NFL Combine Roster 2014: Invite List and Top Prospects to Watch

With 355 prospects—including 85 underclassmen—on the invite list for the 2014 NFL Scouting Combine, the league's annual trip to Indianapolis promises to give draft enthusiasts and scouts all the action they can handle.   

The 85 underclassmen participating is a new record, and Mike McCartney of Priority Sports shows a steep incline of underclassmen at the combine over the course of the past eight years:

While the influx of young players makes this year's draft extremely deep, some of the underclassmen would have likely been better off staying in school another year. This is a sentiment shared by Pittsburgh Steelers general manager Kevin Colbert, as relayed by Alan Robinson of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review:

The evaluations begin in earnest on Wednesday with the first group arriving for medical examinations, orientations and interviews, with a new group filing in the next three days.

The on-field tests will commence starting on Saturday, running until Tuesday.   

When: Feb. 22 to Feb. 25

Where: Lucas Oil Stadium, Indianapolis, Ind.

Watch: NFL Network

Live Stream: NFL Network Online

Positional Groups: 

• Saturday, Feb. 22: Tight ends, offensive linemen, special teams 
• Sunday, Feb. 23: Quarterbacks, running backs, wide receivers 
• Monday, Feb. 24: Defensive linemen, linebackers 
• Tuesday, Feb. 25: Defensive backs 

