NFL Draft 2012: Predicting the Top 9 Scouting Combine Winners

The NFL's annual meat market is upon us, which means non-stop coverage of every top NFL prospect performing track and field drills that may or may not help serve as any kind of indication as to what kind of football players these guys are going to be. 

However, these drills are not totally useless. They are best used as a way to back up what you see on tape; for example, if you see a guy play fast on tape but he runs poorly in Indianapolis, its going to make you go back and double check your evaluation. 

As a result, evaluators walk a tightrope when it comes to balancing the importance of combine performance and film study. As soon as you start drafting players based more on track and field numbers than how they perform on tape, you will eventually end up with a team that, well, is better at track and field than playing football. 

Here are projections for who will look the best at this year's Combine.

Chris Rainey, WR/RB, Florida

You can pretty much pencil in Chris Rainey as your 40-yard dash champion. 

His teammate, Jeff Demps, chose to train for the Olympics as opposed to entering the NFL draft, and Demps apparently used to race him after practice - and sometimes win. 

If he runs anything above a 4.9, it would be a shock. 

The issue for Demps is that he must show that he is more than a straight-line runner. The shuttle run and vertical jumps will be big in terms of changing his draft stock. He also needs to showcase good hands and catch the ball away form his body.

Zach Brown, OLB, North Carolina

Chris Rainey may run the faster 40-yard dash, but if he can run in the 4.3s at his size, it would be a far more impressive feat. 

In fact, Brown, who doubles as a track player, owns the North Carolina school record for the 60-yard dash at 6.72 seconds. 

Brown isn't just a straight-line speedster, either: He is fluid and has great change of direction, which is the biggest reason, along with his great instincts, as to why he is widely considered to be a first-round pick. He should dominate in just about every drill. 

Joe Adams, WR, Arkansas

Adams should be one of the select few to run a sub 4.4 in the 40-yard dash, but it is his explosion and change of direction speed that we saw as a punt returner that should catch attention of scouts at the combine. 

He didn't put up huge numbers in college, but he has all of the tools to develop into a quality slot receiver in the NFL. 

He should dominate just about every speed and agility drill at the combine, but Adams needs to show that he can run crisp routes and catch the ball consistently in order to really raise raise his stock. 

David Wilson, RB, Virginia Tech

Wilson may run the fastest 40-yard dash of all of the running backs, as he was reportedly clocked a sub 4.3 time when he was an underclassman at Virginia Tech. 

He is also great in changing direction, and should thus perform well in cone drills. His thick base and explosiveness should result in impressive numbers in the vertical and long jumps. 

If Wilson wants to be the first running back taken after Trent Richardson's name is called, he needs to impress at the combine and at his pro day. Doing so may propel his stock into the first round. 

Michael Brockers, DT, LSU

If Brockers is going to go as high as some have him projected, it will be because of his immense upside. 

Personally, I wouldn't go near a prospect like Brockers, simply beacuse he doesn't show up enough on tape to warrant a top-15 pick. To me, if you are drafting a player just based on potential, I would have a hard time taking him before the third round, never mind the top half of the first round. 

However, he is due to dominate the drills at the combine with his athletisicm and strength, which will make at least one team think he is worth the gamble. 

Quinton Coples, DE, North Carolina

Another athletic freak from Chapel Hill, Coples is a prospect I wouldn't touch with a 20-foot pole. 

He flashed on tape during his junior season at defensive tackle, but once he moved to end for his senior year, he played like a barely draftable player. Meanwhile, the man goes to the Senior Bowl and dominates the competition. 

With all of his athletic prowess, I expect him to wow scouts not only with his explosion and speed, but with his ideal frame at 6'6", 281 lbs. 

After he dominates the competition at the Combine, he is only going to frustrate scouts and general managers more than ever as they try to figure out who the real Quinton Coples is.

Robert Griffin III, QB, Baylor

What excites scouts the most about Robert Griffin is how he breaks the stereotype of athletic quarterbacks by sitting in the pocket and delivering accurate balls, rather than looking to run first.

However, don't underestimate just how impressive of an athlete Griffin is in his own right. He can run as fast as some wide receivers and elude defenders, as well as running backs, in the open field.  

Griffin has (smartly) chosen not to throw at the Combine, as rarely does throwing at the combine help your draft stock, especially for a man that is guaranteed to go as high as RGIII is. He will excite scouts in other, more unconventional ways with his great athletic ability at the Combine. 

Dontari Poe, DT, Memphis

Poe is going to impress more than anyone else in one event—the bench press. His strength coach has said that he thinks Poe could be a professional weightlifter if he didn't pursue football. 

If that is true, I wouldn't put it past Poe to challenge the current Combine record of 49 reps.

In addition, his arms are not particularly long, which usually helps in putting up big numbers in the bench press. However, short arms are not a desirable trait for a defensive tackle; longer arms tend to make it easier to gain leverage, shed blocks and make tackles.  

Andrew Luck

Luck is not going to wow evaluators with speed and agility like his counterpart, Robert Griffin. Even if he does throw (which would be quite foolish), he is not going to show scouts anything they don't already know. In fact, Luck's arm is not considered to be elite. 

What Luck does do at an elite level is diagnose plays and read defenses. He is going to blow people away in the interview room. He is a smart kid that understand the game at all levels, which will be on display at the Combine. 

In today's complex offenses in the NFL, a quarterback's adjustments before the snap are more important than ever before. 

Still, its not like he has a ton to gain, as he is virtually guaranteed to go first overall to the Colts.