NFL Combine Risers and Sliders
 

NFL Combine Risers and Sliders
Fast 40 times help draft prospects improve their stock
Posted: Sunday February 25, 2007 6:59PM; Updated: Monday February 26, 2007 12:17AM

By Tony Pauline, Special to SI.com

With the 2007 edition of the NFL Combine now half over, it's time to take stock in the winners and losers so far. Many of the earliest draft picks from the offensive side of the ball have finished their workouts for scouts, while a few chose not to participate. Here are the early results.

Risers
Calvin Johnson/WR/Georgia Tech: Johnson opted to run the 40-yard dash but not participate in the pass-catching workout. Not a big deal since he is already acknowledged as the best receiver in the draft. Yet his speed on Sunday amazed many as Johnson initially ran a swift 4.45, then clocked an even faster time of 4.38. He has secured his spot as the top prospect in this draft and made the Oakland Raiders decision a little more difficult.

Greg Olson/TE/Miami-Fla: Last week we mentioned how Olson had a lot to lose if he didn't perform well. There is no doubting he has silenced the critics. Far and away the best performer in the RCA Dome on Saturday, Olson ran his 40s in just over 4.5 seconds then looked great during the pass-catching session. He has established himself as the premier tight end in this draft and secured a spot in round one.

Chris Henry/RB/Arizona: The junior weighed in at 230 pounds then preceded to run a 4.37 and 4.38 in the 40. Henry practiced as fast as he timed, looking very good in drills. Fluid catching the ball, he also showed the ability to quickly cut back yet lose little momentum. As several scouts said, Henry made a lot of money for himself Sunday.

Anthony Gonzalez/WR/Ohio State: Gonzalez ran well, twice breaking the 4.4-second barrier, then looked spectacular catching the ball. Running crisp routes he displayed soft, natural hands, diving around the field to catch everything in sight. As a result Gonzalez has jumped into the initial 60 picks.

Allen Barbre/OL/Missouri Southern: The small school lineman turned in a very fast pair of 40s, clocking in the 4.8 range, after weighing in at just over 300 pounds. Barbre then displayed that athleticism during the practice session and may have earned himself a spot in day one of the draft.

Sliders
Zach Miller/TE/Arizona: On the heels of Greg Olson's great workout, things could not have gone worse for Miller. After two terribly slow 40s, which timed in 4.78 and 4.86 seconds, Miller was equally as bad during drills. The usually sure-handed tight end dropped a bunch of passes and ran terrible routes.

Tyrone Moss/RB/Miami-Fla: At one time considered a potential first-round pick, Moss has not yet fully recovered from the knee injury which shelved him in '05. Moss was clocked as slow as 4.8 seconds in the 40 by some and showed no quickness or explosion in drills.

Stephon Heyer/T/Maryland: After running terribly slow, Heyer looked sluggish during the session. Heyer struggled in pass protection drills, did not show much quickness and was constantly slipping on the field.

Jarrett Hicks/WR/Texas Tech: Hicks ran poorly in the 40 and was unable to break the 4.65 barrier. He then proceeded to drop several catchable passes during the practice session.

Chase Johnson/T/Wyoming: Johnson turned in a very disappointing performance. The huge lineman looked terrible in pass protection drills and did not attack the practice session. Johnson's laid-back attitude has always concerned scouts.

Notes: Bad weather across the nation has wreaked havoc on the travel plans for many of the players. Three defensive backs missed Sunday morning's weigh-in as a result of not being able to get to Indianapolis. ... After Calvin Johnson, Adrian Peterson and Joe Thomas took part in the workouts, scouts were astonished Brady Quinn decided the leave the combine without throwing in the RCA Dome. This comes on the heals of the phantom injury that forced Quinn to withdraw from the Senior Bowl three days before the event began. Quinn's draft stock has taken a major hit at the combine. There are questions about his decision making on and off the field as well as his leadership skills.

A buddy of mine plays DT at Missouri Southern he told me to keep an eye on Allen Barbre. I guess he was right.

Yeah, dude came out of nowhere.

First day pick, though? I'm always sketchy about first round picks from small schools.

