2015 NFL Scouting Combine: Draft Prospects with the Most to Lose
Starting February 17, more than 300 young men are going to be thrust in a direction that will play a vital role in shaping the rest of their lives.
For these blossoming athletes, the NFL Scouting Combine will be the biggest moment in their post-collegiate careers to that point. Essentially, they will participate in the most thorough job interview of their lives. Not only are millions of dollars at stake, but fame and glory are as well. A life lavished in luxury is at the tip of each idealistic player's fingers.
The hope is that they don't get this close, just to let the ultimate dream slip away. Unfortunately, life can be just as cruel as it can be rewarding to those chasing their dreams.
The NFL is no place for fairytale endings—or beginnings, for that matter.
Over the years, the NFL has evolved into an unsurpassed entertainment giant. This is in large part due to the quality of the product on the field—which has been fine-tuned for decades to find the most elite athletes and the strongest men in the world. The combine is a tool for NFL teams to better weed out or identify the players they want or don’t want to be part of their organization.
NFL hopefuls are not starting on an equal playing field. Some have much more to lose than others at the combine for a variety of reasons.
These are just a few of the prospects who could suffer a major setback based on a poor showing in Indianapolis.
Leonard Williams, Edge, USC
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When ESPN.com ranks Williams as the top prospect in the 2015 NFL draft, a notion in which I happen to agree, he has nowhere to go but down. It’s unlikely the Tampa Bay Buccaneers will be swayed from taking a quarterback, so the best-case scenario for this dynamic player is to go No. 2 overall.
Under this assumption, the combine will take on an entirely different function for Williams.
Earlier, I was engaged in a Twitter debate with former Bleacher Report Featured Columnist Alen Dumonjic. Apparently, Williams is lacking in explosion enough to put him in the overrated category. Dumonjic even ranks him lower than Nebraska edge-rusher Randy Gregory.
If this concern is shared with NFL teams, Williams could have a great deal to lose if his testing numbers confirm a lack of explosion.
Brett Hundley, QB, UCLA
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As many of you already know by now, Brett Hundley is considered one of the top quarterback prospects in this draft. He is even in consideration to be the third quarterback taken.
But when Hundley was invited to participate in the Senior Bowl back in early February, he failed to show up, adding to a list of 29 invites that turned down the opportunity. But what’s worse, according to event organizer Phil Savage, per ESPN.com’s Kevin Weidl, nine of those 29 players “did not handle their business with regard to turning down their invites, a list that included UCLA QB Brett Hundley.”
With that being the situation for Hundley, he will need to impress NFL execs with regard to the interview process and prove to teams that he has the maturity and wherewithal to lead an NFL franchise.
In addition, with many concerns about his accuracy and ball placement, Hundley would be smart not to avoid another opportunity when he will be asked to throw in Indianapolis. Should he shy away from an opportunity to compete yet again, he could fall significantly on several draft boards.
Todd Gurley, RB, Georgia
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Back in November 2014, running back Todd Gurley was all set to return form a four-game suspension after signing autographs for money. Upon his return, he suffered a torn ACL. The injury required major surgery and extensive rehab.
As many of you may recall, South Carolina running back Marcus Lattimore ended his college career with a gruesome knee injury that he never fully recovered from. The San Francisco 49ers drafted him in the fourth round, but he was forced to retire from the NFL without ever playing a single snap in a live game.
The hope is that Gurley has completely recovered from the injury and will be able to continue his career without a hitch. However, he will likely forgo any of the drills while he recovers and will likely aim to show off his physical skills at his Georgia pro day.
Many questions regarding the stability and progress of that knee will be put to the test at the combine during the medical exams. If everything checks out perfectly, Gurley could hear his name called on the first day. However, if he shows signs of a medical red flag, he could fall several rounds and beyond.
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Dante Fowler Jr., Edge, Florida
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The NFL draft is more about projecting what a player can do at the next level rather than what he did in college. Through that lens, Dante Fowler Jr. does seem to possess all the physical attributes of a first-round prospect and could even be considered the top edge-rusher in terms of potential.
