- In his first attempt, potential Cowboys draft target Texas Kenny Vaccaro ran a 4.59 (4.63)
- N.C. State Earl Wolff smoked a 4.37 (4.44)
- Syracuse Thomas Shamarko blasted a 4.38 (4.42)
- Georgia Shawn Williams 4.44 (4.46)
- Floridas Matt Elam a smooth 4.46 (4.54)
- Iowa Micah Hyde 4.47 (4.56)
- AZ State Keelan Johnson 4.47 (4.54)
- Florida Josh Evans (4.58)
- USC T.J. McDonald (4.59), LSU Eric Reid (4.53), USC Jawanza Starling (4.64) and Georia Southern J.J. Wilcox (4.57) all with a 4.53
- Fresno St. Phillip Thomas 4.56 (4.65)
- CAL CB Steve Williams a blistering 4.25 (4.42)
These were the first attempts with unofficial times. Will update through the day as things change, check back often.
UPDATES:
UPDATES:
- 11:46 AM - Vaccaro with an excellent back pedal hip flip drill. Smooth hips in transition. Stayed low with nice drive to create burst after the direction change.
- 11:48 AM - UConn Wilson also showing excellent technique and incredibly long arms. Knuckles almost drag the turf during his backpedal hip flip maneuver. Impressive.
- 12:05 PM - Replay of Shamarko shows him doing a total face plant after he crosses finish line in the 40. Comical.
- 12:10 PM - Updated 40 times with second runs or official times in parents (), bold numbers are "top 5" performances
- 12:16 PM - Pundits reviewing Vaccaro's disappointing official 40 time of 4.63. Mention good technique but ran tight.
- 12:32 PM - Mike Mayock mentions he timed 'Bama Guard Warmack with a sundial. All for the session. Take a break and come back.
- 12:52 PM - Earl Wolf pulling up with a limp as he slips and drops a ball on a catch drill. Back to the ball, turn and drive with a zippy, not on target pass to pull in.
- 12:55 PM - Safeties lost bet with CB's, doing 20 push ups as a group. Speaks to the competitive nature of NFL athletes. Everything is a competition!
- 1:04 PM - CB's are up in the 40.
- 2:03 PM - CB Milner showing up very well today. 4.31 official 40 time with glowing pundit and film reviews.
- 2:33 PM - CB Honey Badger having a very nice combine so far.
- 4:22 PM - S Thomas Shamarko just shaved some time off his 40. Dude explodes. No face plant this time.
- 4:27 PM - S J.J. Wilcox turns in a 4.53 and looked smooth.
- 4:28 PM - NFL Network using a "Simulcam" tool where they put different players 40 runs up and have them run virtual heats using the same camera from the same spot. Very cool and a great tool to figure out who is faster before the "official" times come out. Bottom line ... WR Goodwin jumps out of the blocks and has a closing burst that leaves anyone in a cloud of dust. There will be no "catching up" with Goodwin by any of the dB's in this group, or probably in the NFL.
- 4:31 PM - S Earl Wolf shaves just a bit off his time with his last run of the day.
- FS Matt Elam and SS Keelan Johnson are quietly having a solid Combine. Their 4.54 40 time puts them both just inside the top 5 for the position this year and their skill drills show fluidity, nice hips, ability to stay low and deliver burst. They have increased their value today.
- California CB Steve Williams showed incredible hip twitch with smooth acceleration while staying low displaying excellent hip flip capability. He showed hands when driving on deep ball drills. His burst was phenomenal. He definitely increased his stock today.
- The one deep ball tracking drill was revealing and cut a clear line between those that could handle it and those that could not. Run backwards, then flip to the right hip, drive, flip to the left hip, drive, flip over the top blind and drive for the coach in the corner, track a high deep ball and catch it at it's highest point, turn back and sprint straight line for the end zone. The players with tight hips were all over the field, taking more room and time to complete a hip flip, sometimes stumbling and clearly slower in execution, often becoming upright when changing direction and losing the ability to drive. This drill exposed which players could function in a game at a position, and which ones will be Special Teams (straight line) only players. Vaccaro, Wolf, Shamarko and Elam were all fine. A few players ended up on their backsides at various points.
- Vaccaro performed the skill drills fast and fluid, faster than his 40 time would indicate.
That's it. Look for a Combine wrap up soon.
On Twitter: Steven Van Over
