NFL scouting combine risers and fallers: LB/DL | DB/TE | QB/RB/WR | OL
INDIANAPOLIS — The week, perhaps the longest of the year for scouts, executives and media members, has reached an end.
There are no more 40-yard dashes to run, no more cones to run around, no more meetings to attend and no more questions to answer—for now. The NFL combine came, saw and conquered Indianapolis once more, delivering a week full of valuable information for teams with the 2026 NFL Draft on the horizon.
Pro days, official 30 visits and private workouts may now commence. But some left Indianapolis different than when they arrived. There were risers and fallers, winners and losers, and several in between.
Here’s what we learned from another week spent in the Indiana Convention Center, Lucas Oil Stadium and everywhere between and around.
The QB class impressed, and Ty Simpson helped himself
I’ll never fault quarterbacks for opting against throwing at the combine. For a position where timing and chemistry are as necessary to success as air to breathe, the combine—with signal callers passing to receivers whose names they may not even know, let alone the speed and pace with which to run their routes—isn’t inherently conducive to success.
Don’t tell the quarterbacks who threw Saturday in Indianapolis.
Fernando Mendoza, poised to be the draft’s No. 1 pick and the lone sure-fire first-round selection, was the lone prominent passer who didn’t participate. But several others put on a show.
Alabama’s Ty Simpson had the best day of any quarterback. He had plenty of zip on the ball, and he was accurate to all parts of the field. He’s a smooth, natural passer with fluid mechanics who looked the part Saturday. Some of Simpson’s late-season struggles can be attributed to health—he lost roughly 25 pounds due to gastritis while also battling a lower back issue and elbow bursitis—and he, at least partially, restored his stock with his throwing performance, helping his case to be a first-round pick.
Several others also helped their stock. Miami’s Carson Beck, with fans booing each time his face graced the big screen, and LSU’s Garrett Nussmeier have similar stories. At different points in different summers, both players were considered potential No. 1 picks but failed to live up to the hype. However, on a day when arm talent and natural ball placement shone, Beck and Nussmeier were impressive. Nussmeier is more firmly in the Day 2 picture than Beck, but the latter bolstered his odds.
Biggest risers and fallers
Georgia receiver Zachariah Branch and Oregon safety Dillon Thieneman delivered two of the cleanest, most impressive performances of the week.
Branch seemingly caught everything thrown his way, and he ran a blistering 4.35 40-yard dash. He wasn’t asked to do much in the Bulldogs’ offense, but his routes were sharp, and he inspired confidence that he can be more than a gadget player or chess piece. Branch, though undersized at 5' 9" and 177 pounds, should be a top-50 pick.
Thieneman moved incredibly well. The 6' 0", 201-pounder ran a 4.35 40-yard dash and notched a 41-inch vertical, and his field work was more impressive than any of his testing numbers.
Notre Dame receiver Malachi Fields had a difficult time in Indianapolis. After a strong week at the Panini Senior Bowl, Fields earned buzz as a potential late first-round pick. He looked much more like a mid-Day 2 pick at the combine. At 6' 4 ½" and 218 pounds, Fields isn’t known for his speed, but his 4.61 40-yard dash is concerning, and he had a tough time during a drop-filled gauntlet drill.
Two of the more interesting profiles in the draft are Utah offensive tackle Spencer Fano and Texas A&M edge rusher Cashius Howell. Both players have obvious size concerns that were amplified in Indianapolis—Fano has 32 ⅛-inch arms, well below the 33-inch threshold, and the 6' 2", 254-pound Howell has 30 ¼-inch arms—but showed the athleticism, twitch and fluidity during field drills that make them first-round prospects.
It feels unjust to deem Fano or Howell as fallers, given their strengths and weaknesses on tape. But now with numbers attached to their flaws, the extent to which the NFL feels both players can overcome length limitations will come under the microscope in the weeks ahead.
Jeremiyah Love checks every box
Love was, is, and will continue to be one of the draft’s best players and most sure-fire prospects. That didn’t stop him from running a blistering 4.36 40-yard dash and participating in the entirety of on-field drills. His willingness to compete—and put on a mesmerizing display of athleticism at 6' 0" and 212 pounds—is another in a long line of reasons why he’s as clean as they come.
Love has the size, athleticism and résumé to be a top-10 pick. The Saints, at No. 8, are a strong candidate to secure Love’s services.
This combine’s blend of athleticism, competitiveness made it memorable
On the topic of Love’s participation in field drills, a quick kudos to several other performances.
The two Ohio State products, Arvell Reese and Sonny Styles, stole the show in the combine’s fastest-ever group of linebackers. Two pass rushers, Texas Tech’s David Bailey and Auburn’s Keldric Faulk, went through drills, as did a few highly touted receivers, USC’s Makai Lemon, Texas A&M’s KC Concepcion, and Washington’s Denzel Boston. Utah tackle Caleb Lomu ran a blistering 4.91 40-yard dash. Clemson cornerback Avieon Terrell shined during field drills.
There were, naturally, a handful of elite prospects who sat out and deferred their testing and field workouts to their pro day. But stars were willing to compete at Lucas Oil Stadium, and many of them validated why they won’t last long on April 23 in the draft’s opening round.
Big names aside, there was a wealth of amusing athletic feats accomplished throughout the week. Vanderbilt’s Eli Stowers broke the tight end record with a 45 ½-inch vertical jump. Arkansas quarterback Taylen Green ran a 4.36 40-yard dash and jumped 43 ½ inches in the vertical and 11' 2" in the broad, all best at the position since at least 2003. Three players ran 40-yard dashes in the 4.2-second bracket. Indiana cornerback D’Angelo Ponds, at just 5' 8 ⅝", notched a 43 ½-inch vertical jump.
Quite the week.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as QBs Among the Prospects Who Helped Themselves the Most at the NFL Combine.
