[The Seer]

Who's Hot . . .


The top running backs
Darren McFadden hunted down Osama Bin Laden, solved America's health care crisis and invented a fat-free mayonnaise that actually tastes like mayonnaise. At least that's the way the scouting world made it appear after the former Arkansas star tore off a 4.33 in the 40. Either the last few SEC seasons weren't televised anywhere or everyone simply didn't realize that the No. 5 who was tearing off home run after home run against the top SEC teams was McFadden. In any event, McFadden went from being the No. 1 running back in the draft to the unquestioned No. 1 running back in the draft, and a player who'll have several teams (cough, Dallas, cough) ready to move heaven and earth to get.

The other two top running back prospects, Rashard Mendenhall and Jonathan Stewart, solidified themselves as must-have top 20 players after clocking 4.45 and a 4.48, respectively. Stewart cranked out a defensive linemen-like 28 bench presses of 225 pounds, while Mendenhall wasn't any slouch with 26 reps. More importantly, Mendenhall led all the backs in the 20-yard shuttle with a time of 4.18. Overall, the running backs were a lightning-fast lot with five running sub-4.4s and looking like a faster, more athletic group than the Combine has seen in years, and then there was ...


Chris Johnson, RB, East Carolina
All Johnson did was lead the nation in all-purpose yards, gaining 1,423 on the ground, with 17 touchdowns, 528 receiving yards, with six scores, and 1,009 yards and a touchdown on kickoff returns, but that didn't get him much attention. While he's among the most versatile prospects in the draft, he didn't register much of a blip on the radar in such a strong year for running backs. And then came the 40.

There's Deion Sanders fast, running a hand-timed 4.28 in the 1989 Combine, there's the urban legend of Bo Jackson running a hand-timed 4.12, and now there's Johnson's 4.24, tying Eastern Kentucky's Rondel Melendez's 1999 time as the best electronically confirmed run in Combine history. While Johnson isn't a between-the-tackles runner, he could be a much cheaper, and as it turns out, much faster option than McFadden for someone like Dallas, who'd like an outside threat to go along with Marion Barber III, or teams like Cincinnati and Tampa Bay, who have decent pounders, but little flash.


Chris Long, DE, Virginia
Already considered a lock for the top five, and just about everyone's No. 2 overall pick, Long showed his competitiveness and fire by attacking the drills and going through the workouts that most top picks would've skipped. At 6-4 and 275 pounds, he ran a 4.75 40, which would've made him the fourth-fastest quarterback and eighth-fastest tight end, came up with a vertical of 34 inches, was second among defensive linemen in the broad jump (10 feet, 4 inches), was fourth in the three-cone drill (7.02 seconds), and led the way in the 20-yard shuttle (4.21). More importantly, he looked fluid, able to seamlessly come in and out of his cuts while moving like a player much, much lighter. Essentially, he not only solidified his spot among the elite of the draft's elite, but he confirmed that he's a can't-miss must-have prospect. As strong as he was, he didn't come up with the defensive lineman numbers of ...


Vernon Gholston, DE, Ohio State
There's nothing Gholston could've done to surpass Long as the top defensive end prospect in Indy, but he gave it a great shot. At 6-4 and 258 pounds, almost 20 pounds lighter than Long, the former Ohio State star was third among all defensive lineman with a 4.67 40, while leading the way with a vertical jump of 35.5 inch and in the broad jump with a leap of 10-5. While he proved he's athletic enough to be used as an outside linebacker/defensive end hybrid, depending on the situation and the scheme, he crushed what was considered his one main weakness, that he might struggle at the point of attack by stronger tackles, by ripping off 37 reps of 225 on the bench press. Not only did he lead all the defensive linemen, he tied Michigan OT Jake Long for the most reps at the entire Combine. He went from being anywhere from a No. 7-20 pick on draft boards to a sure-thing top-10 selection.


Purdue
A year after Anthony Spencer was one of the most impressive workout warriors and followed it up by a strong rookie year for Dallas, Purdue prospects were among the most impressive with tight end Dustin Keller, linebacker Stanford Kegler and defensive end Cliff Avril all testing as well as anyone at their respective positions. The 252-pound Avril moved like a linebacker with phenomenal quickness, leading all defensive linemen in the 3-cone drill, while Kegler led all linebackers with 29 reps in the bench press and topping everyone in the broad jump. He also came up with a solid 4.58 40 to go along with a 34-inch vertical, but it was his quickness that jumped off the charts by leading the linebackers in the three-cone drill and blowing everyone out of the water in the 20-yard shuttle.

