On The Road To The Pros At The NFL Combine

Well I’m sorry to be the one to tell you, but if you haven’t had your invite by now, you aint getting one. There are however, 330 top college footballers who have been invited, and will be making their way to Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis come February 28th. They will be there to showcase their talent in front of the NFL’s General Managers and coaches. Over seven days they will undergo an intense period of evaluation as they strive to improve their draft stock and secure a lucrative contract. The team representatives will be getting up close and personal with the prospects, and will leave no stone unturned as they dig deep to establish not only the physical attributes of the players, but also their strength of character.

All of them will participate in six core tests, and then they will participate in a series of position specific disciplines. Grouped by playing position they will be in direct competition with their peers, and have the chance to show the evaluators who is the alpha dog.

The physical tests will start on Friday March 3rd, when the running backs, offensive linemen and special teams players will be put through their paces. Saturday the 4th sees the quarterbacks, wide receivers and tight ends take to the field, Sunday the 5th will give the linebackers and defensive linemen the chance to shine, and the defensive backs close the show on Monday the 6th.

Let’s Take A Closer Look At The Core Six, And What They Are Designed To Show.

1 – The 40 Yard Dash –The marquee test at the combine, everyone ones to put in a good 40 time! It will highlight an athletes’ explosive power and straight line speed. The current record holder is running back Chris Johnson who ran a 4.24 in 2008.

2 – The Vertical Jump – Evidences a players lower body explosion – To take this title you would need to beat receiver Chris Conley’s 45” leap.

3 – The Broad Jump – Effectively a standing jump where you have to nail the landing, and take no further steps. If you could beat corner back Byron Jones’s 12’3”, you would be the new World Record holder.

4 – The Three Cone Drill – Determines your ability to change direction at high speed – Jeffrey Maehl, a receiver from Oregon has the best time at 6.42 seconds.

5 – The Twenty Yard Shuttle – Designed to check on your lateral quickness, you would need to post better than 3.81 seconds if you wanted to beat Tennessee cornerback Jason Allen.

6 – The Bench Press – Regardless of their position, everyone has to lift 225lbs for as many reps as possible. You may think that you’re “hench on the bench”, but could you make 49 reps. If you could, you would equal defensive lineman Stephen Paea’s record.

You can watch the combine live online via the NFL.COM website, where there will be a range of experts providing a breakdown of who has shone, and who’s chance to impress has gone. They will talk about elite level measurables, athletic upside and high football intelligence as they re-arrange their mock drafts.

An entertaining part of the proceedings is NFL Network anchor, Rich Eisen doing his “Run Rich Run” 40 yard dash for charity. He has to wear a business suit, but is allowed to wear football cleats. His best time to date, is 5.94.

If a player disappoints or no shows at the combine, all is not lost. They will have a second chance to impress at a series of individual “Pro-Days”, these are hosted by the majority of the major college programmes. Quarterbacks particularly like these, as they get to throw to their regular receivers, rather than some random athlete at the national combine. If the Pro teams still aren’t quite sure about a player, they are allowed to invite a limited number to undergo an individual private workout at the team’s facility.

So there you have it, watch the drills and marvel at their skills, you won’t fail to be impressed. Then go and complete the core six yourself. Do you have Elite Level Measurables?