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4:19 p.m.: At wide receiver, Tavon Austin and Marquise Goodwin might have made headlines early in the day, but Da’Rick Rogers and T.J. Moe killed it in drills that aren’t quite as “sexy” as the 40-yard dash. Josh Boyce churned out a very impressive performance as well, as did Markus Wheaton.
Geno Smith was the best among quarterbacks, but Nick Foles’ replacement in Arizona, Matt Scott had an impressive day athletically. He likely turned some heads with his agility. At running back, Michael Ford and Christine Michael may have raised their stock the most.
Tomorrow, we’ll be watching the defensive linemen and linebackers. That’ll do it for Day 4 of the combine.
4:07 p.m.: The 3-cone and shuttle times are out. Unfortunately, Tavon Austin did not run the 3-cone. He would have shined in that drill.
T.J. Moe, wide receiver out of Missouri, finished tops in the 3-cone and shuttle, but last in the 40-yard dash. That shows that he obviously doesn’t have great top end speed, but his route running and cuts are superb.
Marquess Wilson, Josh Boyce, Da’Rick Rogers and Ryan Spadola rounded out the Top 5 for 3-cone. Quinton Patton, Austin, Markus Wheaton and Rogers finished in the Top 5 in the 20-yard shuttle.
Moe also finished first in the 60-yard shuttle. Wheaton, Boyce, Ace Sanders and Da’Rick Rogers rounded out that Top 5.
Overall, Da’Rick Rogers finished with a fantastic day. He ran a 4.52, which is fine for his size, and he finished in the Top 5 in the 3-cone, 20-yard shuttle, 60-yard shuttle, vertical jump and broad jump. At 6-foot-2, 217 pounds, that’s a fantastic athlete.
Another athlete who shined was Arizona quarterback Matt Scott. His 3-cone and 20-yard shuttle times would have been Top 5 for wide receivers, and he ran a 4.69 40-yard dash. If he doesn’t have a future as a read-zone quarterback, perhaps he could be moved to the slot.
Marcus Davis and Robert Woods finished last in the 3-cone with times of 7.15 seconds. Darius Johnson and DeAndre Hopkins finished last in the 20-yard shuttle and Kenbrell Thompkins and Brandon Kaufman finished last in the 60-yard shuttle.
3:38 p.m.: Christine Michael, Rex Burkhead, Michael Ford, Cierre Wood, Kenjon Barner and Matthew Tucker led the way in the vertical jump today for running backs. Ford, Burkhead, Michael, Wood and Joseph Randle topped the broad jump.
Ford had a good day overall so far. He finished fifth in the 40 with a 4.50 flat.
3:15 p.m.: Onterio McCalebb, Knile Davis, Kerwynn Williams and Johnathan Franklin all ran sub-4.5 40-yard dash times. Giovani Bernard finished with a 4.53, Christine Michael had a 4.54 and Zac Stacy had a 4.55.
Knile Davis running a 4.37 40 at 227 pounds is still very impressive. He just has to prove he can stay healthy and hold onto the ball.
3:10 p.m.: Onterio McCalebb ran a 4.34 official 40-yard dash. That is not a combine record and Marquise Goodwin is still this year’s leader.
2:55 p.m.: Andre Ellington got hurt on his first 40 attempt. He’s on the trainer’s table now and is not participating in positional drills. He ran a 4.59, but that doesn’t match with the speed he showed on tape.
We’ll likely have to wait until the Clemson pro day to get a real sense of Ellington’s speed. His 10-yard split was a very respectable 1.56.
2:52 p.m.: Based on a tweet from @InsideNFLMedia, it appeares Onterio McCalebb’s official 40 time might be slower than Marquise Goodwin’s 4.27.
[tweet https://twitter.com/InsideNFLMedia/status/305766751558307841 align=center]
2:39 p.m.: Onterio McCalebb’s 40 time would be impressive at any weight, but it is an issue for his NFL future that he weighs in at just 168 pounds. That’s really only big enough for a kick returner. He’ll need to bulk up to play anywhere on an NFL field, and especially if he wants to play running back.
McCalebb could move to wide receiver
2:28 p.m.: Onterio McCalebb just ran a 4.21 40-yard dash. It’s an unofficial time, but if it stands, that broke Chris Johnson’s combine record of 4.24.