Invite List

POS.	PLAYER
QB	Blake Bortles, Central Florida
QB	Tajh Boyd, Clemson
QB	Teddy Bridgewater, Louisville
QB	Derek Carr, Fresno State
QB	David Fales, San Jose State
QB	Jimmy Garoppolo, Eastern Illinois
QB	Jordan Lynch, Northern Illinois
QB	Johnny Manziel, Texas A&M
QB	Jeff Mathews (throwing QB), Cornell
QB	AJ McCarron, Alabama
QB	Zach Mettenberger, LSU
QB	Stephen Morris, Miami (Fla.)
QB	Aaron Murray, Georgia
QB	Bryn Renner (throwing QB), North Carolina
QB	Tom Savage, Pittsburgh
QB	Connor Shaw, South Carolina
QB	Logan Thomas, Virginia Tech
QB	Dustin Vaughan (throwing QB), West Texas A&M
QB	Keith Wenning, Ball State
RB	Antonio Andrews, Western Kentucky
RB	Dri Archer, Kent State
RB	George Atkinson, Notre Dame
RB	Kapri Bibbs, Colorado State
RB	Alfred Blue, LSU
RB	Ka'Deem Carey, Arizona
RB	J.C. Copeland (FB), LSU
RB	Tim Cornett, UNLV
RB	Isaiah Crowell, Alabama State
RB	Timothy Flanders, Sam Houston State
RB	David Fluellen, Toledo
RB	Devonta Freeman, Florida State
RB	Tyler Gaffney, Stanford
RB	Marion Grice, Arizona State
RB	Ryan Hewitt (FB), Stanford
RB	Jeremy Hill, LSU
RB	Carlos Hyde, Ohio State
RB	Storm Johnson, Central Florida
RB	Henry Josey, Missouri
RB	Tre Mason, Auburn
RB	Jerick McKinnon, Georgia Southern
RB	Trey Millard (FB), Oklahoma
RB	Adam Muema, San Diego State
RB	LaDarius Perkins, Mississippi State
RB	Silas Redd, USC
RB	Bishop Sankey, Washington
RB	Lache Seastrunk, Baylor
RB	Charles Sims, West Virginia
RB	Jerome Smith, Syracuse
RB	Lorenzo Taliaferro, Coastal Carolina
RB	De'Anthony Thomas, Oregon
RB	Terrance West, Towson
RB	James White, Wisconsin
RB	James Wilder, Florida State
RB	Andre Williams, Boston College
RB	Damien Williams, Oklahoma
WR	Jared Abbrederis, Wisconsin
WR	Davante Adams, Fresno State
WR	Odell Beckham, LSU
WR	Kelvin Benjamin, Florida State
WR	Chris Boyd, Vanderbilt
WR	Corey Brown, Ohio State
WR	John Brown, Pittsburg State
WR	Martavis Bryant, Clemson
WR	Isaiah Burse, Fresno State
WR	Michael Campanaro, Wake Forest
WR	Brandon Coleman, Rutgers
WR	Kain Colter, Northwestern
WR	Brandin Cooks, Oregon State
WR	Damian Copeland, Louisville
WR	Mike Davis, Texas
WR	Bruce Ellington, South Carolina
WR	Quincy Enunwa, Nebraska
WR	Mike Evans, Texas A&M
WR	Shaq Evans, UCLA
WR	Bennie Fowler, Michigan State
WR	Austin Franklin, New Mexico State
WR	Jeremy Gallon, Michigan
WR	Ryan Grant, Tulane
WR	Matt Hazel, Coastal Carolina
WR	Robert Herron, Wyoming
WR	Cody Hoffman, BYU
WR	Josh Huff, Oregon
WR	Allen Hurns, Miami (Fla.)
WR	Jeff Janis, Saginaw Valley State
WR	TJ Jones, Notre Dame
WR	Jarvis Landry, LSU
WR	Cody Latimer, Indiana
WR	Marqise Lee, USC
WR	Marcus Lucas, Missouri
WR	Jordan Matthews, Vanderbilt
WR	Donte Moncrief, Ole Miss
WR	Kevin Norwood, Alabama
WR	Walt Powell, Murray State
WR	Tevin Reese, Baylor
WR	Paul Robinson, Colorado
WR	Allen Robinson, Penn State
WR	Jalen Saunders, Oklahoma
WR	Willie Snead, Ball State
WR	Josh Stewart, Oklahoma State
WR	Devin Street, Pittsburgh
WR	L'Damian Washington, Missouri
WR	Sammy Watkins, Clemson
WR	Albert Wilson, Georgia State
TE	Jace Amaro, Texas Tech
TE	Rob Blanchflower, Massachusetts
TE	Trey Burton, Florida
TE	Anthony Denham, Utah
TE	Joe Don Duncan, Dixie State
TE	Eric Ebron, North Carolina
TE	C.J. Fiedorowicz, Iowa
TE	Crockett Gillmore, Colorado State
TE	Xavier Grimble, USC
TE	Nic Jacobs, McNeese State
TE	Marcel Jensen, Fresno State
TE	Reggie Jordan, Missouri Western State
TE	A.C. Leonard, Tennessee State
TE	Colt Lyerla, Oregon
TE	Arthur Lynch, Georgia
TE	Jake Murphy, Utah
TE	Jordan Najvar, Baylor
TE	Troy Niklas, Notre Dame
