It seems to still be a little early for an NFL Draft Preview so I'm just going to talk about the combine for a little bit.I've never been a huge fan of the combine. I always second guess what it really tells us. I've always felt like the combine can be manipulated. Players know the drills and there are proven ways to do really well in them. Obviously you have to be a great athlete to do well, but there's always been athletes who do really well in the combine who don't end up being good players at all (think of someone like Akili Smith). However there's also been a lot of great athletes to score well at the combine who end up being great players. Regardless of it all, it's fun to see what some of the best athletes in football's future can do, so let's check it out.In my opinion this draft'
ASU Players - Height, Weight, 40-Yard Dash Times, Draft Prediction
Josh Barrett - 6′2″, 225 lbs, 4.35 speed, #9 Safety, Late First Day/Early Second Day
Mike Pollack - 6′3″, 299 lbs, 5.05 speed, #1 Center (11th OL), Mid to Late First Day
Ryan Torain - 6′0″, 213 lbs, 4.64 speed, #23 RB, Late Second Day
Small School NFL Draft Prospects at the 2007 NFL Combine:Laurent Robinson, Wide Receiver, Illinois State2007 NFL DraftAfter watching the NFL combine and going over all the numbers, I can safely say that the small school prospects held up very well against the big boys, posting some of the best numbers at their respective position in the entire combine. Especially the tight ends, where as many as five could be at least role players in the NFL next year. Since Tight End is the top small school position this year; that is where I will start.Kevin Boss from Western Oregon jumped to the front of the tight end class with a scintillating combine performance. Boss weighed in at 6’ 6” 252 pounds and ran a 4.78 second forty yard dash, which in itself isn’t great, but if you look closer at his agility scores, he was awesome indeed. Boss had the top 3-cone time of 6.96 seconds, a 4.41 second 20 yard shuttle run, a 11.81 second 60 yard shuttle run, and a 9’ 8” broad jump. Michael Allan fr
The Defensive linemen and Ends finished their workouts on Monday at the 2007 NFL Combine and the results are just now coming in. Here is an early look at which players hepled or hurt their draft stock.Helped:Talk about a workout warrior, Brian Robinson from Texas came to the combine in great shape. Only 6' 3" 259 pounds, but he has huge thighs and is very explosive. He will probably be converted to outside linebacker in the NFL, but he put up some great numbers at the 2007 NFL Scouting Combine. He ran a 4.67 forty yard dash, 6.89 second 3-cone drill, 4.26 second 20 yard shuttle time and an amazing 40.50 inch vertical jump.Adam Carriker from Nebraska also put on quite a show, at 6' 6" 296 pounds, he had an excellent 4.87 second 40 yard dash, 7.06 second 3-cone drill, 33.5 vertical jump, but what was really amazing was his 4.18 second 20 yard shuttle run time. 300 pounders just don't move that fast.Gaines Adams from Clemson was the other top star, he blazed a 4.69 second 40 yard dash
WR Anthony Gonzalez2007-nfl-draftI try to take in the total player concept, on the field performance (production), level of competition, speed, size, quickness, toughness, smarts and athletic ability, but one measurable that I look closely at every year at the NFL Combine is the 3-cone drill. The 3-cone drill measuers an athletes quickness and change of direction better than the 40 yard dash in my opinion, and over the years the college prospects that had the top 3-cone times tend to be better NFL players. Here is a brief look at some of the top performances in the 3-cone drill at the 2007 NFL Combine.1. WR Anthony Gonzalez, Ohio State, 6' 0" 193 lbs: 6.54 seconds in the 3-cone.2. WR Steve Smith, USC, 5' 11" 197 lbs: 6.68 seconds in the 3-cone.3. RB Garrett Wolfe, Northern Illinois, 5' 7" 175 lbs: 6.69 seconds in the 3-cone.4. TE Kevin Boss, Western Oregon, 6' 6" 260 lbs: 6.96 seconds in the 3-cone.5. OT Adam Koets, Oregon State, 6' 6" 294 lbs: 7.44 seconds in the 3-cone.
The names are slowly trickling in and three more Small School Prospects for the 2007 NFL Draft have been identified. Approximately only twenty or so Small School Prospects are invited annually to attend the 2007 NFL Combine. Only the best of the best from the Small School world are fortunate enough to attend the combine, and I have three more names for you:1. RB Eldra Buckley from 1-AA Tennessee-ChatanoogaBuckley was the leading rusher in the SoCon this season and an All-Conference selection the last two years. This stud running back from Charleston, Miss. led the league with 109.5 rushing yards per game. His yardage for the last two years combined looks pretty impressive. He played in 23 games, rushed 432 times for 2,430 yards and 18 TDs. He set the school's single-season record in 2005 with 1,233 rushing yards and is the only UTC player to run for over 1,000 yards in a season twice. He could have even amassed more yards, but in the final game of the year at Wofford he only rushed t
Another Small School Prospect will be scrutinzed by NFL Scouts. Missouri Southern's Allen Barbre will be given an opportunity to "play with the big boys" at the 2007 Hula Bowl and the 2007 NFL Combine. The Hula Bowl is an all-star game held in Honolulu, Hawaii on January 14 and the NFL Combine will be on February 22 in Indianapolis.Barbre was named to the first team of the D2football.com All-American Team, the Associated Press and Coaches All-American teams, was a Daktronics All-Southwest Region first team member and was the lone offensive player this year to be a unanimous All-MIAA selection. He was a preseason D2football.com and Don Hansen's Football Gazette first team All-American selection.The athletic 6 foot 4, 295-pound offensive lineman should fare quite well, and with a strong performance could here his name heard sometime on the second day of the 2007 NFL Draft.See article here