As impressive as the Boilermaker defenders were, it was Keller who might have helped himself more than anyone in Indy by leading all the tight ends in the 40 (4.55), vertical (38 inches), broad jump (10-11, eight inches further than the No. 2 tight end), the three-cone (4.55) and the 20-yard shuttle (4.14), while he was second in the bench press (26 reps). Though not all that huge at 242 pounds, no one seems to care anymore after his display of athleticism and the way he lifted. Considered no better than the third tight end prospect coming into the weekend, he's now a likely first-rounder and possibly the top tight end.



Colt Brennan, QB, Hawaii
With Andre Woodson suffering a hamstring problem and Joe Flacco and Chad Henne spraying their throws, Brennan stood out as the star of the quarterback drills. After a disastrous Sugar Bowl and lousy workouts in the post-season circuit, he stepped up his game big-time as the most accurate and impressive passer in Indy by far. Matt Ryan, who didn't work out, has absolutely nothing to worry about, but at least Brennan is on the radar again after making all the throws in the book while potentially reestablishing himself as one of the top five quarterbacks.


Who's Not . . .

The Linebackers
Zzzzzzzzzzz. The two linebackers projected to go in the first round, USC's Keith Rivers and Penn State's Dan Connor, didn't work out (injury for Rivers and the flu for Connor), and few showed anything to suggest that the lot will be anything other than underwhelming. Tennessee's Jerod Mayo ran well and proved he should be a top-50 selection, Purdue's Stanford Keglar was impressive and Georgia Tech's Gary Guyton stunned everyone with a 4.47 in the 40, but the group didn't inspire anything more than a collective yawn.


Mario Manningham, WR, Michigan
Six receivers ran 4.4 or better and 11 ran under 4.5. Manningham wasn't one of them. Rail thin at just under 6-feet and 181 pounds, his biggest strength was supposed to be his speed, and then he came up with a 4.59 and a 4.62. While fine at the ball drills, he wasn't as polished as many will probably make him out to be. However, he caught the ball well and still showed enough skill to be among the top five receivers taken. While he'll get another shot back on Michigan's campus to show what he can do, he all but blew any chance of being a first-round pick.


John Carlson, TE, Notre Dame
It was a coin-flip between Carlson and USC's Fred Davis to determine who the best tight end prospect was coming into the Combine. Then, Purdue's Dustin Keller blew everyone away with his workout while Carlson stunk. Unable to do anything at the Senior Bowl due to illness, Carlson needed a big weekend and didn't have one with a lousy 4.9 in the 40 and a pedestrian 20 reps on the bench. The worst part was how he looked compared to the incredible athletic Keller, with little quickness and nowhere near the same fluidity. To be fair, he was more than just sick for the Senior Bowl, losing 17 pounds; he's just now getting back to normal.


Jermichael Finley, TE, Texas
Finley left Texas with two years of eligibility remaining and was one of the prospects everyone was curious about. At 6-5 and an athletic 236 pounds, he's considered more of a huge wide receiver than an all-around tight end, and he showed a nice burst and good hands. On the down side, he was slowwwwww. A bit of a project to begin with, he cost himself several draft slots with a 4.82 40 that would've made him a sluggish defensive lineman, much less a tight end. While seven other tight ends ran under 4.7, Finley wasn't even close.


Poll
DeSean Jackson, WR, California
The good: he blazed a receiver-best 4.35 in the 40, but that was hardly a shock. The bad: he was even smaller than expected. He checked in at under 5-10 and a mere 169 pounds, so while everyone will want him as a luxury, he's nowhere near big enough to be considered a No. 1 receiver. His size isn't just a problem, it has become a big, screaming red flag.


Mike Hart, RB, Michigan
At 5-9 and 206 pounds, he lifted well with 23 reps, but overall appeared scrawnier than expected, especially in his legs. The big problem was his lack of speed and burst in the quickness drills. The 4.65 and 4.75 40s were disastrous, and he showed little overall athleticism compared to the other smallish backs like Ray Rice and Steve Slaton. His problem will be the workload. Not a third-down back or a role player, he's a runner who needs 25 carries and can be a workhorse. Now, it's doubtful anyone will ever think of him as a No. 1 back.

[The Seer]

NFL prospect McFadden optimistic about draft chances


02:41 PM CST on Monday, February 25, 2008





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McKINNEY – Darren McFadden doesn't care what you think. He certainly doesn't care what I think.

McFadden believes he's the best running back available in the draft and should be among the first players selected – and it's really hard to argue with him after he ran a 4.27-second 40-yard dash Sunday at the NFL scouting combine.

But several weeks ago, I wrote a column saying how no running back was worth the top pick in the draft. Since he was training at the Michael Johnson Performance Center, I felt compelled to give him my theory on running backs.

McFadden is a phenomenal player. I told him that. With all due respect to Illinois' Rashard Mendenhall and Oregon's Jonathan Stewart, McFadden is, without doubt, the best running back in the draft. I told him that, too.


