Combine thread

Originally posted by AllTimeGreat:
That's the thing. He barely plays because he's always injured.

I want his teammate Dennis Johnson who got snubbed by the Combine.

Originally posted by m_brockalexander:
His teammate Dennis Johnson, a Phoenix49er man crush, played better than Davis this year and didn't even get a Combine invite. Johnson also returns kicks. Either one would fit very well in the Niners backfield IMO. Gore won't be around forever and the Niners could use a bigger back to go along with Hunter and LMJ in the future.

Another guy who fits this profile is Christine Michael from Texas A&M.

Recognize b#$hes!


I would take either one happily but I really like Dennis Johnson a lot, I think he'll surprise with his measurables and he's going to be ever more under the radar now after having been snubbed by the Combine. Following these results, I think Davis is a 4th rounder right about now and Johnson will be around in the late 5th to late 6th round.

I'm really impressed by RB J.Franklin. Every drill he has done he has done well. Living in Canada, I haven't seen him play this year. Who can break down his game for me?

Jason McIntyre ‏@TheBigLead

DAMN. NFL team asked Tyler Eifert if he had a girlfriend...and if she was real. LOL. nice job @MikeSilver
http://sports.yahoo.com/news/nfl--nfl-s-scrutiny-of-manti-te-o-and-his-imaginary-relationship-won-t-end-at-combine-231421891.html#more-id (very end)

Originally posted by Travisty13:

Originally posted by AllTimeGreat:
Zac Stacy! Now that's an underrated RB. Super productive on a bad team in the SEC, solid size and speed. What's the big knock on him?

I do like Stacy. He seems like a joke of all trades type back. He's just not elite at one thing. Like a Stepfan Taylor type back.

Also Vandy has gone to back to back bowls (and was 9-4 this year and finished ranked). I wouldn't call them a bad team. James Franklin is heck of a coach and will keep them improving.

You're right about Vandy. But I know Stacy was a huge part of their success. He's set a ton of Vandy team records. I guess I just have a thing for those types of well rounded RB's that don't do anything spectacularly and aren't flashy but do everything above average. Franklin, Taylor, and Stacy are guys I really like. I liked what I saw from Bernard too but he's going to be too high a pick for him to make sense for us.

Tom Rathman just finishing off tthe RB group with a nice pep talk. Love it!

Saw a couple drills from Stepfan Taylor - STANFORD. Looks very polished.

Originally posted by LifelongNiner:

Originally posted by AllTimeGreat:
But I mean so much depends on how you get off the "blocks." A stance which you're never going to be in again on an NFL field.

I mean a stud like Stefan Taylor is definitely not slow but compared to some of the others he looks like a slug. Yet guys with minimal production like Davis and Mccaleb are now the big names. I just think game film is way more important than the combine and the 40 time should just be a tiny part of the entire package.

I stated earlier I'm not a big guy on the 40. It's just another piece of information, but nothing to make a big judgement off of. Taylor is a good example. I've seen him break off big runs many times in his career at Stanford and he definitely plays faster than that 4.7-4.8 time he ran.

The number of actual coaches that sit there and time the 40's (and the 10 yard splits, which are almost as important) let's you know how valuable this piece of information is. Speed kills in the NFL, and a fraction of a second can mean the difference between making plays and not making plays...winning games and losing them. It's not the most important measureable by any stretch, but it's pretty important especially for WRs, DBs and RBs.

Originally posted by GhostofFredDean74:
The number of actual coaches that sit there and time the 40's (and the 10 yard splits, which are almost as important) let's you know how valuable this piece of information is. Speed kills in the NFL, and a fraction of a second can mean the difference between making plays and not making plays...winning games and losing them. It's not the most important measureable by any stretch, but it's pretty important especially for WRs, DBs and RBs.

True but you also have a lot of guys that play faster or slower than their timed speeds indicate. Its a nice nugget of information but every single year there are guys who didn't post flashy numbers at the Combine and yet still manage to blow up at the next level. Conversely there's players who have outstanding measurables but fail to make an impact in the NFL. There's a world of difference between running on a flat surface in shorts and running across a football field, wearing pads and a uniform.

Christine Michel is definitely one of the athletic freaks at the Combine

5'10, 220, ran a 4.54 40, had a vertical of 43 inch vertical and put up 27 on the bench press. His vertical by far was the highest of any RB, with Rex Burkhead coming in second at 39 inches. It was the highest of anyone thus far, beating out all the WR's too.

Originally posted by Phoenix49ers:

Originally posted by GhostofFredDean74:
The number of actual coaches that sit there and time the 40's (and the 10 yard splits, which are almost as important) let's you know how valuable this piece of information is. Speed kills in the NFL, and a fraction of a second can mean the difference between making plays and not making plays...winning games and losing them. It's not the most important measureable by any stretch, but it's pretty important especially for WRs, DBs and RBs.

True but you also have a lot of guys that play faster or slower than their timed speeds indicate. Its a nice nugget of information but every single year there are guys who didn't post flashy numbers at the Combine and yet still manage to blow up at the next level. Conversely there's players who have outstanding measurables but fail to make an impact in the NFL. There's a world of difference between running on a flat surface in shorts and running across a football field, wearing pads and a uniform.

It's part of the overall puzzle of talent evaluation; you definitely don't want to draft a guy purely on his 40 time, especially if the tape and overall production is bad. But you absolutely need to know what kind of top-end speed these guys have, especially when it comes to one-on-one match ups on the outside (WRs/DBs). Does a guy need consistent safety help over the top because he can't match up, or does he have the speed to at least stay with most NFL WRs?

Btw, I definitely agree that there's a difference between track speed and football speed, and that's where the tape comes into play. Marquise Goodwin is slightly faster than Tavon Austin, but he doesn't have nearly the football speed (or play-making ability) that Austin has...which is why Austin will likely be a mid-to-high first rounder and Goodwin might be available in the 3rd.

Matt Scott came in ahead of all the other QB's in the 10 yard split for the 40.

Originally posted by gold49digger:
4.21?!

4.34 when made official. No cigar, but still incredibly fast.

The big uglies on defense have started lifting.

So far, my boy Brandon Williams is tied with Margus Hunt for the lead with 38 reps.

Jessie Williams had 30. Datone Jones had 29.

Matt Barrows ‏@mattbarrows

Wow. Top of draft grows even murkier. RT @mortreport: Utah DT Star Lotulelei will not work out after echocardiogram detected heart condition