5 Hidden Gems the Minnesota Vikings Should Have Noticed at the Combine
The NFL Scouting Combine produced a number of surprises that teams like the Minnesota Vikings should take notice of, especially if they want to dominate the later rounds of the draft.
Hidden gems can complete teams, something head coach Mike Zimmer acknowledged in an interview with KFAN. The best teams don't just hit in the early rounds but can find starters and even Pro Bowlers in the later stages of the draft.
Who from this year's combine qualifies?
Ali Marpet, OL, Hobart College
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Already rising up draft boards because of a strong Senior Bowl showing, this Division III prospect showed why he earned an invite to the prestigious all-star game.
Based on historical performances for players at his position and size, Hobart would have been expected to post a 5.18-second 40-yard dash, 1.78-second 10-yard split, 4.73 short shuttle, 7.76 three-cone drill, 25 bench-press reps, 28" vertical jump and 8'3" broad jump.
Instead, he ran a 4.98-second 40-yard dash (the only offensive lineman to run a sub-5.0 second 40), a 1.74-second 10-yard split, a 4.47-second short shuttle and a 7.33-second three-cone drill. In addition, he completed 30 bench-press reps and jumped 30.5" in the vertical and 9'0" in the broad jump.
That's not meaningless, either. Better athletes historically do better at each non-specialist or quarterback position, and tackles and guards are no different. Though the 40-yard dash is not a skill replicated on the football field for offensive linemen, it tests balance, conversion of power to speed and body control as well as general workout preparation.
After creating a filter for offensive linemen based on weight-adjusted 40-yard dash times, short shuttle times and unadjusted 40-yard dash times, 10-yard split times, bench press reps, broad jump and three-cone scores, it turns out that Ali Marpet passed all of them.
Only seven other players have done that since 1999: Ryan Kalil, Joel Bitonio, Evan Mathis, Nate Solder, Lydon Murtha, Jason Kelce and Joe Staley—an impressive list.
Marpet should be on the Vikings' radar.
Henry Anderson, DE/DT, Stanford
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Perhaps misaligned when at Stanford, Henry Anderson hasn't been on the public radar (as an example, he ranks 124th overall in CBS' rankings and 81st in Matt Miller's big board at Bleacher Report). However, he's been rising since a dominant week in Senior Bowl practices, and the question is whether or not he's a two-gapping or one-gapping defensive lineman, and if he plays in one gap, whether he should play outside or inside.
At the combine, he did well against the expected scores for a player at his size and position, though he didn't have quite the phenomenal performance that Marpet had on the other side of the ball. He didn't hit his expectations in the 40-yard dash but did in the 10-yard split (5.03 seconds and 1.63 seconds, respectively, against expectations of 4.91 seconds and 1.71 seconds). More importantly, he aced the agility drills, with a 4.19-second short shuttle and 7.20-second three-cone drill (much better than the 4.54-second and 7.41-second expectations).
Anderson hit the expected numbers in vertical and broad jump scores (30" and 9'3") but most importantly checked all the boxes for markers that point to future success in the NFL, including a fast-enough three-cone time, long arms (33.5") and a combined short shuttle and 10-yard split time that bodes well for NFL players.
He compares athletically to Derek Wolfe and Gerald McCoy, and those names alone should raise eyebrows (and speaks to the difficulty of placing him; McCoy is a pass-rushing defensive tackle, while Wolfe is a 4-3 defensive end).
For the Vikings, Anderson would either stay at his weight (294 lbs) and play in the role that the departing Tom Johnson did as a backup under tackle, or he would shed weight to play defensive end, something he has the height (6'6") and reach for—he bent the edge well at Stanford and in Mobile. Though doesn't have the explosion that a larger defensive end may want, Anderson has great quickness, excellent hand technique and good functional strength.
Darren Waller, WR, Georgia Tech
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The NFL draft is about looking for potential more than it is about acquiring immediate talent, and with that in mind Waller should receive a draftable grade from most teams. He deserves to be picked in the middle rounds based on his promise alone.
Always a difficult projection from a gimmick or run-heavy offense, Waller still caught the eyes of evaluators across the league with his 4.46 40-yard dash at 6'6" and 238 pounds, a 1.58-second 10-yard split, 37” vertical, 10’5” broad jump and more than adequate agility scores for his size (4.25 seconds in the shuttle and 7.07 seconds in the three-cone).
Dorial Green-Beckham, who has polish issues to go along with his off-field baggage, may not be as good a comparison for Calvin Johnson as this other former Georgia Tech receiver is, though if Waller is more Stephen Hill than Megatron (or Demaryius Thomas) remains to be seen.