TE	Jacob Pedersen, Wisconsin
TE	Richard Rodgers, California
TE	Austin Seferian-Jenkins, Washington
TE	D.J. Tialavea, Utah State
OL	Matt Armstrong (C), Grand Valley State
OL	Joel Bitonio (OT), Nevada
OL	Russell Bodine (C), North Carolina
OL	Conor Boffeli (G), Iowa
OL	Justin Britt (OT), Missouri
OL	Dakota Dozier (OT), Furman
OL	Kadeem Edwards (G), Tennessee State
OL	Matt Feiler (OT), Bloomsburg
OL	Cameron Fleming (OT), Stanford
OL	Zach Fulton (G), Tennessee
OL	Ryan Groy (G), Wisconsin
OL	Jon Halapio (G), Florida
OL	Jonotthan Harrison (C), Florida
OL	Seantrel Henderson (OT), Miami (Fla.)
OL	James Hurst (OT), North Carolina
OL	Gabe Ikard (C), Oklahoma
OL	Gabe Jackson (G), Mississippi State
OL	Ja'wuan James (OT), Tennessee
OL	Wesley Johnson (OT), Vanderbilt
OL	Cyrus Kouandjio (OT), Alabama
OL	Tyler Larsen (C), Utah State
OL	Charles Leno (OT), Boise State
OL	Taylor Lewan (OT), Michigan
OL	Brandon Linder (G), Miami (Fla.)
OL	Spencer Long (G), Nebraska
OL	Cornelius Lucas (OT), Kansas State
OL	Marcus Martin (C), USC
OL	Zack Martin (OT), Notre Dame
OL	Jake Matthews (OT), Texas A&M
OL	Jack Mewhort (OT), Ohio State
OL	Morgan Moses (OT), Virginia
OL	Matt Paradis (C), Boise State
OL	Matt Patchan (OT), Boston College
OL	Antonio Richardson (OT), Tennessee
OL	Cyril Richardson (G), Baylor
OL	Weston Richburg (C), Colorado State
OL	Greg Robinson (OT), Auburn
OL	Michael Schofield (OT), Michigan
OL	Anthony Steen (G), Alabama
OL	James Stone (C), Tennessee
OL	Bryan Stork (C), Florida State
OL	Xavier Su'a-Filo (G), UCLA
OL	Travis Swanson (C), Arkansas
OL	Brandon Thomas (OT), Clemson
OL	Trai Turner (G), LSU
OL	Billy Turner (OT), North Dakota State
OL	John Urschel (G), Penn State
OL	Chris Watt (G), Notre Dame
OL	David Yankey (G), Stanford
DL	Jay Bromley (DT), Syracuse
DL	Ryan Carrethers (DT), Arkansas State
DL	Will Clarke (DE), West Virginia
DL	Jadeveon Clowney (DE), South Carolina
DL	DeAndre Coleman (DT), California
DL	Scott Crichton (DE), Oregon State
DL	Aaron Donald (DT), Pittsburgh
DL	Kony Ealy (DE), Missouri
DL	Dominique Easley (DT), Florida
DL	Kasim Edebali (DE), Boston College
DL	Justin Ellis (DT), Louisiana Tech
DL	IK Enemkpali (DE), Louisiana Tech
DL	Ego Ferguson (DT), LSU
DL	Dee Ford (DE), Auburn
DL	James Gayle (DE), Virginia Tech
DL	Ra'Shede Hageman (DT), Minnesota
DL	Taylor Hart (DE), Oregon
DL	Kerry Hyder (DT), Texas Tech
DL	Jackson Jeffcoat (DE), Texas
DL	Timmy Jernigan (DT), Florida State
DL	Anthony Johnson (DT), LSU
DL	DaQuan Jones (DT), Penn State
DL	Howard Jones (DE), Shephard
DL	Zach Kerr (DT), Delaware
DL	Demarcus Lawrence (DE), Boise State
DL	Aaron Lynch (DE), South Florida
DL	Eathyn Manumaleuna (DE), BYU
DL	Cassius Marsh (DE), UCLA
DL	Kareem Martin (DE), North Carolina
DL	Josh Mauro (DE), Stanford
DL	Daniel McCullers (DT), Tennessee
DL	Tevin Mims (DE), South Florida
DL	Zach Moore (DE), Concordia (Minn.)
DL	Jonathan Newsome (DE), Ball State
DL	Louis Nix III (DT), Notre Dame
DL	Jeoffrey Pagan (DE), Alabama
DL	Tenny Palepoi (DT), Utah
DL	Mike Pennel (DT), Colorado State-Pueblo
DL	Kelcy Quarles (DT), South Carolina
DL	Kaleb Ramsey (DE), Boston College
DL	Caraun Reid (DT), Princeton
DL	Michael Sam (DE), Missouri
DL	Chris Smith (DE), Arkansas
DL	Marcus Smith (DE), Louisville
DL	Shamar Stephen (DT), Connecticut
DL	Ed Stinson (DE), Alabama
DL	Will Sutton (DT), Arizona State
DL	Robert Thomas (DT), Arkansas
DL	Khyri Thornton (DT), Southern Mississippi
DL	Stephon Tuitt (DE), Notre Dame
DL	George Uko (DE), USC
DL	Brent Urban (DT), Virginia
DL	Larry Webster (DE), Bloomsburg
DL	Ethan Westbrooks (DE), West Texas A&M
