NFL Combine Roster 2015: Invite List and Top Prospects to Watch

The brief window in each calendar year where the NFL doesn't factor into the broader sports conversation is over.

There's usually a bit of a post-Super Bowl lull when it comes to major NFL news, especially now that the Pro Bowl takes place before the big game. Now, with the official 2015 NFL combine invite list out and some preliminary combine activities having already taken place on Tuesday, it's officially draft season for pro football fans. 

The invite list of NFL hopefuls is exhaustive. It's a who's who of college football stars and studs, along with some small-school sleepers and overlooked prospects vying to make a name for themselves in Indianapolis 

Some players will court much more attention than others over the course of the six-day scouting event, from both franchises and media alike. Let's take a look at three of the top players to watch at this year's combine after a rundown of the complete invite list.

Quarterbacks
Running Backs
Wide Receivers
Tight Ends
Offensive Linemen
Defensive Linemen
Linebackers
Defensive Backs
Specialists
Player	School
Anthony Boone	Duke
Brandon Bridge	South Alabama
Cody Fajardo	Nevada
Garrett Grayson	Colorado State
Connor Halliday	Washington State
Brett Hundley	UCLA
Sean Mannion	Oregon State
Marcus Mariota	Oregon
Nick Marshall	Auburn
Bryce Petty	Baylor
Blake Sims	Alabama
Jameis Winston	Florida State
Bryan Bennett	Southeastern Louisiana
Shane Carden	East Carolina
Jerry Lovelocke	Prairie View A&M
Player	School
Ameer Abdullah	Nebraska
Jay Ajayi	Boise State
Buck Allen	USC
Cameron Artis-Payne	Auburn
Dominique Brown	Louisville
Malcolm Brown	Texas
Mike Burton	Rutgers
B.J. Catalon	TCU
David Cobb	Minnesota
Tevin Coleman	Indiana
John Crockett	North Dakota State
Mike Davis	South Carolina
Michael Dyer	Louisville
Jahwan Edwards	Ball State
Jalston Fowler	Alabama
Melvin Gordon	Wisconsin
Todd Gurley	Georgia
Dee Hart	Colorado State
Braylon Heard	Kentucky
Kenny Hilliard	LSU
Joey Iosefa	Hawaii
David Johnson	Northern Iowa
Duke Johnson	Miami (Fla.)
Gus Johnson	Stephen F. Austin
Matt Jones	Florida
Jeremy Langford	Michigan State
Terrence Magee	LSU
Marcus Murphy	Missouri
Thomas Rawls	Central Michigan
Josh Robinson	Mississippi State
Ross Scheuerman	Lafayette
Tyler Varga	Yale
Karlos Williams	Florida State
Trey Williams	Texas A&M
T.J. Yeldon	Alabama
Zach Zenner	South Dakota State
Player	School
Nelson Agholor	USC
Mario Alford	West Virginia
Dres Anderson	Utah
Kenny Bell	Nebraska
Da'Ron Brown	Northern Illinois
Kaelin Clay	Utah
Sammie Coates	Auburn
Chris Conley	Georgia
Amari Cooper	Alabama
Jamison Crowder	Duke
Davaris Daniels	Notre Dame
Devante Davis	UNLV
Geremy Davis	Connecticut
Titus Davis	Central Michigan
Stefon Diggs	Maryland
Phillip Dorsett	Miami (Fla.)
Devin Funchess	Michigan
Antwan Goodley	Baylor
Dorial Green-Beckham	Oklahoma
Rashad Greene	Florida State
Rannell Hall	Central Florida
Justin Hardy	East Carolina
Josh Harper	Fresno State
Christion Jones	Alabama
