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This is “Fashion Week” week in New York City with all the top models and fashion designers in town to strut their stuff on the runway. The NFL has a catwalk of their own – it’s called the Scouting Combine, where future pros are asked to put their best foot forward – sometimes wearing far less than your typical runway model.
It’s has become fashionable to downplay the importance of the NFL Scouting Combine. How often do players actually run 40 yards in a straight line? Don’t they play in helmets and pads on Sundays? Are the players performing at their real playing weights? These are legitimate questions. Today’s future draftee is as prepared as ever to excel at workout drills, preparing more like an Olympian than a football player.
At this time of year it’s trendy to bust out the names of Mike Mamula, Adam Archuleta, Vernon Davis and even Vernon Gholston – even though he is just one-year removed from his workout warrior performance and a productive career at Ohio St. (14 sacks as a junior).
By any criteria one might use to judge, scout and Grade A prospects will have their share of failure, but the Combine shouldn’t be completely dismissed – one only needs to take a look at some of last year’s performers.
Coming out of East Carolina, Chris Johnson ran a 4.24 40, which was nearly a full tenth of second faster than Darren McFadden’s 4.33 time. McFadden was the consensus No. 1 running back and that didn't change in Indianapolis, but Johnson did make a statement and probably made himself a first round pick by running 40 yards in a straight line without pads. Unlike McFadden, who was a two-time SEC Offensive Player of the Year and ran for over 1,000 all three seasons as a Razorback, Johnson was a one-year wonder as a collegian. But wouldn’t you know it - it was the former Pirate and not the Raider who starred as an NFL rookie – Johnson out-rushed D-Mac 1,221 yards to 499.
Wide receiver Eddie Royal out of Virginia Tech not only wowed the scouts with his 40-time (4.39), but showed his well-rounded athletic ability with a 36” vertical leap and 24 bench reps. Some wondered what this meant. After all, Royal’s career high in receptions was 33 and he never topped four touchdown receptions or reached even 500 yards. Malcolm Kelly, Mario Manningham, Devin Thomas, Early Doucet, James Hardy, Andre Caldwell, Earl Bennett and Jordy Nelson all had 50-reception seasons and topped 750 yards at least one, if not two or three times. Yet, as an NFL rookie, the Denver Bronco (91 receptions for 980 yards) bettered what the aforementioned stable of receivers did combined.
College production wasn’t an issue for former Purdue tight end Dustin Keller – he caught 56 passes for 771 yards as a junior and 68 for 881 yards as a senior. Among the top tight end prospects, he was topped only by Martin Rucker in receptions and equaled by Fred Davis in yardage in 2008. Yet heading into Indianapolis, not many had Keller as the top tight end. Why not? Apparently he was not considered athletic enough. After posting the top 40-time, vertical jump, broad jump and 20-yard shuttle among the tight ends, no one was questioning his...ahem...athleticism. When April rolled around, Keller was indeed the first tight end off the board at No. 31 to the New York Jets and the former Boilermaker did not disappoint. Keller caught 48 passes for 535 yards as a rookie, third on the team in both categories.
Other players who made impressions with their workout numbers and proved to be more than workout warriors include linebackers Gary Guyton and Wesley Woodyard, as well as cornerback Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie. Rodgers-Cromartie went from a relatively unknown commodity to a first rounder/Super Bowl starter, while Guyton and Woodyard went undrafted despite their strong showing in Indianapolis only to turn in solid rookie seasons. Guyton recorded 34 tackles in a backup role and Woodyard (55 tackles, 5 TFLs) came on strong in the second half of the season with three 10-tackle games.
Yes, one can put too much stock into workout numbers and measurables, but they shouldn’t be dismissed outright. They can often confirm productivity, prove someone belongs with the big boys ,or shine the light on talent who, for whatever reason, hadn’t quite put up the numbers on the field for someone with their athletic ability. So even though the faces may not be as pretty in Indy as they are in the Big Apple, the NFL’s show is worth the watch.
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