NFL Combine 2017 Notebook: Saturday's Record Breakers and Moneymakers

INDIANAPOLIS — If you blinked Saturday, you missed Washington wide receiver John Ross' combine record-setting 4.22-second 40-yard dash.

Ross earned some extra money in April's NFL draft with that sprint. But not as much as you may think. NFL executives knew he was fast. Most had him slated for the first round before he ran. Ross probably just guaranteed his earning potential.

Other players will be shooting up draft boards and tax brackets after Saturday's workouts and passing drills. It was a day of superlatives for smooth-throwing quarterbacks, blazing wide receivers and some of the most jaw-droppingly athletic tight ends the combine has ever seen.

We'd better get started. Ross is already waiting at the finish line. 

Moneymaker: John Ross, Wide Receiver, Washington

Brian Spurlock-USA TODAY Sports

The Numbers

Forty yards, 4.22 seconds. A combine record. 'Nuff said.

Ross on Ross

Ross doesn't want to be known as a one-dimensional burner. "I'm a guy that can move around, play different positions and be explosive. I don't just want to be know as a guy that can go deep."

Ross has been working with Redskins receiver DeSean Jackson. What has D-Jax taught him? "Basically, just how to use my speed. When to turn it on, when to turn it off.

"Growing up, I never had to monitor that. I just was running out there. And I was so gifted with speed that I just used that versus a lot of people. As you get older, a lot of people get faster, a lot of people get smarter. You can't just run past everybody. People's techniques change and everyone gets better."

That said, Ross is so gifted with speed that he is probably going to just run past a lot of people at the NFL level, too.

Overall Impressions

Durability is Ross' only question mark. He needs surgery after playing through a shoulder injury in 2016 and tearing an ACL in 2015.

If he can stay healthy, Ross is the prototypical deep threat teams covet. He has learned to use his intense speed to set up defenders with double moves and comeback routes. He hustles and gives a good effort as a blocker. And of course you don't want to give him a crease on a kick return.

A bad post-surgery prognosis on his shoulder is the only thing that will keep Ross out of the top 20 in April's draft.

Moneymaker: Evan Engram, Tight End, Ole Miss

Gregory Payan/Associated Press

The Numbers

Engram ran a 4.42-second 40-yard dash at 6'3" and 234 pounds. He also bested all other tight ends in the vertical jump with a 36-inch leap.

Engram on Engram

What sets Engram apart from the other great tight ends in this class? "I would probably say my versatility," he said. "This class is so deep. All these guys bring a lot to the table. But for myself, just being able to do anything: be split out, flexed out, get down field in the vertical game, and then have the tenacity to get in and get physical as well."

Overall Impressions

Engram shined at the Senior Bowl in January, outperforming fellow tight end O.J. Howard as a route-runner and receiver. Engram moved all over the formation at Ole Miss, and NFL teams will love the idea of hiding a player with 4.42 speed at H-back, or even at fullback.

Howard had a pretty fine Saturday himself (a 4.51-second 40 at a whopping 6'6" and 251 pounds), but Engram's combination of wide receiver speed and receiving chops with an H-back's blocking ability probably solidified his first-round status and may move him past Howard on some draft boards, depending on team need and system.

This year's tight end crop is positively amazing, folks.

Moneymaker: Josh Dobbs, Quarterback, Tennessee

Butch Dill/Associated Press

The Drills

Dobbs demonstrated consistent mechanics during drills. His work was quick and sharp. His release was quick. His velocity and ball placement weren't Aaron Rodgers-level by any means, but footballs arrived on time and on target. Best of all, everything looked the same from throw to throw.

Dobbs also passed all the tape measure tests. The somewhat-spindly-looking quarterback is 6'3" and 216 pounds and ran a 4.64-second 40: big enough and fast enough.

Dobbs on Dobbs

Dobbs majored in aerospace engineering at Tennessee. Is that anything like astronaut camp? Not really.

"That means I want to design and build airplanes," he explained. "I know you get the connotation of being an astronaut from it. That’s the first thing they think, but it’s more on the designing and build side.

"I’m going to play football as long as I possibly can until I can’t play anymore and then go pursue off-the-field stuff."

But what if there's a comet rocketing toward the earth?

"Well, if the government calls, I’ll have to tell them to wait like 15 years and then I’ll come hang out with them."

Maybe the quarterback/aeronautics connection isn't as strange as it sounds. Houston, after all, has a problem.

Overall Impressions

Dobbs picked up where he left off at the Senior Bowl. He keeps earning somewhere between a C-plus and A-minus in every single scouting category, from arm strength to intangibles.

A quarterback with no major weaknesses, a few modest strengths and a good head on his shoulders will be selected in any draft. In this weak class, and with many teams looking for low-risk, high-effort, ready-to-play options at the position, Dobbs may be gaining on the big-name prospects at the top of the draft board.

Moneymaker: Chris Godwin, Wide Receiver, Penn State

David J. Phillip/Associated Press

The Numbers

Chris Godwin ran a 4.42-second 40 at 6'1" and 209 pounds. He also bested all wide receivers with 19 reps on the bench press. Oh, and he looked great on the gauntlet and other drills.

