Winners and losers from the first day of workouts at the NFL Scouting Combine

We’re back at it again! After plenty of news and hints being dropped from the Denver Broncos brass at the 2019 NFL Scouting Combine, the real fun begins.

Today, running backs, offensive lineman and special teamers worked out on the field with athletic testing and drills in full swing.

Here are the biggest winners and losers from day one of workouts in Indianapolis, with a whole bunch of prospects who should interest the Broncos standing out.

Winners

Garrett Bradbury, OC, NC State

Bradbury isn’t long, he’s suited only for a zone-blocking scheme—which the Broncos will be running under new OC Rich Scangarello—and will only interest some teams, but boy was he impressive.

The Rimington Trophy winner, given to the best center in the country, excelled in everything he did, benching 225 pounds 34 times, running a 4.92 40-yard dash at 306 pounds, and running the best three-cone drill of any lineman at 7.41. Bradbury’s tape is extremely impressive, and now he’s not only confirmed the athleticism he showcased on film and at the Senior Bowl, but also showed he’s strong as anyone.

As if that wasn’t enough, the all-world center looked extremely smooth in drills. He’s not the sexiest pick, but he’s as solid as they come and promises to be a high-end starter for a decade. Anyone drafting in the late first or early second has been put on notice. 

Chris Lindstrom, OG, Boston College

The only guy on the interior who impressed maybe more than Bradbury was Lindstrom, the mauling BC guard who is another Senior-Bowl standout.

Before even getting to Indy, we knew he was physical, a bull who can rock people off their spots in tight spaces, but I’m not sure many saw this type of athleticism coming.

Lindstrom, who has offensive tackle type length with 34 and 1/8 inch arms, ran an outstanding 4.91 40 at 308 pounds, was outstanding on his jumps, and one of the best performers in the three-cone drill.

The guard prospect checked off all of the key boxes—lateral mobility, explosiveness, and strength.

After a showing like this and already impressive tape, Lindstrom could easily be the first guard taken in the draft, with the first-round seeming well within reach. He’s versatile enough to play in any scheme with enough length and athleticism to play tackle if a team is bold enough to try him.

His performance in Indy just made him a boatload of money.

Andre Dillard, LT, Washington State

Smooth. That’s the word that comes to mind about Dillard’s workout and drills. With most of the top tackles not really generating much excitement on the day, the athletic ace in pass protection showed why he’s rated so highly. Most importantly, he has the most coveted skill of all—the ability to be a special left tackle in pass pro.

Dillard looked super clean in drills—at least until he got tired by the last one—and showed ample athleticism to be a stud left tackle, running a 4.96 40 at 315 pounds, putting up the second best three-cone time, and showing plenty of lower-body explosiveness with the best broad jump of all.

Dillard is now the favorite to be the top offensive tackle taken in the draft and might even be off the board before the Broncos’ 10th pick. His one glaring question mark is his ability to run block, an area in which he’s admittedly extremely green due to the air-raid attack he comes from at Washington State.

Erik McCoy, OC, Texas A&M

McCoy is another Senior-Bowl standout and has kept that positive momentum in Indy. First, he showed he has plenty of length for a center with his 33-inch arms, but that was just an appetizer for what was to come in workouts today, where he looked ultra smooth and highly athletic.

It’s rare for a center to be the fastest lineman at The Combine, but that’s exactly what the A&M stalwart did, running a 4.89 40, a freakish time for a big man.

With 29 bench reps, he showed plenty of strength and did a nice job on his vertical jump, too. If you’re looking for a mauler who can explode downhill and knock people off the ball, McCoy is your man.

His three-cone drill—which is key in showing the lateral mobility required in pass protection—was one of the worst on the day, so he’s far from perfect and probably not ideally suited in a zone-blocking scheme, but he does have the size to play at guard as well as center.

McCoy’s gone from being a day-three selection to someone who could go early on day two.

Justice Hill, RB, Oklahoma State

While most of the running backs underwhelmed in the athletic testing portion of the day, Hill shined as the fastest and most-explosive RB of all. His 4.40 40-yard dash, 40-inch vertical, and 130-inch broad jump were all the top marks at the position.

The Big-12 speedster didn’t surprise anyone with those numbers as it confirms his natural talent on tape, but the fact that he was a head above the rest in everything he did will certainly help his stock in a big way.

Miles Sanders, RB, Penn State

Unlike the 198-pound Hill, Sanders packs more of a punch at 211 lbs, so while his numbers might not be nearly as eye-popping, when put in that context he was almost as impressive.

The back who took over for Saquon Barkley in Happy Valley was solid in all areas and showed up in drills, a top-10 performer in everything. 

Miami’s Travis Homer also impressed, while Alabama’s Damien Harris and Kansas State’s Alex Barnes had solid showings for bigger backs. 

Losers

Greg Little, OT, Ole Miss

When your tape is inconsistent, your footwork needs to be reworked, and you’re seen as a first-round hopeful based purely on raw tools, this event is your chance to shine.

For Little, the day didn’t go to plan. The offensive-line prospect looked woefully sloppy in drills, had one of the worst vertical jumps on the day and ran a pretty poor 5.33 40.

Little’s lost significant ground to Dillard, who has a similar profile but much more consistent tape. At this point, it’s legitimate to wonder if Little has been living off the recruiting hype he had a few years back as a five-star prospect.

Who knows how far he could drop at this point, but the first round seems a bit rich. If he dropped to the third round or lower, who knows, he could be a worthwhile developmental prospect to put in Mike Munchak’s hands. He’s still long and has flashed on tape, there’s a chance to fix some of his deficiencies and help him reach his potential.

Jonah Williams, OT, Alabama

Williams has been the consensus top offensive tackle in college football for two seasons now, but the shine is starting to come off as evaluators nitpick his game. His length was a big question mark coming into the week, and he showed adequate size to play tackle; his athleticism was also adequate but nothing special.

If he was any other prospect, he wouldn’t be a loser on the day, but given his pedigree and the potential for him to go in the top-15, an unimpressive showing only adds to the questions regarding his game and his natural fit at tackle.

He’d be a solid pick for Denver in the top 10 but would be far from the most appealing player available. Most of all, his combine showing lowered his ceiling, as his upside doesn’t seem out of this world given his ho-hum raw talent. 

While the guys on the interior impressed, the top tackles coming in—with the exception of Dillard—didn’t live up to expectations.

The RB class

This running back class was already a bit underwhelming coming into Indy, and after what they showed in workouts Friday, the class has lost even more luster.

Georgia’s Elijah Holyfield is strong and has impressive flashes on tape showing he’s more than a power back, but he ran a fullback-like 4.78 in the 40. His jumps were unimpressive, too, showing a lack of explosiveness and long speed, not what you’d like to see from a potential top-10 prospect at his position.

Other highly touted runners like FAU’s Devin Singletary and Iowa State’s David Montgomery confirmed they weren’t the fastest, but didn’t look as quick as they have on tape either.

Outside of Hill and a few other exceptions, the RB class stunk it up in their athletic testing. They looked better in drills, and there will still be some solid starters out of this group—mind you the top RB, Josh Jacobs didn’t test—but the lack of star power was quite clear on Friday.

Stay tuned for more coverage from the workouts in Indy.