DL	Chris Whaley (DT), Texas
DL	Kerry Wynn (DT), Richmond
LB	Jerry Attaochu (OLB), Georgia Tech
LB	Anthony Barr (OLB), UCLA
LB	Lamin Barrow (OLB), LSU
LB	Chris Borland (ILB), Wisconsin
LB	Carl Bradford (OLB), Arizona State
LB	Jonathan Brown (ILB), Illinois
LB	Preston Brown (ILB), Louisville
LB	Max Bullough (ILB), Michigan State
LB	Khairi Fortt (ILB), California
LB	Jeremiah George (ILB), Iowa State
LB	Anthony Hitchens (OLB), Iowa
LB	Adrian Hubbard (OLB), Alabama
LB	Andrew Jackson (ILB), Western Kentucky
LB	Christian Jones (ILB), Florida State
LB	Devon Kennard (OLB), USC
LB	Chris Kirksey (OLB), Iowa
LB	Boseko Lokombo (OLB), Oregon
LB	Khalil Mack (OLB), Buffalo
LB	James Morris (ILB), Iowa
LB	C.J. Mosley (ILB), Alabama
LB	Trent Murphy (OLB), Stanford
LB	Kevin Pierre-Louis (OLB), Boston College
LB	Ronald Powell (OLB), Florida
LB	Trevor Reilly (OLB), Utah
LB	Ryan Shazier (OLB), Ohio State
LB	Prince Shembo (OLB), Notre Dame
LB	Shayne Skov (ILB), Stanford
LB	Yawin Smallwood (OLB), Connecticut
LB	Telvin Smith (ILB), Florida State
LB	Tyler Starr (OLB), South Dakota
LB	Jordan Tripp (OLB), Montana
LB	Uani Unga (ILB), BYU
LB	Kyle Van Noy (OLB), BYU
LB	Avery Williamson (ILB), Kentucky
LB	Jordan Zumwalt (ILB), UCLA
DB	Mo Alexander (SS), Utah State
DB	Ricardo Allen (CB), Purdue
DB	Dion Bailey (SS), USC
DB	Deion Belue (CB), Alabama
DB	Bene Benwikere (CB), San Jose State
DB	Nat Berhe (SS), San Diego State
DB	Tre Boston (SS), North Carolina
DB	Bashaud Breeland (CB), Clemson
DB	Terrence Brooks (FS), Florida State
DB	Deone Bucannon (SS), Washington State
DB	Travis Carrie (CB), Ohio
DB	Ha Ha Clinton-Dix (FS), Alabama
DB	Ross Cockrell (CB), Duke
DB	Aaron Colvin (CB), Oklahoma
DB	Chris Davis (CB), Auburn
DB	Darqueze Dennard (CB), Michigan State
DB	Pierre Desir (CB), Lindenwood
DB	Ahmad Dixon (SS), Baylor
DB	Brandon Dixon (CB), Northwest Missouri State
DB	Jonathan Dowling (SS), Western Kentucky
DB	Antone Exum (CB), Virginia Tech
DB	Kyle Fuller (CB), Virginia Tech
DB	E.J. Gaines (CB), Missouri
DB	Phillip Gaines (CB), Rice
DB	Justin Gilbert (CB), Oklahoma State
DB	Demetri Goodson (CB), Baylor
DB	Dre Hal (CB), Vanderbilt
DB	Victor Hampton (CB), South Carolina
DB	Marqueston Huff (FS), Wyoming
DB	Bennett Jackson (CB), Notre Dame
DB	Kendall James (CB), Maine
DB	Stanley Jean-Baptiste (CB), Nebraska
DB	Dontae Johnson (CB), North Carolina State
DB	LaMarcus Joyner (CB), Florida State
DB	Kenny Ladler (FS), Vanderbilt
DB	Nevin Lawson (CB), Utah State
DB	Isaiah Lewis (SS), Michigan State
DB	Craig Loston (SS), LSU
DB	Dexter McDougle (CB), Maryland
DB	Keith McGill (CB), Utah
DB	Terrance Mitchell (CB), Oregon
DB	Jabari Price (CB), North Carolina
DB	Calvin Pryor (FS), Louisville
DB	Loucheiz Purifoy (CB), Florida
DB	Keith Reaser (CB), Florida Atlantic
DB	Ed Reynolds (FS), Stanford
DB	Rashaad Reynolds (CB), Oregon State
DB	Marcus Roberson (CB), Florida
DB	Bradley Roby (CB), Ohio State
DB	Daniel Sorensen (FS), BYU
DB	Dez Southward (FS), Wisconsin
DB	Vinnie Sunseri (SS), Alabama
DB	Jemea Thomas (CB), Georgia Tech
DB	Brock Vereen (FS), Minnesota
DB	Jason Verrett (CB), TCU
DB	Jimmie Ward (SS), Northern Illinois
DB	Todd Washington (CB), Southeastern Louisiana
DB	Jaylen Watkins (CB), Florida
DB	Lavelle Westbrooks (CB), Georgia Southern
ST	Chris Boswell (K), Rice
ST	Steven Clark (P), Auburn
ST	Anthony Fera (K), Texas
ST	Marcus Heit (LS), Kansas State
ST	Zach Hocker (K), Arkansas
ST	Tom Hornsey (P), Memphis
ST	Richie Leone (P), Houston
ST	Cody Mandell (P), Alabama
ST	Pat O'Donnell (P), Miami (Fla.)
ST	Cairo Santos (K), Tulane