This is the sentiments of B/R’s Dan Hope, where he makes a strong argument in favor of Fowler being the best available pass-rusher in this draft.
I happen to see far too many weaknesses in the way the former Gator plays the game. Functional strength, awareness, anchoring and limited pass-rush moves have caused him to claim a lower ranking than most in my top-ranked edge defenders.
Fowler’s potential hinges almost exclusively on his physical ability. For this reason, he will need to show up big in Indy if he’s going to be one of the first edge-rushers in this class. If Fowler doesn’t time well, he could dilute his most valuable asset, which would hurt his stock.
Dorial Green-Beckham, WR, Missouri/Oklahoma
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Character concerns loom heavy over the prospect some believe could be the most talented player in the 2015 draft. At 6’5”, 220 pounds, Dorial Green-Beckham runs like a deer and jumps like that tiger leaping for meat in that viral video.
On the field, there are few questions about what Green-Beckham can bring to the table. However, when it comes to his character and history off the field, he might be one of the biggest risks in this draft.
According to CBSSports.com, here are the big concerns:
"Expected to potentially be a top 10 pick following the 2014 season, Green-Beckham's lengthy list of off-field issues caught up with him as he was dismissed from the team in April. In addition to multiple marijuana-related issues, he was suspended and eventually booted from the Tigers' program following an incident in which he allegedly pushed an 18-year-old Missouri student down at least four stairs, although no charges were filed.
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Amid a sensitive environment where guys like Ray Rice, Adrian Peterson, Justin Blackmon, Josh Gordon and others have all missed significant time due to suspensions, teams are bound to be more cautious about character issues. This applies to the league as a whole. The NFL has laid out its plan to strengthen its personal conduct policy when it comes to penalties for domestic violence issues.
DGB's three days at the combine will likely be observed both up close and from a distance at all times. He needs to show teams he can be a professional and not repeat the same mistakes in his past.
Jameis Winston, QB, Florida State
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There’s a lot of pressure being listed as the consensus first overall pick in the draft well before the combine takes place. That essentially means everything Jameis Winston does from here on out as the front-runner will be done as an attempt to preserve his status rather than to improve it.
So, this presents a tough challenge for Winston when he sits down in front of scouts, general managers and coaches while they probe and pick at his sketchy past from every angle imaginable. The big question will be whether Winston’s depiction of events will convince his potential employers to draft him or insert a new level of doubt about his character.
The big issues that will come under the microscope in Indy are listed in chronological order here, as per Kevin Vaughan of FoxSports.com.
Josh Shaw, CB, USC
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Last summer, Josh Shaw was preparing for his senior year at USC before it derailed in the oddest of ways.
In a story written by Kyle Bonagura of ESPN.com, Shaw was depicted as a hero. Bonagura details the events below:
"Just hours after being voted a team captain on Saturday, Shaw was attending a family function when he saw his 7-year-old nephew, who does not know how to swim, struggling in a nearby pool. Instinctively, Shaw jumped from a second-floor balcony onto concrete below and crawled into the pool where he was able to help his nephew to safety, according to a release from the school.
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That story eventually would spread across the nation. The only problem was—it was a complete lie.
According to Bill Plaschke of the Los Angeles Times: "He [Shaw] finally confessed the lie to university officials after they had been alerted Shaw had jumped off his balcony after a loud argument with his longtime girlfriend, Angela Chilton. That argument resulted in a neighbor calling police, who opened a domestic violence investigation."
Shaw has already had the opportunity to sit with scouts and other NFL reps when he participated in the East West Shrine Game and the Senior Bowl. But the combine provides teams a more thorough opportunity to dive into his character makeup to see if this incident is an indicator for a much bigger problem. If so, the cornerback who had six interceptions in 2013 may go undrafted.
Ryan Riddle is a former NFL player who writes for Bleacher Report.
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