At the NFL combine, 40 times reign supreme among fans. But for NFL scouts, the drills are just as important as the athletic measurables.
Throughout the week, I evaluated the drills for each position group.
Now, I’ll be naming my All-Drills team for the NFL combine. This team is a full starting lineup of the players who performed the best during the on field drills.
We’re throwing out the 40 times and any previous opinions of these prospects, we’re only looking at how they performed in the drills.
Feel free to leave any comments below!
All-Drills Team 2022
Offense
The Offense All-Drills Team includes:
QB: Cole Kelley, SE Louisiana
It can be hard for a QB to put together a complete performance at the combine, and in a year without a big time QB prospect, the entire group was a bit inconsistent.
Kelley showed good arm strength and accuracy throughout his workout, with solid drop back footwork for his size.
He also threw during drills for every other position group, going the extra mile to get as much exposure as possible.
He gets the nod on this team by a sliver.
Grade: 7/10
WR: Skyy Moore, Western Michigan
A number of receivers looked really good during field drills.
Skyy Moore was dominant with his shiftiness, hands, and body control. He tracked deep balls very well and had natural hands.
Grade: 9/10
WR: Chris Olave, Ohio State
Garrett Wilson may be the higher rated prospect, but Olave was definitely more impressive in the field drills.
He has very soft hands, tracked deep balls, and paced his routes perfectly. He’s one of the most advanced route runners in the class, and didn’t have any drops on the day.
Grade: 9/10
WR: Bo Melton, Rutgers
Bo Melton has some really impressive underneath quickness, and made a number of impressive catches throughout drills. He exceled on the gauntlet, slant route, and post corner route, showing his speed and ability to accelerate into his catches.
Grade: 8.5/10
RB: Ronnie Rivers, Fresno State
Rivers was as impressive as anyone with his ability to accelerate through his cuts and consistently play at his top speed.
He’s a natural receiver and showed receiver-like route running out of the backfield, with a great center of balance to bend around edges.
While his 40 time wasn’t great, he looked the part of a valuable change-of-pace back in drills.
Grade: 9.5/10
TE: Daniel Bellinger, San Diego State
I haven’t heard much about the great day of practice Bellinger had.
While McBride and Likely were both impressive, Bellinger’s power in the sled blocking, powerful yet soft hands, and body control on deep routes were very impressive given his NFL-ready frame.
He played with solid speed in the open field, and showed the traits to develop into a well rounded NFL tight end.
Grade: 9/10
OT: Trevor Penning, Northern Iowa
Watching Penning in drills, it’s easy to forget that he’s 6’7″ 325 pounds. His knee bend, ankle strength, and acceleration are very impressive for his size. You could easily see the acceleration on his screen release and short pull drills, and looked nimble enough to belong at the combine even if he didn’t have the next-level size and toughness.
Grade: 9.5/10
G: Ed Ingram, LSU
I wasn’t sure what to expect from Ingram after seeing a fast 40 time yet a poor vertical and broad jump.
As expected however, he showed the fast feet, balance, and hip flexibility that scouts have raved about.
We didn’t get many chances to see power in drills, but his punches were quick and well placed.
Grade: 8/10
C: Zach Tom, Wake Forest
Zach Tom had an absurdly good combine, drills included. Having played tackle at Wake Forest, he’s often been scouted as a center at the next level.
While we’re not totally sure where he’ll be slotted in, he showed the sheer athleticism necessary to succeed.
He had a great performance in his down + pull block, kick slide, and showed great get off on his redirect drills.
Grade: 9.5/10
G: Zion Johnson, Boston College
Zion doesn’t necessarily look like an NFL guard, but he went through the drills like he created them.
He’s extremely light on his feet, with good acceleration, optimal balance, and strong hands.
He had a great rep in the long pull, showing off his powerful lower body.
Grade: 10/10
OT: Bernhard Raimann, Central Michigan
Raimann is a dominant athlete, and you could see that with his flexible hips and lower body explosion.
He had a phenomenal start in the wave drill and long pull, and looked genuinely scary in the short pull. If I was a linebacker, I wouldn’t want that guy running at me. His mirror dodge saw some good knee bend, and his body control is near the top of the class.
Grade: 8.5/10
Honorable Mentions: Jahan Dotson, James Cook, Trey McBride, Spencer Burford
Defense
The Defense All-Drills Team includes:
DE: Travon Walker, Georgia
Travon Walker was a beast at everything he did during the combine, including the drills.
