6 NFL Draft Prospects New York Giants Should Be Watching at Combine
After this week, draft talk is no longer purely speculation.
The 2015 NFL Scouting Combine kicks off with players reporting to Indianapolis on Tuesday. By the end of the week, Lucas Oil Stadium will serve as the venue for America's favorite televised job interview.
From interviews to body measurements to various timed and measured exercises, every aspect of these professional prospects will be subject to intense scrutiny. Some draft stocks will soar, while others will plummet.
In the slides to follow are six draft hopefuls to whom the New York Giants should pay extra close attention at the combine.
T.J. Clemmings, OT, Pitt
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If the Giants go offensive line in the first round, the pick has to be Iowa's Brandon Scherff, right?
Maybe not.
NFL Media analyst Mike Mayock's most recent positional rankings list Scherff as a guard. Although he played plenty of tackle as a Hawkeye, would the Giants be willing to spend the ninth overall pick on an interior lineman?
If not, T.J. Clemmings could be New York's guy at pick No. 9. The Pitt product is a pure tackle, fitting best on the right side. If the Giants move Justin Pugh to right guard, Clemmings could start for the Giants at tackle right away.
Bleacher Report's Matt Miller named Clemmings as a rising prospect last month, after a scout told him that the tackle had "the most powerful punch" in college football last year. The Giants can verify this by keeping a close eye on Clemmings' strength workouts at the combine.
Shane Ray, DE, Missouri
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If the Giants want to bring in a defensive weapon with their first-round pick, the natural place to look would be pass-rusher.
There are a handful of highly touted guys near the top, including USC's Leonard Williams, Nebraska's Randy Gregory and Clemson's Vic Beasley. Of course, there's a chance that all of these guys are off the board when the Giants pick at No. 9, and then there's the reality that none of these guys are guaranteed to fit in defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo's scheme.
Another pass-rusher who fits into this category is Missouri's Shane Ray. As productive as he was in his final collegiate season, earning SEC Defensive Player of the Year and setting a school record with 14.5 sacks, the defensive end could run into size limitations in the NFL.
At 6'3" and only 245 pounds, Ray's frame screams "tweener." A recent tweet from B/R's Matt Miller doesn't help sell Ray's potential as a full-time D-end, either. The Giants should have a vested interest in Ray's strength workouts, as well as his official size measurements.
Denzel Perryman, LB, Miami
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After the Giants select ninth overall, they'll have to sweat out 30 more picks before getting the opportunity to draft again. During that span, the player for whom fans should keep their fingers crossed is Miami's Denzel Perryman.
Perryman is a borderline first-round talent at linebacker, but it wouldn't be unrealistic to see him slip into the Giants' range—the eighth pick in the second round. If that happens, he's a player New York can't afford to pass on, as Bleacher Report's Patricia Traina argued last month.
The knock against Perryman is his height, which is maybe 6'0" on his tiptoes. The former Hurricane is a natural playmaker who's at his finest pursuing a play that's in front of him. He's a hard hitter who plays with tremendous energy, and it shouldn't take long for him to become a valuable contributor in the NFL.
The Giants should hope Perryman comes up a tad short in his size measurements at the combine, which would perhaps discourage teams from taking him in the first round. You can't measure his on-field impact with a stopwatch or yardstick.
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Gerod Holliman, FS, Louisville
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A lot of guys have the potential to swing their draft potential at the combine, but this is especially true for one safety in this year's class.
No one disputes the dominant season Louisville's Gerod Holliman had as a redshirt sophomore last year. He tied an NCAA record with 14 interceptions and won the Jim Thorpe Award, which is given each year to college football's best defensive back.
What is up for discussion is his potential as a professional safety.
Whereas NFL Media analyst Bucky Brooks compared Holliman to a young Ed Reed, a different scout told Bob McGinn of the Journal Sentinel that he is "horrible." Those who love Holliman tend to praise his instincts, while his detractors condemn his tackling and fundamentals.
Everyone knows Holliman is an athlete. The most telling takeaways from his combine could come from the interview portion.
Breshad Perriman, WR, Central Florida
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The Giants could be on the prowl for a mid-round wide receiver to help bolster a unit that usually weathers several injuries. This pick might even have the chance to contribute right away, if Victor Cruz is slow to recover from his knee injury.
An interesting option to watch is Central Florida's Breshad Perriman. He has the frame (6'3", 214 lbs) and collegiate production (50 catches, 1,044 yards, 50 yards) to warrant a long look. He also has the bloodline to draw some serious interest, as his father, Brett, played 10 seasons in the NFL.
NFL Media's Gil Brandt recently hyped Perriman as a riser in this year's draft (per Chase Goodbread, NFL.com), but that sudden ascension could come to an abrupt end with a poor performance at the combine.
Raw and somewhat sloppy, according to a scouting report by NFL Media's Lance Zierlein, Perriman will need to display remarkable athleticism and solid hands during pass-catching drills at the combine.
John Crockett, RB, North Dakota State
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There's no better time to uncover complete unknowns than at the combine. It's the only place where a player from North Dakota State, for example, can finally steal the spotlight from celebrated Power Five prospects.
And that's where running back John Crockett comes in.
He was a workhorse for the FCS Bison, so you know he's going to come to the NFL with a legitimate blue-collar mentality. For him, the combine is a real job interview.
It's not about where he's drafted; it's if he's drafted.
On the fringe of undrafted free agency is not a comfortable place for a small-school guy who is struggling to get noticed. The Giants, however, could be one team that takes note of the young ball-carrier.
New York has spent seventh-round selections on running backs in the past (Ahmad Bradshaw, Da'Rel Scott, Michael Cox) and has done so with mixed results. It's a position on which the Giants don't mind taking a low-risk chance.
Could Crockett prove himself to be at all worth a selection with his performance at the combine?
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