February 24, 2007 Nice Appetizer
Today's linemen and tight ends was a good introduction to on-field activities at the combine. Joe Thomas solidified his top-three status. C Ryan Kalil stood out, and T Tony Ugoh showed some toughness. TE Michael Allen of Whitworth got himself noticed. Greg Olsen has been explosive is now the clear favorite to be the first tight end drafted.
Tomorrow's quarterback, running back, and wide receivers day are the main event, especially for fantasy leaguers. We'll see Adrian Peterson and Marshawn Lynch battle each other. We'll see the quarterbacks and wideouts spin it. It's no mistake the NFL is putting the most exciting Combine day on Sunday.
I'll check on some of the pressers going on the rest of the day, and the remaining action, but check back with the blog on Sunday morning. Thanks for stopping by.
Posted by Gregg Rosenthal at 02:02 PM |
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Comments (0) Twin times for Olsen
Arizona State TE Zach Miller and Rutgers TE Clark Harris both ran in the 4.8's on their second forty time unofficially.
Miami TE Greg Olsen could have pushed himself into the first round by running 4.45. We'll get the official times later, but Olsen made himself some money. Olsen also made a nice grab with his hands in the first passing drill. In the second drill, his speed helped him make a great long grab.
Miami didn't have a good passing game because of their quarterbacks, which kept Olsen's numbers down in college. He had a nice vertical leap.
The second fastest tight end was DIII Michael Allen, out of Whitworth. Allen has looked great. Olsen also looked great in the gauntlet drill, while Zach Miller was all over the place.
Posted by Gregg Rosenthal at 01:37 PM |
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Comments (0) Ugoh not done yet!
Okay, so maybe Arkansas T Tony Ugoh isn't out for the day. He just blew the doors off the broad jump, going for 9'9. The longest jump last year was at 9'2. Wow.
Just a note about all our forty times. They are unofficial, and from the NFL Network. It was just announced that Joe Thomas actually ran a 4.92. He ensured himself some money today.
Posted by Gregg Rosenthal at 01:22 PM |
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Comments (0) Zach Miller/Greg Olsen diverging
We have some draft stock affecting news! Arizona State's Zach Miller ran an unofficial 4.84 forty, which is a little disappointing for a speedy tight end type. He had a bad take-off. Of course, the hosts pointed out that Tony Gonzalez runs about a 4.8.
Greg Olsen of Miami, however, just ran an unofficial 4.47! Okay, so he can't block. But if Olsen was graded close to Miller, well, he's probably the top tight end in the draft now. He's the fastest tight end thus far and it's not close. Delaware's Ben Patrick ran an unofficial 4.74.
Posted by Gregg Rosenthal at 01:12 PM |
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Comments (0) Tony Ugoh
Arkansas tackle Tony Ugoh pulled his quadriceps and is out for the rest of the day. Dick Vermeil speculated he'll probably miss at least a few weeks of workouts.
Luckily for Ugoh, Arkansas has two pro days. The second one is April fourth.
Posted by Gregg Rosenthal at 12:19 PM |
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Comments (0) Future's so bright ...
Herbert Taylor of Texas Christian has made the interesting choice of working out in sunglasses. Indoors.
Anyhow, here's Mayock's top five tight ends...
1. Greg Olsen - Miami
2. Zach Miller - Arizona State.
3. Ben Patrick – Delaware
4. Martrez Milner – Georgia
5. Scott Chandler - Iowa
Olsen and Miller may have a chance to be drafted in the first round since this draft class at tight end is so weak. I'm not so sure. As recently as 2005, only one tight end (Heath Miller) was drafted in the top 70 picks. The talent of the draft didn't justify higher picks. There is no Heath Miller in this class from the sound of it.
Posted by Gregg Rosenthal at 12:10 PM |
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Comments (0) Second Forty
Tony Ugoh from Arkansas ran a 4.99 on his second crack at the forty. Joe Thomas got his time down to 4.96 unofficially. Vermeil pointed out that Thomas was more impressive in his final 30 than his first ten, which isn't a good thing.
Either way, Thomas isn't getting past the first three picks. And the lineman are almost done with their four days at the Combine. Let's get to the speed positions!
Posted by Gregg Rosenthal at 12:00 PM |
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Comments (0) Kalil
Cal C Ryan Kalil may be the best center prospect of the last few years, even better than Nick Mangold last year. He surprisingly has added almost 15 pounds since the season ended, checking in at 296 pounds today. He still ran a speedy 4.96 forty.
NFLN's Mike Mayock and Dick Vermeil wonder why Kalil bother adding the weight. He's a technician and isn't going to play for a team that wants a mauler. Either way, he's probably a first round pick.
Mayock comes with another good scouting term: a guy that can only "play in a phone booth."
Posted by Gregg Rosenthal at 11:33 AM |
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Comments (0) Men Lifting Weights
Justin Blalock from Texas and Manuel Ramirez set the bar for the weightlighting among the OL Friday, tieing with 40 reps at 225 pounds each. Forget the car show, this is why Manny's late to spring training.
The record was set by Mark Kudla last year with 45, and he wasn't drafted.
The top center in the draft, Ryan Kalil, tied with a group of players for third with 34 reps. Penn St. T Levi Brown got the bar up 31 times.
Best scouting term of the day thus far is "ankle flexion", courtesy of Dick Vermeil.
Posted by Gregg Rosenthal at 11:24 AM |
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Comments (0) Live from Indianapolis!
Okay, not really. Live from my apartment. But NFL Network is live covering the Scouting Combine Saturday, so we are too.
Today isn't the flashiest of the next four: OL, TE, and K's are on the field. Some higher profile players are in interviews.
Early news, courtesy of
profootball.talk.com, is that Penn state tackle Levin Brown only ran a 5.39. He says that's real bad, but the average is around 5.30. And it really doesn't matter. Coaches want to know a lineman's first ten yards. Brown should be the second tackle drafted.
Texas G Justin Blalock, at 330 pounds, ran a 5.31 forty.
Likely top five pick T Joe Thomas looked quite athletic, breaking five seconds at 4.98