Godwin on Godwin

Godwin suddenly got sick the night before the Rose Bowl in January.

"I don’t know if I ate something weird or what happened," he explained. "I was throwing up all night. Leading into the morning of the game, I was still throwing up. I was having stomach problems and things of that nature all the way up until the game. I just felt really uneasy.

"For me to have that game was kind of surprising to me."

Surprising? Godwin caught nine passes for 187 yards and two touchdowns against USC after throwing up all night. That's freakin' astonishing.

Overall Impressions

Godwin entered the combine as a favorite of some draftniks: a competitive receiver who runs crisp routes and fights for passes. But even his boosters were blown away by the 4.42 40.

Think of Godwin as a faster, slightly smaller Allen Robinson, and look for him to leave the draft board by the middle of the second round, at the latest.

Moneymaker: Zay Jones, Wide Receiver, East Carolina

David J. Phillip/Associated Press

The Numbers

Jones ran a 4.45-second 40 at 6'2" and 201 pounds. I also got a chance to see his gauntlet drill in person: He's quick-footed, turns fluidly and snatches anything in his general vicinity.

Jones on Jones

Zay's father is Robert Jones, a former Cowboys first-round pick at linebacker who played 10 seasons in the NFL.

"I used to think that every kid’s dad played in the NFL, too," Jones said. "So I would be like, who does your dad play for? Because that’s what was common to us just growing up in a household with him. Eat, sleep, drink football.

"It’s just what I want to do right now. I’m fortunate enough to do it, healthy enough to do it."

Overall Impression

Jones had a tremendous Senior Bowl week, adjusting and leaping for all manner of poor throws and contested passes. It was hard to get a gauge on his pure speed in Mobile, Alabama, however; lots of receivers are thinking while adjusting to the Senior Bowl's playbook, negating some of their quickness.

Jones may have worked himself onto Day 2 of the draft with Saturday's performance and his work in Mobile. He'd go even higher, except that several other receivers are on the exact same journey.

Inside Slant on the Quarterback Passing Drills

David J. Phillip/Associated Press

A handful of media members, chosen by a careful and intensive vetting process (first ones to respond to an email), have the opportunity to watch portions of the quarterback passing drills live from Lucas Oil Stadium each year.

I had the privilege of watching the complete passing drills for one group of quarterbacks on Saturday, flanked by some of my sharpest-eyed colleagues from across the media. Here are my scouting notes.

DeShone Kizer, Notre Dame

Kizer has a lot of buzz around him, and there is no question that he is strong-armed and toolsy. Balls snap from his hand at high velocity.

That said, Kizer displayed inconsistent footwork and an exaggerated delivery, with his shoulders rotating before his hips and feet. The hinky delivery, which looked different from his Notre Dame throwing style, led to some errant throws in drills. He looked like he was trying (and failing) to impress some guru at a quarterback camp instead of doing what comes naturally.

Kizer's good-not-great drills are no reason to drop him off the draft board, but any team that has a top-five grade on him may want to take a second look.

Trevor Knight, Texas A&M

I had no sense of Knight as a draftable quarterback entering the combine. He then ran a 4.54 40, following that with passing drills that showed flashes of intriguing potential.

When Knight's mechanics are sound, he snaps off beautiful passes with great placement and velocity. His mechanics change from route to route and even rep to rep, however. Short passes were razor sharp. He too often relied on arm strength (not sound mechanics) on intermediate throws. He looked better throwing left than right. The good was pretty darn good. The bad was often amusing.

Some offensive-minded coach will draft Knight in the middle of Day 3 and try to tighten the screws on his delivery. It may be a sound investment.

C.J. Beathard, Iowa

Beathard is OK. His calling card should be his textbook delivery, but his release is often slowed by a long pitcher's windup. Beathard looked like an adequate career backup during Senior Bowl week, and he still does.

Brad Kaaya, Miami

Kaaya's entire game reminds me of Mike Glennon. He throws hard, but he made some of the strangest footwork mistakes of the session (I think I saw him attempt a Karate Kid crane kick at the end of a throw) and was a mess under pressure on film.

But quarterback math dictates that Big Toolsy Quarterback + Major Program + Weak Class = Day 3 selection at least. And the tools are there.

Jerod Evans, Virginia Tech

Arm thrower. Threw a few nice-looking deep throws, but nearly everything sails on him.

Mitch Leidner, Minnesota

Big, strong-armed kid whose entire NFL qualifications were summarized by those four words.

Josh Dobbs, Tennessee

Earned his own slide!

Saturday Scuttlebutt

David J. Phillip/Associated Press

A quick rundown of some of the whispers making the rounds in Indianapolis.

Mike Williams decides not to run his 40-yard dash

There's a pretty clear consensus here. Yes, teams would rather see him be a competitor, own up to a 40 that might be in the 4.6-second range and then use Clemson's pro day to shave off a few micro-seconds. But no, not running won't hurt his draft stock unless he pulls a 4.9 at Clemson. The fact that an ankle injury kept Corey Davis from running insulated Williams from looking bad in comparison to this class' other top big receiver.

