GREEN BAY—All of the 40s have been run and the verdict is in on this past weekend’s scouting combine. Here’s draft guru Tony Pauline’s report of the winners and losers for packers.com.
Quarterbacks—Geno Smith of West Virginia and Tyler Bray of Tennessee (pictured) are the winners. A lot of concerns were put to rest because Smith was accurate and made the NFL throws. Any team in the top 10 thinking of taking him is probably resting easier based on his combine workout. Bray has a big arm. He was accurate. The combine was built for him and he took advantage of the situation. Tyler Wilson of Arkansas was all over the place with his passes.
Running back—The two winners are Jonathan Franklin of UCLA and Kerwynn Williams of Utah State. They both ran faster than expected and showed a lot of quickness and acceleration in drills. Both caught the ball very well. Stepfan Taylor of Stanford was horribly slow and practiced slow in drills.
Wide receivers—The big winner is Ryan Swope of Texas A&M. He ran much faster than people thought. He ran in the 4.3s; people thought he was a 4.5 guy. He showed top pass-catching skills, which everyone knew he had. He’ll probably go in top 60 picks of the draft. Justin Hunter of Tennessee did well in testing but it was a different story in pass-catching drills. He showed no quickness or route-running ability, because he’s a long strider, and passes bounced off his hands.
Tight ends—The winner is Tyler Eifert of Notre Dame. He tested very well. Faster than many people expected and caught everything thrown his way. Levine Toilolo of Stanford didn’t look athletic. He ran poorly, struggled running routes and didn’t catch the ball well.
Offensive linemen—Lane Johnson of Oklahoma is the biggest winner. He was incredibly athletic and he also looked very good in position drills. Terron Armstead of Arkansas Pine Bluff also did incredibly well. He set the combine 40 record for offensive linemen and was terrific in drills. He had a workout for the ages. Luke Joeckel of Texas A&M looked ordinary. I don’t think he’s a clear-cut choice to be the first pick of the draft anymore, even though I have him there.
Defensive linemen—Ziggy Ansah of BYU really helped himself. He looked terrific in drills. Everyone knew he would test well. Joe Kruger of Utah ran poorly and looked unathletic, but his brother Paul also tested poorly and he’s been successful in the NFL.
Linebackers—The big winners are Barkevious Mingo of LSU and Dion Jordan of Oregon. They tested off the charts, running in the 4.5s, and they looked great in position drills. Jordan has got a torn labrum and he may not be ready for a while. People thought he should’ve had it done right away. Damontre Moore of Texas A&M ran in the 4.9s. He pulled up lame and never attempted another 40 and didn’t participate in drills.
Defensive backs—Dee Milliner cemented himself as a top 10 pick. He competed when he didn’t have to. He ran exceptionally well, looked athletic. All of that bodes well for him. Dwayne Gratz of UConn ran faster than expected, tested better than expected and looked good in position drills. Johnthan Banks of Mississippi State ran 4.6s. Some people were talking about him as a first-round pick but at that speed there’s no chance he goes in the top 40.