Despite being 270 pounds he looked as flexible as anyone, dominating in the figure 8 drill and edge rushing drills.
During conversion drills he looked surprisingly advanced in coverage, showing open field fluidity that could lead to major versatility at the next level.
Grade: 9.5/10
DT: Logan Hall, Houston
Logan Hall also looked very twitchy out there.
While some may chalk him up as an edge rusher, he’s a tweener who worked out with the interior guys and looked very athletic by comparison.
He was very smooth in the wave drill, changing direction quickly and exploding from a stopped position.
Grade: 9/10
DT: Jordan Davis, Georgia
Someone who’s 340 pounds shouldn’t be so light on their feet, but here we are. Davis changed direction with ease, and had a lower bend than almost any lineman in the group, despite standing at 6’6″.
Even if Davis were 6’4″ 300 pounds, he still looked impressive enough to probably make this list. Once you remember how quick he looked at his size? You just can’t ignore that.
Grade: 10/10
DE: Boye Mafe, Minnesota
Walker was the only edge rusher I was extremely enamored with in drills, but I gave the other spot to Mafe because he showed things we hadn’t seen from him on tape.
Mafe worked out with the linebackers despite being a 260 pound edge rusher, and was more fluid than most people in the group.
While his ball skills weren’t too impressive, his ability to change directions and make quick reads from a standup position were really impressive, showing a legitimate ability to be a stand up linebacker at the next level.
While I knew he had enough athleticism for that, I figured he’s be very raw with him linebacking skills. He looked much further along than expected should a 3-4 defense pick him up.
Grade: 7.5/10
LB: Troy Andersen, Montana State
Troy Andersen started things off right for the linebackers with a perfect wave drill, and didn’t look back from there.
He showed great body control, quick feet, and a powerful first step, all while keeping his feet under him.
Grade: 9/10
LB: Damone Clark, LSU
From the first drill to the last, Damone Clark showed great fluidity for a bigger linebacker. His body control was excellent, with quick feet that stayed under him and a very powerful frame.
He shuffled his feet well and looked smooth in coverage drills.
For someone who was thought of as more of a sideline-to-sideline tackler, his coverage fluidity was very impressive.
Grade: 9/10
LB: Quay Walker, Georgia
I preferred Quay Walker over Tindall today, showing a powerful low center of balance and a great bend around the edge. He had a natural backpedal in his coverage drills, and gained a lot more ground than other linebackers.
His quickness and burst were obvious even without any hitting drills.
Grade: 8.5/10
CB: Coby Bryant, Cincinnati
Coby didn’t have the fastest 40 time, but I thought he looked better than Sauce in the drills.
He showed a very smooth back pedal, incredibly quick turns in the box and wave drills, and consistently showed good ball skills.
His foot speed and hip fluidity were easy to see, so I wouldn’t have any worries about the mid-4.5’s 40 time.
Grade: 9.5/10
NB: Jack Jones, Arizona State
Jack Jones looked phenomenal, and looked like he could easily step in as a coverage-oriented nickel corner.
He showed a strong, clean plant on his back pedals, tracked the ball well, and was very quick in the box drill.
Jones also impressed in the gauntlet, hauling in receptions despite some bad passes.
Grade: 9/10
S: Nick Cross, Maryland
Cross was my favorite safety of the day.
He has a rock solid build with a power upper body, but showed exceptional burst in the lower body as well.
His quick hips should help him excel in the slot, with a fast and fluid backpedal.
He was very smooth the in the 90 degree break, and showed excellent body control on the wave.
Grade: 9.5/10
S: Kyle Hamilton, Notre Dame
Hamilton ran every drill well, appearing fluid and in control despite being significantly bigger than the other safety prospects.
He changed directions incredibly well, and looked natural as a receiver.
It was nice seeing one of the biggest names go through drills, and he didn’t disappoint.
Grade: 9/10
CB: Roger McCreary, Auburn
McCreary is someone who has every trait other than length, and length doesn’t matter in drills. As a result, he was pretty dominant.
His feet were as quick as anyone, but they weren’t getting ahead of him. He showed great body control and bend, while looking like a natural closing it out in the gauntlet drill.
Grade: 9.5/10
Honorable Mentions: Jermaine Johnson, Devonte Wyatt, Chad Muma, Derion Kendrick, Damarion Williams, Jalen Pitre
BLAH BLAH