Of course, McCalebb weighs 168 pounds right now, so, take it how you will.
2:17 p.m.: Michael Ford of LSU is the latest back to put up a 4.4 time. He clocked a 4.45 in his second attempt with a 1.51 10-yard split. That’s the third best 10-yard split among running backs.
2:09 p.m.: It’s always a bit surprising to see how slow some running backs time. Zach Line ran a 4.81 and Robbie Rouse and Stepfan Taylor ran 4.78’s.
To put that in perspective, two 300-pounders ran faster yesterday.
Utah State’s Kerwynn Williams impressed with a 4.40. Last year Robert Turbin and Michael Smith were both drafted out of Utah State.
1:57 p.m.: We just saw two very impressive running back times. Onterio McCalebb ran a 4.27, but he also weighed in at 168 pounds, which would be light for a kicker, let alone a running back.
Christine Michael of Texas A&M ran a 4.41 at 220 pounds. That’s very impressive. His 1.51 10-yard split is important for a running back.
1:45 p.m.: Knile Davis is the leader so far among running backs. He ran a 4.30 unofficial 40 at 227 pounds.
Andre Ellington seemed to come up lame at the end of his attempt and still ran a 4.59.
Kenjon Barner ran a 4.44 and Giovani Bernard ran a 4.50. Johnathan Franklin of UCLA impressed with a 4.47 and Mike Gillislee of Florida posted a 4.50.
1:43 p.m.: We find all the combine drills mighty interesting, but maybe Bill Belichick doesn’t feel the same. Rather than rolling his eyes, Belichick rolled his whole head over this process.
1:23 p.m.: The running backs are coming up here shortly. Watch out for Kenjon Barner, Giovani Bernard and Joseph Randle. All of those guys should time very well.
The wide receiver 3-cone times should be coming out soon too. If you’re looking for agility, that’s the figure coaches and scouts swoon over.
1:05 p.m.: Justin Hunter, Da’Rick Rogers, Marcus Davis, Mark Harrison, Ryan Swope, Cordarrelle Patterson and Markus Wheaton finished as the top wideouts in vertical jump. Hunter, Rogers, Marquise Goodwin, Josh Boyce and Harrison were the top broad jumpers. Hunter and Harrison were also both sub 4.5 40 guys. We don’t have 3-cone or 20-yard shuttle times yet.
EJ Manuel and Geno Smith topped the vertical and broad jump for quarterbacks.
12:55 p.m.: Marquess Wilson is doing a nice job of making up for the mistake of quitting Washington State’s football team this year. He added some weight, ran a 4.51 40 and is looking good in positional drills.
12:34 p.m.: The following players ran sub 4.5 40s: Marquise Goodwin, Ryan Swope, Tavon Austin, Kenny Stills, Josh Boyce, Cordarrelle Patterson, Denard Robinson, Corey Fuller, Justin Hunter, Markus Wheaton, Lanear Sampson, Mark Harrison, Tavarres King and Ryan Spadola.
Geno Smith ran a 4.59 40.
12:30 p.m.: The official 40 times are out. Tavon Austin ran a 4.34, Marquise Goodwin ran a 4.27, DeAndre Hopkins ran a 4.57, Cordarrelle Patterson ran a 4.42, Denard Robinson ran a 4.43, Kenny Stills ran a 4.38, Ryan Swope ran a 4.34, Markus Wheaton ran a 4.45 and Robert Woods ran a 4.51.
12:24 p.m.: Denard Robinson is looking a little lost so far in these drills. He has the right size to be a Chris Johnson-esque running back. It makes sense for him to work on his hands, but it my not be his best position in the pros.
12:16 p.m.: The player to watch in these drills is Denard Robinson. He’s likely been training to play wide receiver, and hopefully those two months of work pay off here.
Ryan Swope has stood out today so far. These 40 times are astronomical for everyone, but Swope running a sub-4.4 is huge.
He’s mostly a slot guy, but he showed the ability to get separation down the field. That 40 time confirms the speed that he flashed during games.