Not surprising to see Anthony Gonzales on that list. Several of us were talking about him during the season - I think he's better than Ginn.

Big difference b/n 1st day pick and 1st round pick.

not to carl .......




:fire:

He didn't necessarily come out of nowhere. The hardcore Division II community would have told you last year that he would get drafted. We knew Jhari Evans and Danielle Manning would be the quick-impact guys that they are. www.d2football.com

Making a first day pick out of himself is exciting, though. Congrats to Allen. Look out for Central Missouri QB Toby Korrodi in the 5th or 6th rounds. He's got a whole lot of talent and football smarts. His numbers were fantastic, and would have been even better had he decent WR targets outside of Delaine Walker (a 6th round draft pick by SF last year).

40 times

RB's:

Lorenzo Booker - 4.45
Ahmad Bradshaw - 4.60
Eldra Buckley - 4.59
Thomas Clayton - 4.65
Alonzo Coleman - 4.52
Jon Cornish - 4.67
Kenneth Darby - 4.64
Chris Henry - 4.33
Kenny Irons - 4.47
Brian Leonard - 4.49
Marshawn Lynch - 4.52
Adrian Peterson - 4.38
Antonio Pittman - 4.44
Gary Russell - 4.84
Kolby Smith - 4.51
Jason Snelling - 4.74
Romance Taylor - 4.52
Dwayne Wright - 4.68
Deshawn Wynn - 4.49

WR's:

Aundrae Allison - 4.39
Dwayne Bowe - 4.51
Steve Breaston- 4.41
David Clowney - 4.36
Craig Davis - 4.46
Yamon Figurs - 4.30
Anthony Gonzalez - 4.44
Johnnie Lee Higgins - 4.48
Jason Hill - 4.32
Calvin Johnson - 4.35
Marquay McDaniel - 4.51
Robert Meachem - 4.36
Ryan Moore - 4.59
Ryne Robinson - 4.51
Steve Smith - 4.44
Chansi Stuckey - 4.60
Jayson Swain - 4.67
Paul Williams - 4.41

TE's:

Michael Allan - 4.67
Kevin Boss - 4.74
Scott Chandler - 4.81
Jonny Harline - 4.87
Clark Harris - 4.85
Zach Miller - 4.84
Joe Newton - 4.89
Greg Olsen - 4.47
Ben Patrick - 4.78
Anthony Pudewell - 5.07
Gijon Robinson - 4.83
Derek Schouman - 4.77

OL

Andy Alleman - 4.96
Allen Barbre - 4.86
Josh Beekman - 5.39
Justin Blalock - 5.23
Levi Brown - 5.39
Doug Datish - 5.18
Chris Denman - 5.20
Tim Duckworth - 5.42
Doug Free - 5.22
Gabe Hall - 4.89
Ryan Kalil - 4.96
James Marten - 4.99
Joe Thomas - 4.96
Tony Ugoh - 4.99

OL Bench Press:

Joe Thomas - 28 reps
Levi Brown - 31 reps
Ryan Kalil - 34 reps
Nathan Bennett - 34 reps
Brandon Frye - 34 reps
Dustin Fry - 34 reps
Manuel Ramirez - 40 reps
Justin Blalock - 40 reps
__________________

That's pretty much the definition of nowhere.

He threw the hardest ball at the combine. 63mph

Brian Leonard - 4.49
Marshawn Lynch - 4.52

I'd wager that with that 40, Leonard will go in the top half of the 2nd.

I've been on the Jason Hill bandwagon, thinking he might make it to the third round (and be a steal there). With that time, though, he probably will be a second rounder now.

Slider: Troy Smith. How do you show up to the combine out of shape?

He really needed to have a good combine to plead his case for him. He's leaving millions on the table because he's too lazy to reach out and grab them. :shake:

Chiefs | Team worked out Korrodi
Thu, 15 Mar 2007 12:06:02 -0700

KFFL has learned the Kansas City Chiefs held a private workout for Central Missouri State QB Toby Korrodi Tuesday, March 13.

Yeah, he's a good guy too had a few classes with him . the guy can really dunk too

Lorenzo Booker will be an excellent role player in the NFL....