For quite a while on Sunday afternoon, much of the talk was about Arkansas’ Darren McFadden and his apparent combine-best 4.27 40 time that he posted.
However, when the official numbers came out, McFadden was knocked off of the top by East Carolina’s Chris Johnson. Johnson’s best time on Sunday had been an unofficial 4.29, which put him just behind D-MC, but when the official times came out, Johnson bested McFadden, whose 4.27 became a 4.33 – still plenty fast, and good enough for second.
Johnson’s time was not only the best of the day, but it also tied for the best time ever run at the combine in Indianapolis, matching the 4.24 that Eastern Kentucky receiver Rondel Melendez in 1999. It, however, didn’t come close to reaching Bo Jackson’s 4.12 in 1986 at the Louisiana Superdome.
Still, that flashy 40 may very well push him into the first round, with the Cowboys looking for a speed back. Yes, Jerry Jones is madly in love with McFadden and wants him quite badly, it appears, and a trade up to get him could be a great move, but it’d be a heck of a lot safer (and smarter) to pick someone like Johnson or Felix Jones with one pick, address one of their needs (secondary) with their other first-round pick, and hold on to Marion Barber III – unless Miami REALLY, REALLY sweetens the pot on the other end.
The other two running backs to post official sub 4.4 times were Houston’s Anthony Alridge and Texas’ Jamaal Charles, who both clocked in at 4.36.
While McFadden’s status as the top running back off of the board looks pretty secure, the battle to be the #2 back taken behind him rages on between Illinois’ Rashard Mendenhall and Oregon’s Jonathan Stewart, who both had excellent days.
Both backs are big, physical backs (Mendenhall at 5’11, 225, Stewart at 5’10, 235), but neither is short on speed and athleticism.
Mendenhall: 4.45 40, 26 bench press reps, 33.5 inch vertical, 4.18 20-yard shuttle (1st among backs)
Stewart: 4.48 40, 28 bench press reps (3rd among backs), 36.5 inch vertical (2nd), 10’8” broad jump
Which one will be taken first? Well, I have Stewart (#18 to the Texans) going ahead of Mendenhall (#25 to the Seahawks) in my latest mock draft on FFToolbox, but no matter which one goes before the other, the team that gets the other certainly won’t be disappointed.
Rating the Receivers
Unsurprisingly, Cal’s DeSean Jackson was the fastest receiver on the field today, as he posted a best time of 4.35 seconds in the 40.
Five other receivers ran 4.4s or better: Andre Caldwell (Florida), Will Franklin (Missouri), Dexter Jackson (Appalachian St.) – all with 4.37s, Virginia Tech’s Eddie Royal (4.39), and Michigan St.’s Devin Thomas, who ran a 4.4.
One guy notably absent from this list is Michigan’s Mario Manningham, who may have seen his stock take a hit after posting some slower than expected times in the 40 (low 4.5 range). Will that drop him out of the first round, or will his production over the last few seasons override that one blemish?
Royal had a good overall day, adding to his great 40 by posting the best number of bench press reps among the receivers (24), a 36 inch vertical, and a broad jump of 10’4”. Royal bumped his stock up with a good showing at the Senior Bowl, and his impressive combine will improve it even further, to solid third-round status.
Franklin also no doubt improved his stock as well, as he followed up the impressive 40 with a 34.5 inch vertical. With the potential he has to be a big-play receiver on the next level, Franklin could be taken as high as late on the first day.
Tracking the Top QBs
It was a mixed day for the top signal-callers on the board.
Boston College’s Matt Ryan, who chose not to work out in favor of waiting until his pro day, ran only in the 4.9s in the 40.
Louisville’s Brian Brohm isn’t out of the running to be the #1 guy, even though some people think this one is a done deal already. Brohm showed his overall athleticism by having one of the best days among the QBs in the non-throwing drills: 4.83 40 (7th), 30 inch vertical (4th), 9’7” broad jump (1st), and 7.13 3-cone drill (4th). Best of all, Brohm threw the ball very well also, so he certainly didn’t do anything to hurt his stock, even if he can’t dislodge Ryan at the top.
Michigan’s Chad Henne and Delaware’s Joe Flacco are still in the running to be among the first three QBs taken (and maybe even in the running to be the #2 guy), and both impressed as well, both in throwing and non-throwing drills.
Hawaii’s Colt Brennan really needed to have a solid combine to push his stock back up after struggling mightily at the Senior Bowl. Brennan got things off on the right foot by weighing in at 207 pounds, after a stomach virus knocked him down to 185 for the Senior Bowl. Brennan threw the ball well on Sunday, and even though that may not put him back in the first few rounds, he should at least be a middle-rounder.
The notable absence among the quarterbacks was Kentucky’s Andre’ Woodson, who pulled out of the workouts altogether and is going to wait until his pro day to show his stuff, citing a hamstring issue as his reason for pulling out. Well, hopefully that hamstring issue is all better by March 4, because he’s fighting an uphill battle to be in that top three now, especially with how Henne and Flacco have both helped themselves greatly in the last few weeks.
Gholston Ties Bench Press Mark
Michigan’s Jake Long set the standard in the bench press on Friday when he pumped 225 an impressive 37 times.
Today, the guy who beat him for one of only two sacks in his entire college career equaled him, as Ohio St.’s Vernon Gholston (our #2 rated DE) posted 37 reps.
I guess Ohio St. and Michigan can’t get away from each other, even if it’s on the field, eh?
We’ll be updating our prospect rankings in the next few days to reflect all the goings-on at the combine, so be on the lookout. And, in case you’re wondering about some of the sleepers in the draft, we’ll be taking a look at some of those guys as well.
If you’d like to see how all of the prospects ran in the 40, check out the numbers here.