12:07 p.m.: Tyrann Mathieu is speaking to the press here at the combine. He said he hasn’t taken an illegal substance since Oct. 26, 2012, according to Aaron Wilson of the Baltimore Sun. He also said he woke up at 4 a.m. this morning to take a drug test, according to Jeff Howe of the Boston Herald.
12:03 p.m.: We’ve got another sub-4.3 40-yard dash. Kenny Stills of Oklahoma just posted a 4.28. Stills can absolutely fly in shorts and a t-shirt. I have yet to watch Stills’ tape from college, but I’m looking forward to it now.
Ryan Swope from Texas A&M just posted a 4.38. He’ll be a nice slot receiver who has the size to line up out wide and the speed to run down the field.
12:00 p.m.: Denard Robinson just posted a 4.45 for his second time. It’s typical for players to run slower in their second attempt. It will be very interesting once these official times come out. Last year, the official times were usually quite a bit slower than the unofficial hand times. That was because the electronic time was picking up the first twitch when a player would begin.
The official times could boost Tavon Austin or Marquise Goodwin over Chris Johnson’s combine record.
Da’Rick Rogers just ran a 4.44 on his second attempt. That’s good news for the wide receiver that got kicked out of Tennessee for failing three drug tests. Casey Hayward told me before he got drafted by the Packers last year that Rogers was the toughest wide receiver he faced in the SEC.
11:53 a.m.: Robert Woods just ran a 4.44 too. That’s the time of the day for these wideouts. The Patriots typically draft wide receivers who run sub 4.5, so there’s plenty of options here for New England.
11:47 a.m.: These wide receivers are turning in freaky times. Florida State’s Rodney Smith, LeHigh’s Ryan Spadola and Texas A&M’s Ryan Swope all had 4.44’s. Oklahoma’s Kenny Stills and Oregon State’s Markus Wheaton had 4.34’s, Washington State’s Marquess Wilson ran a 4.41 and Baylor’s Terrance Williams ran a 4.46.
11:36 a.m.: Cordarrelle Patterson just confirmed his status in the Top 15 with a 4.37 40-yard dash. He’s 6-foot-2 and runs like a faster Aaron Hernandez after the catch. He only played for one year at the FBS level, though.
Quinton Patton ran a 4.46, which is about where most had him pegged.
Former Michigan quarterback Denard Robinson just ran a 4.34. That’s a great time for him and should boost his stock after a questionable Senior Bowl. The biggest question is where does he fit in? He could be a wide receiver, running back or cornerback at the next level.
11:20 a.m.: Geno Smith just did himself a favor. He ran a 4.56 40-yard dash, which is the best of the quarterbacks so far. E.J. Manuel is second at 4.62.
Smith shows underrated mobility in the pocket, but he hasn’t flashed great skills at putting the ball away and scrambling. His mobility should be viewed more like that of Blaine Gabbert than Jake Locker.
11:13 a.m.: Marquise Goodwin was timed in the 4.1’s by some scouts at the combine. Gil Brandt of NFL.com timed him at 4.17 and 4.19. It will be very interesting to see where his “official” time stands. He clocked an unofficial time of 4.25.
Chris Johnson has the official combine record of 4.24. Deion Sanders and Bo Jackson were both reportedly timed in the 4.1’s back in the 1980s.
10:56 a.m.: Tavon Austin and DeAndre Hopkins are shining in wide receiver drills. That should come as no surprise, both should be first-round picks. Hopkins probably has the best hands in this entire class.
The second group of quarterbacks and wide receivers starts up at 11 a.m. Geno Smith, Cordarrelle Patterson, Denard Robinson and Da’Rick Rogers are players to watch.
10:32 a.m.: There’s some debate out there over how much the combine actually means. For me, it’s a nice update on where these players are two months after the season ended. Players have been training at facilities since the end of December and they’ve been improving their speed, technique, strength, etc.
That’s why it’s slightly annoying to see a player like Justin Hunter say he lost 15 pounds to run a faster 40-yard dash. That’s not an accurate representation of what he’ll be in the NFL. Some players gain weight for the combine, but that’s usually because they’ll have to do the same to play in the league. Hunter ran a 4.41, but what would he have run at this actual playing weight?
10:15 a.m.: DeAndre Hopkins would be a perfect fit for the Patriots in Round 1, but they don’t have a history of drafting wide receivers who run 4.5 or slower. He has some of the best hands in this draft and just showed it in the gauntlet drill.
