INDIANAPOLIS — For some draft prospects, the scouting combine on-field drills are mere confirmation for NFL teams looking to add a bit to positive tape study and personal interviews. For others, it’s a bigger deal, as great numbers might have some personnel people going back to that tape to see what they might have missed the first time around.
On Thursday afternoon and evening, we saw the defensive linemen, edge defenders, and off-ball linebackers do their thing on the field at Lucas Oil Stadium. While a lot of prospects acquitted themselves well, here are the ones who did the most to stand out, and to potentially see their stocks rise through the next two months before the 2024 NFL draft is in the bag.
Chop Robinson, EDGE, Penn State
Robinson saw his 2023 campaign interrupted to a point by injury, but he still put up three sacks, five quarterback hits, and 18 quarterback hurries in his second season with the Nittany Lions after one season with Maryland. Robinson is a speed-rusher above all, so his 40-yard dash and 10-yard split were going to be prime viewing for NFL personnel people. Robinson did not disappoint, finishing second behind Alabama’s Dallas Turner among all edge defenders with a 4.48 40-yard dash, and tying with Turner for the lead with a 1.54-second 10-yard split. He also tied with Houston Christian’s Jalyx Hunt for the longest broad jump at 10’8″.
Chop Robinson runs a 4.49 on his first attempt👀
— PFF College (@PFF_College) February 29, 2024
Dallas Turner, EDGE, Alabama
Yes, Turner was a burner, as previously mentioned — not that he really needed it to confirm his first-round bonafides. But leading all edge defenders in the 40-yard dash and tying for the lead in the 10-yard split? That’s a spicy meatball. Turner also tied for third with a 10’7″ broad jump, and led all edge defenders with a 40.50″ vertical leap. Add that to his 11 sacks, 11 quarterback hits, and 33 quarterback hurries last season against some of the best competition the NCAA has to offer, and this is a set-it-and-forget-it prospect.
.@AlabamaFTBL ED Dallas Turner
Wingspan: 83” (89th percentile)
40: 4.47 (98th percentile)
Vert: 40.5 (97th percentile)
Broad: 10’7” (93rd percentile)Insane stuff
pic.twitter.com/ilIBnH13Vb— Trevor Sikkema (@TampaBayTre) March 1, 2024
Marshawn Kneeland, EDGE, Western Michigan
Kneeland made my 2024 Scouting Combine All-Underrated Team quite easily with some ridiculous tape, and he was the best in class here with a 7.02-second 3-cone drill, and a 4.18-second short shuttle. That’s really good for a guy standing 6-foot-3 and weighing 267 pounds. Kneeland had six sacks and 37 total pressures last season, and NFL teams are going to lead with the tape, but Kneeland’s combine performance didn’t hurt him at all.
Marshawn Kneeland Hoop Drill#NFLCombine pic.twitter.com/c9KrIk9lhH
— WalkTheMock (@WalkTheMock) February 29, 2024
Mohamed Kamara, EDGE, Colorado State
Kamara came to the combine a bit more under the radar after five seasons with the Colorado State Rams, but his 14 sacks, 12 quarterback hits, and 38 quarterback hurries made a fairly loud noise last season. Here, he helped himself a lot with a 4.57-second 40-yard dash (third among edge defenders), and a 1.57-second 10-yard split (also third).
Mohamed Kamara, DE Colorado State 4.57 pic.twitter.com/9uxjN0W8Ui
— Chargers Country (@ChargersCountry) March 1, 2024
Braden Fiske, DL, Florida State
It’s early in the 2024 combine from a drills perspective, but at this point, nobody has helped himself more than Florida State’s Braden Fiske, who absolutely blew up his drills. He also had six sacks, three quarterback hits, 19 quarterback hurries, and 26 stops for the Seminoles last season, so this is no mere workout wonder.
Braden Fiske (@FSUFootball) is the first defensive tackle to lead his position group in the 40-yard dash (4.78), vertical jump (33.5") and broad jump (9'9") since Tank Johnson in 2004.
Fiske leads all 2024 DTs with an 89 athleticism score pending shuttles and bench press. pic.twitter.com/rvO3QghTUB
— Next Gen Stats (@NextGenStats) February 29, 2024
Byron Murphy II, DL, Texas
And here come the Longhorns! We’ll start with Murphy, one of the most prized defensive linemen in this draft class by dint of his six sacks, three quarterback hits, 36 quarterback hurries, and 21 stops last season. Now, he has a 4.87-second 40-yard dash (third among defensive linemen) and a 1.69-second 10-yard split (fourth) to add to his resume. And his 33″ vertical leap ranked second behind the aforementioned Braden Fiske.
