Upgrade Your Fandom

Join the Ultimate DNVR Sports Community!

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

Andre Simone Avatar
March 3, 2018

The NFL Combine workouts officially got underway on Friday and there are lots of notable performances to talk about.

With several standouts and a few bummer performances, here are the biggest winners and losers of the day.

Winners

Saquon Barkley, RB, Penn State

Barkley is beyond a freak, and he proved it in Indianapolis. Seriously, if he wasn’t a star running back, at 6-foot and 233 pounds, he could play linebacker or be a phenomenal safety. He was just born to be a star football player.

The Penn State stud ran a 4.4 flat, the second-best 40-yard dash time of any running back, which at that weight is out of this world. He also jumped a 40-inch vertical which is better than what some of the NBA’s elite dunkers—including Blake Griffin—did at the NBA Combine. As if that wasn’t enough, Barkley benched 225 pounds 29 times, which—again—shouldn’t be humanly possible.

In all areas, he was beyond impressive, and now the potential of him slipping to the Denver Broncos at No. 5 seems that much more unlikely.

Kolton Miller, OT, UCLA

Miller was a huge winner on the day, putting up a historical broad jump. He added a stellar sub-five-second 40-yard dash and the third best three-cone drill of all the offensive lineman in Indianapolis.

Showing elite explosiveness and agility at 6-foot-9 and 310 pounds, Miller could’ve easily moved into first-round consideration.

Brian O’Neil, OT, Pittsburgh

O’Neil was one of the losers from our time down at the Senior Bowl, but in Indy, he showed why he’s got everyone so excited about his athletic skills. His jumps weren’t historically great like Miller’s, but his 4.82 40 added to the best three-cone of any lineman are certainly eye-popping.

O’Neil’s a work in progress, but he too should’ve made himself lots of money today.

Will Hernandez, OG, UTEP

A bit of a favorite here at BSN, who we featured back in our first big board update, Hernandez isn’t necessarily known for his athleticism. He started things off yesterday with a special showing on the bench press, putting up 37 repetitions, but was really surprisingly athletic in his tests, performing well in just about everything.

In a supremely deep interior offensive line class, Hernandez has separated himself from the rest, and now a top-20 pick doesn’t seem out of reach.

Nick Chubb, RB, Georgia

Chubb has injury questions, but he confirmed the athleticism that allowed him to burst onto the scene a few seasons ago at Georgia. At almost 230 pounds, his bench press was out of this world, his jumps were spectacular and he ran a 4.52 40.

All special numbers. It was nice to see him help himself.

Nyheim Hines, RB, North Carolina State

Hines wasn’t one of the big-name speed backs we had an eye on coming into this, but he certainly stood out among the rest in Indianapolis, running the only sub 4.4 40 of the day. The NC State playmaker also had some nice jumps and is a name to know in a deep running back class.

Losers

Orlando Brown, OT, Oklahoma

This is the first of four winners and losers columns we’ll be writing for the combine, but no one might’ve or will hurt their stock more than Brown.

The big Sooners left tackle has length for days and great pedigree, but he just was a complete dud in drills and workouts. His athletic tests were amongst the worst of the entire class in just about every single category and he astonishingly only had 14 bench reps at 360 pounds. Even with his monstrous 35-inch arms, he should be able to pump out more reps than that and appear more athletic than what he showed on tape.

This should really affect his stock as his numbers across the board are concerning.

Connor Williams, OT, Texas

Williams looked good in drills and did well in athletic tests, confirming the skills he’s shown on tape as one of the few legitimate left tackle prospects in this class. The one big question with Williams was his length and with only 33-inch arms he didn’t do himself any favors.

Some teams will inevitably see him as more of a guard prospect now, and he could drop significantly from being a top-15 contender to outside the first round.

Jamarco Jones, OT, Ohio State

Jones has the length you covet in a tackle and really intriguing athletic upside on tape, but he certainly didn’t show that at the combine. Jones needed a good week to consolidate his stock and move into being a legitimate top-50 pick. Instead, he really hurt himself, showing below-average athleticism in just about all areas.

All of the sudden, the Broncos options at tackle have become much more complicated and interesting, as some of the top performers on tape were the biggest disappointments in Indianapolis, while some seriously inconsistent collegiate blockers showed up in a big way.

Injury updates

Injuries affected several top prospects who could’ve had big showings, including a standout from the bench press and measurements, Quenton Nelson, who tweaked a hamstring while warming up for his 40-yard dash and didn’t run. The dash would’ve been his biggest drill in showing he had the athletic skills to play tackle or be a top-five pick.

Here are others from today who weren’t able to participate due to injuries they suffered during or right before the combine.

Mike McGlinchey, OT, Notre Dame – Hamstring

Billy Price, OC/G, Ohio State – Torn pectoral

Ronald Jones II, RB, USC – Hamstring

Isaiah Wynn, OG, Georgia – Torn labrum

Scroll to next article

Don't like ads?
Don't like ads?
Don't like ads?