It was the day everyone waited for and there were no disappointments, but quite a few surprises. The quarterbacks, wide receivers and running backs hit the field of Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis to perform their drills in front of scouts, team officials and a live TV audience.
The day opened with the quarterbacks running the 40-yard dash, with Marcus Mariota showing the wheels that helped him rush for 770 yards and 15 touchdowns for Oregon last season with the fastest time set down by any QB, 4.52. Florida State quarterback Jameis Winston put down a respectable 4.97. UCLA’s Brett Hundley ran a 4.63 and Baylor’s Bryce Petty had a 4.87.
Auburn’s Nick Marshall, who is also working out at the combine as a defensive back had the second fastest time with a 4.54. Alabama’s Blake Sims was third at 4.57.
When came time to throw, all the top quarterbacks performed as expected, with Mariota, Hundley and Winston especially looking fluid and making the throws look easy in the drills. If anyone did raise his stock, it’s Brandon Bridge out of Alcorn State. Bridge missed a few of his deep throws but showed an NFL arm and quick release should have no trouble ended up in a camp and on a team’s practice squad. Bridge, nicknamed “Air Canada” because he’s from Mississauga, Ontario, threw for 1,927 yards and 15 touchdowns for South Alabama last year and rushed for 297 yards and four scores.
Wide receivers show up big
Chris Johnson’s combine record of 4.24 in the 40-yard dash didn’t fall Saturday, but it UAB wide receiver J.J. Nelson got in striking distance of it, setting down a 4.28, immediately putting him on NFL teams’ radar. Nelson came into a the combine projecting as an undrafted free agent at best, but that 40-time could make a team spend a draft pick late.
Nelson caught 35 passes for 655 yards, averaging 18.7 yards per catch, and four touchdowns last season for the Blazers in what turned out to be the final year of football at the university.
It was expected that Miami’s Phillip Dorsett would put down a blistering 40 and he performed as advertised with a 4.33.
The biggest mover of the day was Georgia’s Chris Conley who couldn’t have written a better story for himself at the combine. Conley tied with West Virginia’s Kevin White for the third-fastest 40-time with a 4.35, finished fourth in the bench press with 18 reps and dominated the high jump and the broad jump, getting 45 inches off the ground and leaping 139 inches in the broad jump, better than the next best guy by a good seven inches.
Conley, at 6-foot-2, 213 pounds, projected as a seventh rounder or even undrafted free agent before Saturday and there seems to be no way that’s happening now. This kid made himself some money. Conley caught 36 passes for 657 yards, averaging 18.3 yards per catch, and eight touchdowns for the Bulldogs in 2014.
Amari Cooper, considered the top prospect in the draft, ran a smooth 4.42 40 and displayed quick moves and soft hands in all the passing drills. Michigan’s Devin Funchess was probably as surprised as the rest of us by not taking first in the high jump, instead finishing eighth with 38.5 inches. That doesn’t speak ill of Funchess, but more for the depth of the wide receiver position in this year’s draft. Funchess also had a somewhat disappointing 40 with a 4.70, but likely projects as a hybrid tight end and redzone threat in the pros so it shouldn’t really hurt him.
Oklahoma wideout Dorial Beckham-Green looked a little stiff in his routes on the day, but put down a 4.49 forty time. Sammy Coates out of Auburn dropped a few passes in the gauntlet drill, but still had a solid day and his 4.43 40-yard dash certainly didn’t hurt.
USC wide receiver Nelson Aghalor’s day ended early with a dislocated finger he suffered diving for a pass. Aghalor was having a strong day at the time after running a 4.42 in the 40-yard dash.
Running backs take the stage
Second-ranked running back Todd Gurley had to do a little damage control Saturday after rumors that he was refusing to let some teams inspect his injured knee. Gurley’s doctor, James Andrews, addressed that rumor Saturday and delivered some good news to teams with Gurley on their draft boards.
“I heard some fuss that Gurley wouldn’t let teams examine him and that’s just totally misleading,” Andrews said. “The team physicians I have spoken with who are there, and I have spoken to a bunch of them, were all happy about what they saw. I mean, they’re smart enough to know you can’t have 32 teams pulling and tugging on a knee just three and a half months removed from surgery. But the doctors I spoke with said he looked great and I’d say he’s probably six weeks ahead with his recovery.”
For tailbacks, the best 40 time of the day belonged to Michigan State’s Jeremy Langford and his 4.42. Langford had two straight monster seasons for the Spartans, crossing 1,400 yards both years and scoring 18 TDs in 2013 and 22 TDs in 2014. Langford, at 6-foot-0 and 208 pounds, projected as a third or fourth rounder before the combine and is the No. 11-ranked running back.
Top-ranked Melvin Gordon had a 4.52 40-yard dash, good enough for fifth best. Nebraska’s Amir Abdullah ran a 4.61.