10:12 a.m.: Tavon Austin is tearing the combine apart. He ran a 4.31 in his second 40 attempt and now he just performed perfectly in the wide receiver gauntlet drill.
Austin has proven himself to be one of the best players in this entire class already today. Someone described him as a combination of Percy Harvin and Wes Welker. That may be accurate.
9:37 a.m.: Stedman Bailey helped himself out with his second 40-yard dash. He ran a 4.50 in his second attempt. That was after running 4.57 in the first try.
Bailey was called the best route runner in college football by his high school and college teammate Geno Smith. Bailey has a bit of Wes Welker to his game.
9:29 a.m.: DeAndre Hopkins is another player that should be on Patriots fans’ radar. Hopkins ran a 4.50, which is about what was expected out of him.
Justin Hunter, who NFL Network said lost weight to run the 40, ran a 4.44.
9:22 a.m.: Now that I’ve had time to actually wrap my head around Tavon Austin running a 4.25 unofficial 40, there’s no way he makes it to No. 29 in the draft to New England. Despite weighing just 174 pounds and standing 5-foot-8, he’ll be a top 15 pick. Austin is a special player.
Josh Boyce helped himself out with a 4.40. Corey Fuller ran a 4.38 and Marcus Davis ran 4.40 at 233 pounds.
Marquise Goodwin just matched Tavon Austin with a 4.25. Wow.
9:15 a.m.: Tavon Austin, who should be a Patriots target, just absolutely killed it with a 4.25 40. He wasn’t kidding when he said he was recently timed at 4.29.
9:11 a.m.: The first group of quarterbacks are done. Now it’s time for the first group of wideouts, which features Tavon Austin, Stedman Bailey and some more intriguing burners.
For the QBs, Colby Cameron came out on top with a 4.66 40. Cameron is a Louisiana Tech product.
Collin Klein ran a 4.78 40 on his second attempt.
9:03 a.m.: The day was kicked off with Tyler Bray running a 5.00 unofficial 40-yard dash. Mike Glennon, one of the top quarterbacks in this class, matched Glennon with a 5-flat 40.
MarQueis Gray helped himself out at possibly making an NFL roster as a tight end by running a 4.69.
Collin Klein, who was a front runner for the Heisman at one point, churned out a 4.81. That’s a bit disappointing.
8 a.m. ET: By the end of the day, NFL draft pundits will be wearing old gold and blue because West Virginia prospects will be taking center stage at Day 4 of the combine.
Quarterbacks, wide receivers and running backs will be running through the NFL scouting combine gauntlet (or inferno) today, and three of the most hyped prospects in that group are Mountaineers quarterback Geno Smith and wide receivers Tavon Austin and Stedman Bailey. All three players should test well and shine in positional drills.
Because California wide receiver Keenan Allen is sitting out, Austin will be the first player to run the 40-yard dash at 9 a.m. The small, shifty wide receiver says he recently ran a 4.29 40-yard dash, but players have a tendency of slowing down considerably once they hit Indianapolis.
Bailey may not be quite as fast or agile as Austin, but he’s a bigger player who will shine in positional drills, especially when he’s displaying his route-running skills. Bailey will likely want to take passes from Smith in those drills — the two have been teammates since high school.
Without a top-tier running quarterback, it might be important for Smith to time well in the 40 to set himself apart from the Ryan Nassibs, Tyler Wilsons and Mike Glennons of the draft.
Among other players to watch on Day 4 of the combine are Oklahoma State running back Joseph Randle, Oregon running back Kenjon Barner and UNC running back Giovani Bernard. All could time very well in the 40 and 3-cone agility drill.
Tennessee wide receivers Cordarrelle Patterson and Justin Hunter are among the most athletic in this class, but Texas wide receiver Marquise Goodwin has the best shot to break Chris Johnson’s combine record 4.24 second 40. Michigan “wide receiver” Denard Robinson might be the player I’ll be watching most closely. He’ll have to display some top-notch speed and agility to be considered more than just a project with so many great wideouts in this draft.
So tune in here all day for all the latest times, news and analysis. If yesterday was any indication, we could see some record breaking times turned in by the skill position players.
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