We all know McFadden finished second in the Heisman Trophy voting each of the last two seasons. We all know he won the Doak Walker award, given annually to the nation's top running back, each of the last two seasons.

And we all know the 4,590 yards rushing and 41 touchdowns he scored in his career at Arkansas.

See, it's not personal. It really has nothing to do with McFadden.

It has everything to do with running backs.

I realize there are exceptions to every rule, but who would wager $30 million or $40 million on an exception? Not me. Would you? Not with your own money.

The financial risk is too high to take any running back with the first pick of the draft. Their lifespan, about four seasons, is so short that it seems ludicrous to give McFadden, a man without an NFL track record, the millions he will command for being one of the top players drafted.

It seemed only fair to give McFadden an opportunity to state why NFL teams should feel comfortable giving him enough money to last several lifetimes.

"I have great passion for the game," McFadden said recently. "I love to run the ball, and I can work in any type of offense. I'm going to make a team better, I'm going to perform to the best of my ability and I'm not going to sit out or hold out at the start of training camp."

So you'll be worth the money?

"Yes sir. I'd be a good investment," he said matter-of-factly.

Meeting the soft-spoken, polite young man with the easy smile is almost enough to make me rethink my position on running backs.

Then I remember Ki-Jana Carter and Curtis Enis and Cedric Benson. All were top-five picks, all were busts. Or I think about quality runners like Marion Barber, Willie Parker and Ryan Grant, who were second-day draft picks or free agents.

No longer do teams rely on just one runner. More teams than ever want two runners sharing the load, making it even harder to justify spending the money and taking the risk on a player at the top of the draft.


AP
Former Arkansas running back Darren McFadden ran a 4.27-second 40-yard dash Sunday at the NFL scouting combine. The topic must be addressed here because we know Jerry Jones would love to figure out a way to add McFadden to the Cowboys' roster, though it would cost a king's ransom to move into the top five to grab McFadden.

You can start with Dallas giving up its two first-round picks (Nos. 22 and 28) and who knows where the price goes from there, which is why it's unlikely McFadden will ever wear a blue star on the side of his helmet unless he becomes a free agent later in his career.

That said, McFadden is more interested in being the first pick of the draft than playing for the Cowboys. While he says he spends almost no time thinking about it, the reality is he'd love to hear his name called first on draft day.

"It would be a great thing," McFadden said. "I've done everything I can do to line it up, but I can't control who drafts me. I've heard so much from so many people that I try not to listen to anything anymore. I'm just going to wait and see what happens."

[mofome]

now that was awesome to read.

did felix jones work out?

[Cee]

Mo gino was dog s in workouts.

gino was only 17 reps and almost 4.7 speed i think (poop)

Woodyard is cee #1 OLB

[mofome]

Originally Posted by Cee

Mo gino was dog s in workouts.

gino was only 17 reps and almost 4.7 speed i think (poop)

Woodyard is cee #1 OLB

yeah i didn't expect him to lift much, but that speed is surprising. i watched him hawk down players all year long, i wonder what the issue was.

[Cee]

Originally Posted by mofome

yeah i didn't expect him to lift much, but that speed is surprising. i watched him hawk down players all year long, i wonder what the issue was.

Same here i thought he'd be 4.55 . He was running weird, running straight up and awkward is was seeing

[mofome]

Originally Posted by Cee

Same here i thought he'd be 4.55 . He was running weird, running straight up and awkward is was seeing

idk what happened, but when you put that man on the football field he makes plays. i hope he ends up a skin somehow.

[Cee]

Originally Posted by mofome

idk what happened, but when you put that man on the football field he makes plays. i hope he ends up a skin somehow.

Yeah, hopefully philly takes in 3rd rd

Whats did think on woodyard

[The Seer]

Word is Hayes has no work ethic and will be a problem player.

[mofome]

Originally Posted by The Seer

Word is Hayes has no work ethic and will be a problem player.

he committed to tennesse, clemson, and fsu. he's a wild card to say the least. His talent, imo, is some of the best on the board.

[The Seer]

Originally Posted by mofome

now that was awesome to read.

did felix jones work out?

Don't know.

[louisvillekid]

whats Brohm doing? my local news and paper haven't really said much.

[Cee]

Originally Posted by The Seer

Word is Hayes has no work ethic and will be a problem player.

We loved hayes at fsu. I think with another year he would have been 1st round picks. But he must have saw the green instead.

I hope he does well in the nfl and hope his work ethic doesn't stink as suggested. I really didn't hear much on his work ethic while at fsu. So this is news to me

[Quebb Diesel]

johnson can float...did anybody see him in his bowl game?! a 4.24 doesnt surprise me at all...kinda like chris henry last year but more productive