Dezmin Lewis	Central Arkansas
Tony Lippett	Michigan State
Tyler Lockett	Kansas State
Deon Long	Maryland
Tello Luckett	Harding
Vince Mayle	Washington State
Tre McBride	William & Mary
Ty Montgomery	Stanford
Keith Mumphery	Michigan State
J.J. Nelson	Alabama-Birmingham
DeVante Parker	Louisville
Breshad Perriman	Central Florida
Ezell Ruffin	San Diego State
DeAndre Smelter	Georgia Tech
Devin Smith	Ohio State
Jaelen Strong	Arizona State
Darren Waller	Georgia Tech
DeAndrew White	Alabama
Kevin White	West Virginia
Cam Worthy	East Carolina
Player	School
Blake Bell	Oklahoma
E.J. Bibbs	Iowa State
Nick Boyle	Delaware
Gerald Christian	Louisville
Cameron Clear	Texas A&M
A.J. Derby	Arkansas
Jeff Heuerman	Ohio State
Jesse James	Penn State
Ben Koyack	Notre Dame
Tyler Kroft	Rutgers
Nick O'Leary	Florida State
MyCole Pruitt	Southern Illinois
Wes Saxton	South Alabama
Jean Sifrin	Massachusetts
Randall Telfer	USC
Eric Tomlinson	UTEP
Clive Walford	Miami (Fla.)
Maxx Williams	Minnesota
Player	School
Al Bond	Memphis
Brett Boyko	UNLV
Jamon Brown	Louisville
Trent Brown	Florida
A.J. Cann	South Carolina
T.J. Clemmings	Pittsburgh
Takoby Cofield	Duke
La'el Collins	LSU
Rob Crisp	North Carolina State
Reese Dismukes	Auburn
Andrew Donnal	Iowa
Jamil Douglas	Arizona State
Cameron Erving	Florida State
Tayo Fabuluje	TCU
Jon Feliciano	Miami (Fla.)
B.J. Finney	Kansas State
Jake Fisher	Oregon
Ereck Flowers	Miami (Fla.)
Andy Gallik	Boston College
Max Garcia	Florida
Laurence Gibson	Virginia Tech
Mark Glowinski	West Virginia
Hroniss Grasu	Oregon
Chaz Green	Florida
Chad Hamilton	Coastal Carolina
Jarvis Harrison	Texas A&M
Bobby Hart	Florida State
Rob Havenstein	Wisconsin
Sean Hickey	Syracuse
D.J. Humphries	Florida
Tre Jackson	Florida State
Arie Kouandjio	Alabama
Greg Mancz	Toledo
Ali Marpet	Hobart
Josue Matias	Florida State
Darrian Miller	Kentucky
John Miller	Louisville
Mitch Morse	Missouri
Robert Myers	Tennessee State
Cedric Ogbuehi	Texas A&M
Andrus Peat	Stanford
Terry Poole	San Diego State
Jeremiah Poutasi	Utah
Corey Robinson	South Carolina
Ty Sambrailo	Colorado State
Brandon Scherff	Iowa
Adam Shead	Oklahoma
Austin Shepherd	Alabama
Donovan Smith	Penn State
Tyrus Thompson	Oklahoma
Laken Tomlinson	Duke
Daryl Williams	Oklahoma
Player	School
Henry Anderson	Stanford
Arik Armstead	Oregon
Tavaris Barnes	Clemson
Vic Beasley	Clemson
Michael Bennett	Ohio State
Angelo Blackson	Auburn
Malcom Brown	Texas
Anthony Chickillo	Miami (Fla.)
Frank Clark	Michigan
Xavier Cooper	Washington State
Christian Covington	Rice
Corey Crawford	Clemson
Carl Davis	Iowa
Tyeler Davison	Fresno State
Ryan Delaire	Towson
B.J. Dubose	Louisville
Mario Edwards	Florida State
Kyle Emanuel	North Dakota State
Trey Flowers	Arkansas
Dante Fowler Jr.	Florida
Markus Golden	Missouri
Eddie Goldman	Florida State
Randy Gregory	Nebraska
Marcus Hardison	Arizona State
Eli Harold	Virginia
Zach Hodges	Harvard
Danielle Hunter	LSU
Martin Ifedi	Memphis
Grady Jarrett	Clemson
Derrick Lott	Tennessee-Chattanooga
Joey Mbu	Houston
Ellis McCarthy	UCLA
Rakeem Nunez-Roches	Southern Mississippi
