Five Up, Five Down: Pro Day Recap, March 19th-23rd
Pro Days have an impact on the NFL Draft, no question about it.
Generally, they are designed to help prospects who struggled at the
Combine, who weren't invited to the Combine, or who are coming off
injury.
For the most part, many prospects at least gave scouts a reason to be
intrigued. However, some prospects really boosted their "stock", while
some others surprisingly may drop on draft boards after Pro Day
concerns.
Moving UP
Dale Moss,
WR, South Dakota State
Moss has been one of Optimum Scouting's favorite prospects all season,
and the former basketball stud (and one year football player) wowed
scouts in his workout. At 6'3, 213, he posted a 4.38 forty time, 41.5
inch vertical, 10'10 broad jump, and some Combine breaking shuttle
times. Not only is he an athletic freak and has so much potential and
room to grow, but he showed body control and confidence at the
East-West Shrine game, showing he's more than just a developmental,
hopeful project.
Kelechi Osemele,
OT, Iowa State
After showcasing power and flashes of dominance at the Senior Bowl,
Osemele also has continued to drop weight. He was listed in the 350
area in college, but after dropping weight for Indianapolis and now 6
more pounds for his pro day, he's down to 333, a solid level for an NFL
right tackle. And according to CBSSports.com's Rob Rang, he "certainly
didn't disappoint in drills".
Donnie Fletcher,
CB, Boston
College
One of the biggest Combine "snubs", Fletcher had a chance to show
scouts two things: one, that he belongs in the Top 25 or so cornerbacks
that were invited to Indianapolis, and that the concerns over his speed
were overblown. He posted forty times in the low 4.4 area, and while
that doesn't always consistently show up on film, the straight-line
speed is obviously there to workout with. He may be in the top four
round discussion once again.
Rishard
Matthews, WR, Nevada
One of my favorite receiver prospects in the draft, Rishard Matthews
showed at his workout why he's very reminsicnt of Terrell Owens in my
mind. He showed deep speed (4.44 forty time) for a 6'2 recceiver, and
showed his explosiveness with a 10'3 broad jump. His combination of
speed, explosiveness after the catch, and solid hands could push him
into the 2nd round discussion, especially after he had an "outstanding
workout" according to NFL.com's Gil Brandt.
Coby Fleener,
TE, Stanford
While all the attention initially was focused on Andrew Luck at the
Stanford Pro Day, a much more intriguing prospect who's destination
isn't already picked out wowed NFL scouts. In a relatively weak tight
end class, especially for "match-up nightmare" types we've seen
dominate the NFL, Fleener may have emerged as not only the clear cut
top tight end, but a possible Top 25 pick. He posted a 4.48 forty, 37
inch vertical leap, extremely impressive for a 6'6 tight end. Maybe
Indianapolis should look to trade up from round two and unite the two
Stanford standouts in the NFL.
Sliding DOWN
Nick Foles,
QB, Arizona
I've never been a fan of Nick Foles unless he gets time to develop in a
West Coast scheme, Foles reportedly struggled throwing the ball through
the wind. While it seems unfair, NFL scouts likely got a lot out of the
less-than-adequate conditions for a quarterback who likely needs to cut
through the wind in a timing, short pass, high velocity offence.
Dwight Jones,
WR, North
Carolina
Boy, how Dwight Jones's stock has fallen. We've seen recent North
Carolina prospects such as Marvin
Austin fall on draft day, but based
on the fact that he was banned from the UNC Pro Day for a past offense
and only one scout showed up to his workout at a local high school,
Jones, who has potential to be a #1 receiver in the NFL, could fall all
the way to Day Three if he can't win over some teams in
workouts/interviews the rest of the way.
Jonathan Martin,
OT, Stanford
Jonathan Martin has teammed up with David DeCastro to to form maybe the
most impressive offensive line in football the past two seasons. And
while DeCastro has remained in the Top 10 consideration, rare for a
guard, Martin's recent pro day performance may push him down some
boards. His 5.33 forty time isn't overly worrisome, but the 20 reps at
the bench press is. I still really like him as a downfield blocking and
sound pass blocker at right tackle with left tackle potential, but he
maybe sliding down to the bottom half of the Top 20.
Patrick Edwards, WR, Houston
Productive receiver Patrick Edwards was never set to be a lock to be
drafted. After a devastating knee injury two years ago, the 5'9 receive
came back to a productive final season. He impressed at times as a
potential NFL 4th receiver at the East-West Shrine game, but after a
4.58 forty time and just a 33.5 inch vertical leap, he may struggle to
generate heavy interest even after the seven rounds of the draft now.
Jaye Howard,
DT, Florida
(24.5 vert, 8'9 broad)
Howard is a great athlete on the field, likely being able to use his
6'3 wingspan to play either a 3-technique or a 5-technique in the NFL.
While his pro day numbers didn't hurt all that much, his 24.5 inch
vertical leap and 8'9 foot broad jump certainly won't separate him in a
relatively deep 3-4 defensive end class.
SCOUT: 2012 NFL Combine Central
Eric Galko is a contributing NFL scout for Patriots Insider at
Scout.com.
Eric Galko is the Owner, Director
of Scouting of Optimum
Scouting and lead editor for OptimumScouting.com. He
has been scouting college football for eight
years, and for pro teams and other sports professionals for the last
four years. Eric is also a member of the
FWAA.
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