NFL Draft 2019: 1st-Round Order and Predictions for Combine's Early Stars

The 2019 NFL Scouting Combine is finally here, with Friday marking the opening of the on-field portion of the program.

While there are still sprints to clock, bench-press reps to count and skill drills to monitor, there are also enough documented results to start identifying some of the event's early standouts.

After laying out the first-round order for the upcoming draft, we'll spotlight three of those combine stars and predict how their performances will impact their stock.

2019 NFL Draft Order

1. Arizona Cardinals

2. San Francisco 49ers

3. New York Jets

4. Oakland Raiders

5. Tampa Bay Buccaneers

6. New York Giants

7. Jacksonville Jaguars

8. Detroit Lions

9. Buffalo Bills

10. Denver Broncos

11. Cincinnati Bengals

12. Green Bay Packers

13. Miami Dolphins

14. Atlanta Falcons

15. Washington Redskins

16. Carolina Panthers

17. Cleveland Browns

18. Minnesota Vikings

19. Tennessee Titans

20. Pittsburgh Steelers

21. Seattle Seahawks

22. Baltimore Ravens

23. Houston Texans

24. Oakland Raiders (via Chicago Bears)

25. Philadelphia Eagles

26. Indianapolis Colts

27. Oakland Raiders (via Dallas Cowboys)

28. Los Angeles Chargers

29. Kansas City Chiefs

30. Green Bay Packers (via New Orleans Saints)

31. Los Angeles Rams

32. New England Patriots

Predictions for Combine's Early Stars

Murray Goes No. 1

Size matters for NFL quarterbacks, even if that feels like a funny premise. When the people making the picks have certain benchmarks for positions, prospects who fail to do so can only hope they are experts in damage control.

Kyler Murray may not be the prototypical size of an NFL passer, but concerns about his diminutive frame were largely extinguished when all of his measurements came in bigger than expected:

While he's skipping the drill work at the combine and saving that for his pro day, he did provide another intriguing plot twist. He told reporters he's scheduled to meet with the Cardinals, who have both the No. 1 pick and a coach who has previously gushed about Murray's NFL potential.

Murray is a dynamic force on the football field. During his lone season as a college starter, he passed for 4,361 yards, rushed for another 1,001 and tallied 54 touchdowns.

His ceiling is too great for quarterback-needy clubs to pass him up, especially when he raised his floor with a bigger build and longer hands than expected. If the Cardinals don't deal Josh Rosen and draft Murray themselves, they'll trade back and let someone else nab the Heisman Trophy winner at the top.

Andre Dillard Moves Into Round One

You might not think offensive linemen could emerge as the talk of the town when skill players are flying around in all the athletic drills. But if you test like Washington State offensive tackle Andre Dillard just did, you can have the whole football world talking.

The 6'5", 315-pounder ranked among the top four offensive linemen in the 40-yard dash (4.96 seconds, fourth), broad jump (9'10", first), three-cone drill (7.44 seconds, second) and 20-yard shuttle (4.40 seconds, first).

Dillard isn't just a workout phenom either. Pro Football Focus gave him the highest pass-blocking grade among all offensive tackles who played 300 pass-blocking snaps this season.

"He's the best pass protector in the entire draft," NFL Network's Daniel Jeremiah said following Dillard's combine showing. "He's the smoothest, easiest mover of this entire bunch. He's going to be a starting left tackle, Day 1 in the NFL. My opinion he's going to be a top-15 pick."

Justice Hill Goes Day 2

Justice Hill opened his combine by measuring as one of the smallest backs in the class (ninth-shortest in height, second-lightest in weight) and ended it prematurely with a hamstring injury.

But his performance in the middle was electric enough to plant himself in Day 2 discussion.

Regarded as an elite athlete, Hill more than lived up to the billing. After a top-10 finish at the position in bench-press reps (21), he paced all backs with a blazing 4.40 time in the 40-yard dash:

His 10'10" broad jump tied him for the lead among running backs, and his 40" vertical gave him another top spot all to himself. His combination of sprinting and high jumping put him in an athletic tier only one other running back has touched over the past decade-plus:

His lack of size will hurt him, and he might wind up pigeon-holed as a change-of-pace understudy. But with burners like his, it isn't hard to imagine someone targeting his quick-strike ability with a pick in the second or third rounds.