Knee-jerk reactions after watching the Combine, and watching it again...and again, and then seaching for some of the measurables and test scores.The sky is falling for the fortyophiles with this RB class, but they did show some good things this weekend...Chris Wells - when I saw him fighting himself on his forty runs, I immediately thought back to his interview when his mood changed as he commented he was doing every drill to "prove he is a competitor". Obviously he came to here to respond to the haters with a dominating workout and it backfired when he put too much pressure on himself. He already had what would be the longest broad jump when he repeatedly tried to get an extra inch on his second jump, and kept falling, hence eliminating the attempt. Clearly that demostrated he was trying too hard and focusing too much on details at the expense of the big picture. Disappointing overall for a guy who expected to be a rare physical specimen, but I'm not concerned. Still a first-round grade.Knowshon Moreno - showed up a bit heavier than expected and may have contributed to his disappointing 40. Outstanding cone and solid shuttle show there's no concern the agility is still there. He's a competitor and I wouldn't be surprised to see him focus on improving that 40 time in time for GA's Pro Day.LeSean McCoy - got sick on the flight to Indy and struggled with it (perhaps too much?) through his media interview where he said he'd only miss the bench. Come Sunday, he opted out of other tests. Weight was low, under two bills and about eight pounds off where you'd like to see him, but we can presumably chalk that up to the flu. Obviously you give him the benefit of the doubt, but after the indecision about picking a college in the first place, then deciding whether or not to leave early, you wonder, particularly with the timing of it, if there isn't some psychosomatic element to his illness. Very small hands don't help ease concern over his ball security problems.Donald Brown - one of the big winners, you name the test and he was one of the top performers, including first or second in a number of them. Looked smooth in drills too, although I think I noticed him catching the ball with his body too much. Validated what he achieved on the field is supported by athleticism to make it possible at the next level. Separated himself from the pack in the second tier and makes the top three a top four.Shonn Greene - haven't been as high on him as others and as discussed in the pre-Combine article, I expected him to disappoint at the Combine. Obviously 40 time was the big flop, but I'm waiting to see the 10 split, b/c that looked bad too. Agility also didn't standout in shuttles and cones. Still showed he has explosion in the legs with his vert and broad. This pushes him out of Day One and contributes to pigeon-holing him as a guy who won't be looked at with feature potential.Andre Brown - remains hot coming off great Senior Bowl and was another big winner. One of the safest test bets I would have thought was taking over 4.5 40 for him. Upper and lower body strength tested good, but agility did not. Tests proved out he is a nice size/speed package, but still just a north-south guy. Helped his value greatly, but he went from underrated to overrated b/c I'm still not convinced he has the full package or durability to be a consistent success as a feature back.Cedric Peerman - shocking. He's done some impressive things on the field, but never consistently b/c of injuries. I always saw him as an overachiever. Perhaps it was a deluded perception b/c of all the reports of what a good guy he is and that these injuries were robbing his athleticism. However, he tested fantastically across the board. Take in to account his intangibles and skills in the passing game and experience as a returner, and you have a guy who is rocketing up draft boards.Mike Goodson - I knew the mancrush I had on him as a sleeper that I shared w/Bloom was over when I saw Maylock surprisingly had him as one of the top five. Very solid tests across the board and flashed his great hands in receiving drills. I don't see him as one of the five best, but he's clearly no longer a sleeper. Resume, consistency, and attitude are still questions for teams to vet, and I still expect him to be a late mid-round guy, but he validate the sneaky promising raw talent, at least as an athlete, I though he had. Just 14 reps on the bench, what's up with that? That's where the raw talent runs out and the dedication question rears it's ugly head.Ian Johnson - the workout wonder of this class, whichever house he trained with should make him the poster boy. I really noticed the small legs after Cecil and Bloom pointed them out during the Shrine podcasts. I felt he was a bit underrated, but I also don't see him as a feature back. Nice intangibles and team guy, but not star quality and still only moves up to a late mid-round guy.Jeremiah Johnson - very disappointing performance that doesn't jibe with some of the ability he flashed on the field. He becomes a minor steal as a late round flyer. I see a poor man's Mewelde Moore, who could do a few things here and there and surprise with his productivity if ever given the chance.James Davis - good 40, but I didn't notice his name among leaders at any other drills. This guy went from arguably the top-rated senior RB to forgotten. Nice sleeper potential now. he's a guy who gets a starting job by default, injury, etc. some time in his career, does well, but the team is constantly looking to replace him b/c he's solid but unspectacular from his name to his game.Javon Ringer - I didn't think the knee was 100% after watching his 40, but good times in the agility tests. Probably falls out of Day One. Plenty of upside, but I just don't think he can take the beating and he is still feeling the effects of being used too much last season.Rashad Jennings - Tricepasaurus pounded out 29 reps, but had some sneaky good showings in other tests. This guy still leaves the Combine underrated (at least by most media pundits), hence I'm adopting him as a sleeper after thinking he previously couldn't be considered one, and will be a steal in the mid-rounds.Bernard Scott - great Combine, but he wouldn't have tested as well if he had to carry all the baggage he brings. I can't argue he has the athleticism, but I don't see teams thinking he is worth the risk. Late round flyer, if he ever makes it, I'm betting against him not screwing it up.Kory Sheets - I wrote I didn't expect him to impress at the Combine, but he was a safe pick with some valuable versatility. Well he did impress so I don't know what to do with him now. He could pass some bigger names in the draft. 15 reps on the bench though, work on that upper body.Glen Coffee - barely noticed he was there, decent on a couple tests, but talk about an average performance. Looking at him on film, quickness and agility were my concerns and he didn't do anything to alleviate them with shuttle and cone times. Did not help himself nearly as much as he needed with a thin resume.Gartrell Johnson - failed to keep the momentum of his post-season explosion going. Some monsterous legs, but they failed to test with much speed or explosion. We may have all gotten a little too excited over a few great performances against second-tier competition.Tyrell Sutton - ugh. Short guy who is slow and a durability concern. He still has some ability, with great vision and instincts, but that previous sentence is now the summary of any scouting report on him. I liked him too, but clearly the other Tyrell (Fenroy) should have gotten your spot at the Combine.Marlon Lucky - I like him, but he needed to show some more athleticism. I still have quiet hopes for him to suprise, but clearly not the next Ahman Green. Another guy with dedication questions and I still believe he's a better athlete than he showed, so it only highlights that concern b/c he very well could have failed to properly prepare.Kahlil Bell - go away and tell Devin Moore or Aaron Brown to come in.
great stuff, nice work!
Wells is beginning to look like Curtis Enis, i.e., lots of talent , but...................