Top Prospects to Watch

Teddy Bridgewater, QB, Louisville

Johnny Manziel will attract hoards of media attention, but he's not going to throw at this year's combine per agent Erik Burkhardt:

Everyone already knows he's a talented athlete with speed, so he's not going to do his draft stock any favors on the field in Indy.

Teddy Bridgewater, on the other hand, has a chance to change a few perceptions about his skill set at Lucas Oil Stadium. He's set to throw, run and everything else in between at the combine, which is certainly in his best interest.

Despite the fact that Bridgewater showed proficiency, leadership and gobs of talent during his tenure at Louisville, there are plenty of evaluators who aren't wowed by what he brings to the pro game. NFL.com analyst Daniel Jeremiah is one of them:

"

The thing with Bridgewater is he is solid in all areas, but he doesn't have that wow characteristic. He doesn't have off-the-charts size. He doesn't have a humongous arm. He's not a great athlete. He's good, he is proficient in all these different areas.

"

Bridgewater can change this perception with a faster-than-expected 40 time, an excellent throwing session and by showing up to the combine with an impressive upper-body physique.

Given his known leadership qualities, he'll force Houston to consider taking him over Manziel or Blake Bortles with the No. 1 overall pick if he can impress at the combine. 

Sammy Watkins, WR, Clemson

Wide receiver Sammy Watkins can potentially make himself a lot of money by putting up big numbers at the combine. 

He's already considered by most draft analysts as this year's premier receiver. Legend Greg Cosell of NFL Films called him potentially the best prospect since Julio Jones and A.J. Green, per CollegeFootball 24/7:

But if Watkins comes out and puts down a blazing-fast 40 time—say in the sub-4.40-second range—then he'll be even more highly coveted and could go extremely high in Round 1. 

If so, then the St. Louis Rams at No. 2 could potentially be a destination for the talented receiver, and it would be utterly shocking if he ends up sliding past the Tampa Bay Buccaneers at No. 7. 

Eric Ebron, TE, North Carolina

Like Watkins, tight end Eric Ebron out of North Carolina has a chance to boost his stock by showcasing his speed, athleticism and explosiveness at the combine. 

A player some have compared to San Francisco 49ers tight end Vernon Davis, Ebron isn't expected to post Davis-type numbers at the combine, but he could come close. For his part, the young prospect isn't lacking confidence in his ability to scorch.

He told CollegeFootball 24/7 (via Mike Huguenin of NFL.com) that he plans on showing up at 250 pounds, adding that his size/speed mix "should be illegal." He continued, "I'm going to continue to run around illegally."

If Ebron can log a 40 time in the 4.50-4.55-second range, then he'll cement himself as a potential top-10 pick in the 2014 NFL draft. 

Greg Robinson, OT, Auburn

Auburn's Greg Robinson has a chance to leapfrog Jake Matthews as the first offensive tackle selected in the 2014 NFL draft, and a strong showing at the combine would help his cause significantly. 

Matthews is more technically sound than Robinson, and he has more experience. However, Robinson appears to have more upside athletically, per Mike Loyko of NEPatriotsDraft.com, and he'll boost his stock by performing well in the kick-slide drills, showing good strength on the bench press and by running well:

Jadeveon Clowney, DE, South Carolina

Everybody wants to see what kind of numbers Jadeveon Clowney will put up at the combine. 

The leading freak of nature attending this year's event, Clowney expects to put up jaw-dropping numbers, as relayed by The State's Josh Kendall:

While Houston desperately needs a quarterback, there are many who believe the Texans will take Clowney if he lives up to expectations at the combine.

Dan Greenspan of NFL.com is among that number: "If Clowney lives up to the immense expectations and runs anywhere close to a sub-4.5 40, all the suspense of the draft will start with the second pick because the top spot will be locked up."

Get your popcorn ready, because Clowney should put on an amazing show. 

Follow me on Twitter @JesseReed78