5. Understanding the importance of drills
There’s definitely a train of thought out there that these drills don’t amount to a hill of beans from an evaluation standpoint. That would be a foolish sentiment based on surface-based thinking. Some drills are more important than others. Some really shouldn’t be conducted when it comes to specific positions.
These are the generic drills, which every position takes part in. Then, when looking at the specific drills, there’s surely some that should take precedence over others.
When looking at the generic drills, why do we really care what 40-yard dash time an offensive lineman runs? Sure it can give us somewhat of an understanding whether a prospect will be more of the bullish variety or boasts plus-level athleticism. But 40-yard dash time isn’t necessarily going to impact where an offensive lineman goes.
What we’re going to want to look at here is the three-cone drill. How is said prospect able to change direction in a whim? This is equally important when it comes to the EDGE rush position on defense.
Texas A&M’s Myles Garrett is considered the top overall prospect in the draft. He should cement that status at the combine. But it’s how Stanford’s Solomon Thomas and Tennessee’s Derek Barnett perform that should tell us who else goes in the top 10 at that position.
As to where Thomas might need to show where he will play at the next level, Barnett’s primary motivation will be to show he has the athleticism to be considered a top-end pass-rushing prospect.
“He’s damn good. I don’t think he gets drafted as early as you do because he’s not big enough for inside and he’s not as long as you like on the outside,” an unnamed scout said about Thomas recently, via NFL.com. “You have to figure out where you will play him, but he won’t stop. He’s going to be really productive.”
This makes the position-specific drills important for Thomas. How does he perform against opposing offensive linemen? Can he show the ability to get to the quarterback from a hands-down position? Does he have the pass-rush arsenal to perform from the linebacker position?
Staying on defense, one of this scribe’s favorite drills is in the secondary. Ability to show fluid hip movement and ball-tracking skills. These are not two things that can be measured when it comes to the generic drills.
Instead, the ball reacting and catching drill should give us a tremendous understanding of where the likes of Malik Hooker and Budda Baker stand as center-fielders at free safety. Hooker is a potential top-five pick and could cement that status. Meanwhile, Baker could push his way into the first round with a solid performance here.