Cooper Kupp runs a 4.62 40-yard dash

No one cares. Kupp's quickness and fundamentals are exceptional, and he sounds like Peyton Manning in interviews. I have seen him run in person here and at the Senior Bowl, and his play speed is obviously faster than his timed speed.

Deshaun Watson's overall draft profile

Watson is everyone's second- or third-favorite quarterback prospect this year, even though everyone seems to have a different favorite.

Pat Mahomes' overall draft profile

I'm one of the last Mahomes skeptics. I see a live-armed playground Favre who will get an entire front office fired if he starts too early and combines 20 interceptions with 50 sacks.

That said, Mahomes is earning very positive reviews in team interviews, which is critical for a young man aiming for the first round based on his extreme draft-and-develop upside.

Davis Webb's overall draft profile

Everyone seems to have heard that someone else is really high on Webb for reasons no one can put his finger on.

Mitchell Trubisky's decision to ditch "Mitch"

He didn't want people making naughty puns that rhyme with "Mitch." So he drew national attention to the fact that he doesn't want people making naughty puns that rhyme with "Mitch." That'll stop those rival fans.

Reuben Foster gets into heated exchange with hospital worker before physicals, is sent home from combine

The consensus among analysts and a few insiders I spoke to Friday night can best be described as "WTF!?" Folks are still processing exactly what happened when the Alabama linebacker grew impatient and and got confrontational with a staffer, per ESPN's Adam Schefter. While Foster won't fall into the sixth round or anything, he manufactured a character flag and denied the NFL a chance to evaluate his injured shoulder. This incident is going to be talked about during team visits.

Saturday Profile: Jalen Robinette, Wide Receiver, Air Force

Michael Conroy/Associated Press

The Numbers

Robinette's 40 time (4.62 seconds) and other workout results landed at or near the bottom draftable thresholds.

But Robinette aced all the tape measure tests, measuring in at 6'3" and 220 pounds, with 32 ⅜-inch arms and 10 ⅞-inch excavator buckets for hands. Robinette put those arms and hands to good use at both Shrine Game and Senior Bowl practices, reaching and snatching contested balls and errant throws away from defenders.

Robinette on Robinette

Robinette draws comparisons to Broncos receiver Demaryius Thomas, another big, claw-handed receiver who came from a flexbone offense built around option running.

"I've been watching D.T. throughout my college and high school years," Robinette said. "It's an honor to be compared to him. I can see it too: our size, the way we play, where he came from at Georgia Tech running the triple-option.

"I'm not huge into numbers, but you look at his numbers, that alone says that if I'm able to produce this much in a triple-option offense, then integrating me to a pro style, I think my chances are pretty good."

Overall Impression

Robinette caught 35 passes for 959 yards (27.4 yards per catch!) and six touchdowns for Air Force in 2016. Convert that production into a typical college offense and it works out to about five zillion catches for infinite yards.

But seriously, folks, Robinette is everything you would expect from a service academy grad: smart, confident, disciplined, etc. The all-star games proved that he can do all the things a receiver in a traditional offense does in terms of route running. The 4.62 40 is not a deal breaker for a receiver of his size. Mike Williams would probably have posted a similar time if he ran Saturday.

The worst-case scenario for Robinette is that he becomes a tall, tough special teams captain. Demaryius Thomas is the best-case scenario.

Saturday Profile: Jake Butt, Tight End, Michigan

Mike Ehrmann/Getty Images

The Numbers

Butt tore an ACL at the Orange Bowl, so the only numbers to talk about are his size (a robust 6'5", 246 lbs) and his timetable for recovery.

"I had surgery January 10," Butt said. "Three months after that, 12 weeks, I’ll be running. Four-and-a-half months, cutting. Five-and-a-half months will be return to football drills.

"As far as getting cleared, that will be kind of something the team doctors will decide on. I know I’ll be ready whenever they clear me."

Jake Butt on Jake Butt

Butt had the option of leaving Michigan last year and looking like a superhero among the weak 2016 draft class. Instead, he's damaged goods in a class that could give The Avengers a run for their money. Any regrets?

"Absolutely not, no," Butt said. "I came back, I made that decision, it was the right decision for me. We had a great year as a team. I improved upon a lot of the things that I came back to improve upon. Even playing in the bowl game, I wouldn’t change it going back.

"I was a leader on that team, I’m a captain, I love that university and just the kind of player I am, I would never sit out of a game."

Overall Impressions

In any other draft class of the last decade, Butt would be a tight end prospect worth waiting for: a punishing run blocker and stout pass protector with the quickness and hands to be a quarterback's best friend on 3rd-and-medium.

In this class, he probably would have been the fourth tight end off the board (after O.J. Howard, Evan Engram and David Njoku) before the injury, and the team that selects him must hope there are no hiccups in the timetable listed above. Even teams looking for a rugged blocker in 2017 can turn to healthier options like Arkansas' Jeremy Sprinkle, so there may be reluctance to wait through an injury with so much immediate help available.

Some team will select Butt as a medical redshirt; the Cardinals and Ravens are among the teams who may be willing to wait a year to get first-round value from a mid-round pick. The only question is whether Butt will leave the board on Day 2 or creep into the later rounds.