Owamagbe Odighizuwa	UCLA
Nate Orchard	Utah
Leon Orr	Florida
David Parry	Stanford
Jordan Phillips	Oklahoma
Darius Philon	Arkansas
Shane Ray	Missouri
Cedric Reed	Texas
Bobby Richardson	Indiana
Ryan Russell	Purdue
Danny Shelton	Washington
Deon Simon	Northwestern State
Preston Smith	Mississippi State
Za'Darius Smith	Kentucky
J.T. Surratt	South Carolina
Lynden Trail	Norfolk State
Louis Trinca-Pasat	Iowa
Davis Tull	Tennessee-Chattanooga
Zack Wagenmann	Montana
Leterrius Walton	Central Michigan
Leonard Williams	USC
Gabe Wright	Auburn
Player	School
Kwon Alexander	LSU
Stephone Anthony	Clemson
Neiron Ball	Florida
Yannik Cudjoe-Virgil	Maryland
Aaron Davis	Colorado State
Paul Dawson	TCU
Trey DePriest	Alabama
Xzavier Dickson	Alabama
Bud Dupree	Kentucky
Alani Fua	BYU
Geneo Grissom	Oklahoma
Obum Gwacham	Oregon State
Bryce Hager	Baylor
Ben Heeney	Kansas
Amarlo Herrera	Georgia
Jordan Hicks	Texas
Mike Hull	Penn State
A.J. Johnson	Tennessee
Taiwan Jones	Michigan State
Eric Kendricks	UCLA
Hau'oli Kikaha	Washington
Lorenzo Mauldin	Louisville
Benardrick McKinney	Mississippi State
Mark Nzeocha	Wyoming
Denzel Perryman	Miami (Fla.)
Hayes Pullard	USC
Edmond Robinson	Newberry
Jake Ryan	Michigan
Martrell Spaight	Arkansas
J.R. Tavai	USC
Shaq Thompson	Washington
Max Valles	Virginia
Tony Washington	Oregon
Damien Wilson	Minnesota
Ramik Wilson	Georgia
Player	School
Adrian Amos	Penn State
Detrick Bonner	Virginia Tech
Ibraheim Campbell	Northwestern
Alex Carter	Stanford
D.C. Celiscar	Western Michigan
Justin Coleman	Tennessee
Jalen Collins	LSU
Landon Collins	Alabama
Justin Cox	Mississippi State
Ronald Darby	Florida State
Quandre Diggs	Texas
Lorenzo Doss	Tulane
Kurtis Drummond	Michigan State
Ifo Ekpre-Olomu	Oregon
Durell Eskridge	Syracuse
Charles Gaines	Louisville
Clayton Geathers	Central Florida
Jacoby Glenn	Central Florida
Senquez Golson	Ole Miss
Doran Grant	Ohio State
Ladarius Gunter	Miami (Fla.)
Chris Hackett	TCu
Anthony Harris	Virginia
Troy Hill	Oregon
Gerod Holliman	Louisville
Kyshoen Jarrett	Virginia Tech
A.J. Jefferson	UCLA
Kevin Johnson	Wake Forest
Byron Jones	Connecticut
Craig Mager	Texas State
Dean Marlowe	James Madison
Bobby McCain	Memphis
Tevin McDonald	Eastern Washington
Steven Nelson	Oregon State
Garry Peters	Clemson
Marcus Peters	Washington
Cody Prewitt	Ole Miss
Damarious Randall	Arizona State
Jordan Richards	Stanford
Quinten Rollins	Miami (Ohio)
Eric Rowe	Utah
James Sample	Louisville
Josh Shaw	USC
Jacorey Shepherd	Kansas
D'Joun Smith	Florida Atlantic
Derron Smith	Fresno State
Tye Smith	Towson
Damian Swann	Georgia
Jaquiski Tartt	Samford
Trae Waynes	Michigan State
Kevin White	TCU
Jermaine Whitehead	Auburn
P.J. Williams	Florida State
Julian Wilson	Oklahoma
Player	School
Will Bauman	North Carolina State
Kyle Brindza	Notre Dame
Joe Cardona	Navy
Kyle Christy	Florida
Sam Ficken	Penn State
Will Johnson	Texas State
Josh Lambo	Texas A&M
Kyle Loomis	Portland State
Justin Manton	Louisiana-Monroe
Trevor Pardula	Kansas
Jared Roberts	Colorado State
Spencer Roth	Baylor

