josh Doctson and Tyler Boyd looked the best on the field in WR group 1. Both those guys are smooth and catch everything in their vicinity.

Goff and Cook looked the best in QB group 1. Both are very polished. Ball comes out quick and clean. Goff especially. His ball is beautiful. Perfect touch and he varies his touch depending on the route. You could see with Hackenberg that he really struggled to adjust his touch when they changed routes. Not an issue with Goff.
 
With as many QB needy teams, I wonder why they only project two, maybe three, being taken in the first round?

Because they aren't looking at the dynamics. Draftniks get all QB crazy. Dallas loves Romo or at least Jerry does and that's what counts. Jeff Fisher barely cares beyond do what I say - but they ignore that. The Saints also are on a last ditch Brees effort.

Draftniks always project QBs going way faster than they do.
 
I wanted Cook to come out as a junior and have the Texans draft him. I don't think he took that next step this season. Maybe he doesn't have that in him? Maybe it's a case of seeing too much of a guy? I think Cook can play in the NFL. I don't know if he can star in the NFL.

I see Cook as a Cutler/Dalton type QB. Good enough to help a team, not good enough to carry one.

Upgrade on Hoyer? Absolutely. "Franchise QB"? I don't think so.
 
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