What may stand out to people is his blocking ability, and he remains in the conversation to be a tight end convert if need be because of the prowess he showed (and had to show) with the Yellow Jackets.
Teams will want to look into his background (he has twice been suspended for violating team rules), but it shouldn't stop them from being interested if he aces interviews. A big body who has a lot of polishing to do as a route-runner, he has natural ball skills and plays with competitive fire. If the Vikings feel like they're missing a red-zone threat, Waller may solve the problem.
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Adrian Amos, DB, Penn State
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While Byron Jones captured the headlines, Adrian Amos quietly had the best complete workout of any defensive back. Likely a safety convert at the next level, his workouts were good for a cornerback too.
Though a 4.56-second 40-yard dash isn't stellar for a typical corner, it's a phenomenal score for a safety. More importantly, a 1.50-second 10-yard split is ideal for either position, and it was the best such split for safety converts at the combine. It also happens to be the case that for his height and weight (6'0", 218 lbs), it's faster than the average cornerback, and weight means a lot at the cornerback position.
Historically, 40-yard dash times and arm length—when normalized and combined—do a good job alone of predicting success. Amos' 32.25" arms and 4.56-second 40-yard dash are above-average for the class.
Beyond that, he did a good job of checking boxes—passing a series of filters that successful defensive backs also passed. In the case of a defensive back it means hitting the right speed at 10, 20 and 40 yards, having arms longer than 32 inches and putting together good explosion numbers for his size—all of which Amos did. In addition to that, solid agility numbers puts him in the right range, athletically, for a good investment.
On the field, moving back and forth between cornerback and safety didn't help Amos, though that wasn't his fault—secondary depth at Penn State was atrocious at times, and he did a better job than most at each position he was asked to play. It may be a reason his development at safety has a lot more to uncover than many think, too.
He displayed on-field speed with the best of safeties, playing not just with range but fluidity. He has excellent recognition of offensive passing combinations and plays disciplined and rarely out of position. Though his tackling is subpar and his angles are poor, there's a lot more room for coaching to fix this than many of the free safeties in this class who have issues against the run (for example, he's much more physical than Gerod Holliman). He possesses the right attitude but (wildly) incorrect technique.
His ability to play cornerback is a good plus for scheme versatility as well, and the Vikings shouldn't let the dazzling workout numbers of others overshadow the fantastic combine Amos had.
Edmond Robinson, LB, Newberry
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After Benardrick McKinney and Jordan Hicks, the best workout for off-ball linebackers at the combine belonged to small-school linebacker Edmond Robinson. At 245 pounds, he is slightly larger than the average off-ball linebacker has been in the NFL this year and despite that exceeded the averages at his position for height and weight.
A linebacker of his size (6'3", 245 lbs) would normally be expected to post a 4.73-second 40-yard dash, 1.62-second 10-yard split, 33" vertical leap and 114" broad jump. Instead, Robinson ran a 4.61-second 40-yard dash with a 1.62-second 10-yard split while jumping 37 inches high and 121 inches far.
The only test he didn't beat the expected score was the three-cone drill, as he ran a slow 7.49-second drill when a 7.15-second one was expected. He did make up for it by winning the other agility drill, going 0.01 seconds under the 4.39-second expectation in the short shuttle.
Though the agility drills are important for a linebacker, more important are raw speed, size and explosiveness, all of which he demonstrated with significant room to spare.
He didn't spend much time at Newberry blitzing and struggled there and in edge-rushing drills at the East-West Shrine game, but that's not why he would be drafted. One thing that the model doesn't test for—arm length—could be a big asset, and his 34" arms have allowed him to excel in coverage.
He looks lanky and seemingly doesn't play big, but he has the requisite height, weight and frame to excel at the next level. He didn't dominate the competition like you would hope a small-school prospect would, but he stood out at the Shrine Game against FBS and FCS players and improved his technique over the course of the week, figuring out how to use his arms to shed blockers and gain leverage.
Newberry would play Robinson—all 245 pounds of him—over tight ends and slot receivers or play him deep as a safety at times. Though that's not something he'll be able to do in the NFL, it speaks to his coverage ability, both as a man-coverage defender and zone defender. He will need to refine his ability to cover with additional polishing in regard to his footwork, but his instincts are good, and his movement in space is even better.
Even if Robinson doesn't get drafted (which would probably be a mistake), he would be an excellent priority free agent to keep track of.
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