Byron Murphy was MOVING 💨
4.88u 👀
pic.twitter.com/zkwpPfL02y— PFF (@PFF) February 29, 2024
T'Vondre Sweat, DL, Texas
Longhorn No. 2 was T’Vondre Sweat, who often lined up next to Murphy on the interior of Texas’ defense, much to the consternation of Texas’ opponents. Sweat weighed in at 366 pounds in Indianapolis, and he said this week that he played a 365 last season. That didn’t stop him from amassing two sacks, 31 total pressures, and 26 stops last season, and it also didn’t stop him from running a 5.27-second 40-yad dash with a 1.80-second 10-yard split. As RGIII suggests, you have to take that in context to understand how amazing it is.
T’Vondre Sweat at 366 lbs just ran his 40 yard dash in 5.27 seconds and it was FLUID. Sweat’s adjusted 40 time at his height and weight is like an 180 pound DB running a 4.26. 🤯 @TvondreSweat pic.twitter.com/NQzcBwGtHj
— Robert Griffin III (@RGIII) February 29, 2024
That vibration you just felt was T’Vondre Sweat doing the vertical.
He hit 25”. I’ll take that for 366. pic.twitter.com/NOPMeBsE0S
— Brett Kollmann (@BrettKollmann) February 29, 2024
Mekhi Wingo, DL, LSU
Wingo had five sacks and 19 total pressures in just eight games and 239 pass-rushing snaps last season, and he had 11 stops in just 150 snaps against the run. Adding to those impressive numbers here in Indy, Wingo ran a 4.85-second 40-yard dash (second among defensive linemen), and his 1.64-second 10-yard split ranked first. If you’re of the mind that the 10-yard split matters much more for defensive linemen because any play in which a defensive lineman has to run 40 yards in a straight line is bad for your defense, that number is pretty impressive.
Mekhi Wingo posted the second-fastest 40 time among defensive tackles at the #NFLCombine with a time of 4.85@WingoMekhi ✖️ NFLSU
📺 @nflnetwork pic.twitter.com/Y5t6hHENjA
— LSU Football (@LSUfootball) March 1, 2024
Brandon Dorlus, DL, Oregon
Dorlus also made our All-Underrated Team this year with tape that showed him dominating at edge, defensive line, and nose tackle. Last season, he had four sacks, seven quarterback hits, 35 quarterback hurries, and 16 stops all over the place, and he reinforced his priors by putting up some great numbers for a 283-pound guy. His 1.68-second 10-yard split was of particular interest, and shows up on his tape.
Fastest 40 Yard Dash Times (DTs):
1️⃣ Braden Fiske, Florida State: 4.78s
2️⃣ Brandon Dorlus, Oregon: 4.85s
3️⃣ Mekhi Wingo, LSU: 4.85s
4️⃣ Byron Murphy II, Texas: 4.87s
5️⃣ Ruke Orhorhoro, Clemson: 4.89s pic.twitter.com/05eh91Y3I8— PFF College (@PFF_College) February 29, 2024
Edgerrin Cooper, LB, Texas A&M
Even a cursory look at Cooper’s Texas Tech tape will tell you that he’s one of the most athletic linebackers in this class, and his numbers here did nothing to disabuse the NFL of that notion. Cooper had the third-fastest 40-yard dash at 4.51 seconds, and his 1.54-second 10-yard split tied him with four others for the fastest among off-ball linebackers.
4.52u for Edgerrin Cooper, the LB out of @AggieFootball 👀
📺: #NFLCombine on @nflnetwork
📱: Stream on #NFLPlus pic.twitter.com/2BGgS10BDz— NFL (@NFL) March 1, 2024
Payton Wilson, LB, North Carolina State
Wilson proved his ability to win on all downs at North Carolina State; honestly, his injury history (head, ankle, shoulder) could be the only pause NFL teams would have. But here, he did everything he possibly could — his 4.43-second 40-yard dash was the fastest of the day, his 1.54-second 10-yard split tied him with Edgerrin Cooper and two others (Texas-El Paso’s Tyrice Knight and Temple’s Jordan Magee), and he was athletic in the field drills. His work in Indy will give NFL teams reason to reconsider his place on their boards.
A new Day 1 leader.
Payton Wilson of @PackFootball with a 4.44u. 👀
📺: #NFLCombine on @nflnetwork
📱: Stream on #NFLPlus pic.twitter.com/lValfnTQGT— NFL (@NFL) March 1, 2024