Top Prospects to Watch at Combine

Jameis Winston, QB, Florida State

Much of the fun of following the NFL combine is derived from seeing which players put up eye-popping numbers. It's always nice to follow the athletic freaks, but it can be just as interesting to track a top prospect and see if the perception of him changes at this event. 

Jameis Winston is one such player. He's undoubtedly one of the featured prospects at the combine due to his controversial past and status as a potential No. 1 overall pick, but a month-old photograph adds a bit more intrigue to his combine storyline. 

A photo featuring a portly-looking Winston has worked its way into headlines, which is not a good look for an aspiring top pick.

Fans, scouts and media members will undoubtedly be curious to see whether Winston shows up to the combine in better shape. While the pic may be a cause for concern for some, it hasn't fazed his quarterback coach, George Whitfield Jr.

"He's always had a thing about pushing his stomach out," Whitfield said, per USA Today's Jim Corbett. "I hadn't seen the pic until Saturday. You smile about it because people got it and they jumped on it. When I saw him later, Jameis laughed and said, 'I'm going to be out in front of the world in a couple of days anyway.'"

Indeed, this could just be a case of an unfortunately timed photo, but Winston still has to prove himself at the combine. From the fan's perspective, Winston has plenty of catching up to do with Oregon quarterback Marcus Mariota, per NFL on ESPN:

Perhaps it's a good thing the combine is primarily a scouting event, as Winston's skills and athleticism will be under greater scrutiny than his public perception as compared to Mariota. Whitfield Jr. noted that Winston was still mulling participating in throwing drills at the combine, but it appears the young signal-caller has come to a decision, per NFL Network's Ian Rapoport:

Keep an eye on Winston. The combine will be his first chance in a pro setting to show that he looks the part of a top-shelf quarterback.

Dorial Green-Beckham, WR, Oklahoma

Top wideout prospect Dorial Green-Beckham may be coming out of Oklahoma, but scouts will have to go back to his days at Missouri for game film. After being dismissed by Missouri after the 2013 season, Green-Beckham transferred to Oklahoma. However, he had to sit out the 2014 season due to NCAA transfer restrictions, although he was allowed to practice with the Sooners.

With such a large gap between the last time he played a collegiate game—four catches for 53 yards on Jan. 3, 2014 against Oklahoma State—the importance of this combine for Green-Beckham is difficult to understate.

Sporting News contributor Eric Galko considers Green-Beckham one of the riskiest players at the combine due to various off-field incidents and notes the current NFL climate may not be conducive to players who may court controversy:

"

Green-Beckham’s maturity will be the biggest question mark on his scouting report. Talent-wise, outside of getting in the weight room more and learning more of the general nuances of the position, he checks all the boxes.

But in today’s NFL, off-field issues have grown into more than concerns for public relations departments: They’ve begun to be truly intolerable for roster building, forming long-term expectations and creating locker room chemistry. Green-Beckham is a remarkable talent. But every indication of his history paints a career path potentially more disheartening than Gordon’s thus far.

"

The interviews will be key to securing his future, as the junior wideout could flirt with first-round status.

Sue Ogrocki/Associated Press

While it's important Green-Beckham shows that he's ready to handle the scrutiny and responsibility that comes with being a pro, it's just as vital he demonstrates his athleticism at the combine, lest scouts worry he's lost his mojo by having gone so long without playing competitive football. An AFC college scout told NFL.com's Albert Breer that Green-Beckham's athleticism is comparable to that of Calvin Johnson:

"

He's one of the best receivers I've ever seen. He's special. He's gigantic; he has tremendous body control, balance; he runs like a deer and can leap out of the gym and high-point the ball. He's special. It's impressive. If not for all that stuff, he'd be the best receiver to come out since Calvin Johnson.

"

Green-Beckham is no doubt supremely talented; the game tape already shows that. But since it's been so long, he may need some fresh numbers to prove himself as a risk worth taking.

Shane Ray, DE, Missouri 

Brynn Anderson/Associated Press

If you're looking for a freakish athlete with potential "wow" factor at the NFL combine, look no further than Missouri defensive end Shane Ray. 

His stats from college are impressive enough on their own. As a junior in 2014, the 6'3", 245-pound Ray racked up 65 total tackles (22.5 for a loss), 13 sacks and three forced fumbles. Bleacher Report's Matt Miller likes his first step:

If he can reinforce the perception of him as an athletic marvel capable of collapsing pockets everywhere, Ray could prove himself a shoo-in for a top-10 pick. NFL.com's Daniel Jeremiah projected the kind of numbers Ray could put up at the combine:

"

There is some concern about Ray's lack of bulk (Mizzou listed him at 245 pounds), but he makes up for it with rare explosiveness. Ray should record an outstanding 10-yard split in the 40, and I wouldn't be surprised to see him rip off a low-4.5 time in the event. Scouts also expect him to log a vertical leap of close to 40 inches. 

"

In a draft class loaded with talented pass-rushers such as Dante Fowler Jr., Randy Gregory and Owamagbe Odighizuwa, combine performances will be important for players looking to separate themselves from the crowded pack. Expect Ray to take advantage of this early opportunity to impress.