Every year, the NFL Combine produces some breakout stars and big time buzz among fans and NFL scouts.
While the 40 times and big jumps may capture the attention of the fans, scouts are equally interesting in the on-field drills portion of the combine.
Fans can easily go and find who put up the fastest 40, but it’s not as easy to know who had the best on-field workout, even if you tuned in for the drills.
That’s why I decided to create the NFL Combine All-Drills team.
This is my 4th year doing this, and you can check out the 2022 Drills Team here.
Again, this list does not care in the slightest how fast you ran your 40 or what you weighed in at. The only thing this list cares about is how well they went through positional drills.
The following players performed the best in the on-field drills at the 2023 NFL Combine.
All-Drills Team Offense
Quarterback
1st Team: CJ Stroud, Ohio State
2nd Team: Will Levis, Kentucky
3rd Team: Anthony Richardson, Florida
13 of the 15 QBs at the combine participated in on-field workouts, with only Bryce Young and Hendon Hooker (ACL tear) not throwing.
It isn’t very realistic to expect QBs to be consistently accurate at the combine since they’re throwing the receivers they haven’t thrown to before, but this year’s QB group did a surprisingly good job. Infinitely better than last year’s combine.
CJ Stroud was by far the most impressive quarterback. He had by far the highest number of perfect throws, coupled with a natural throwing motion and great arm strength which included multiple bombs of over 60 yards. The consistent placement was as good as anyone I’ve seen at the combine.
No one comes close to matching Stroud’s on-field workout, but Will Levis sneaks onto the second team. His throwing motion was natural with great placement on most of his throws. His intermediate throws were extremely impressive, and the only drill he didn’t impress in was the quick outs where he was consistently a bit late. He showed solid arm strength and better placement than expected.
Anthony Richardson snuck out my 3rd team selection over Dorian Thompson-Robinson, Jaren Hall, and Stetson Bennett. Richardson had his share of poor throws, but he also had more perfect throws than I anticipated from him. He made the routine throws like the curl routes and slants at a good clip, but the deep balls are the reason he needed to make an All-Drills team. All four of his go route throws were absolutely beautiful.
Wide Receiver
1st Team: Jaxon Smith-Njigba, Ohio State
2nd Team: Josh Downs, North Carolina
3rd Team: Zay Flowers, Boston College
Most of the 50 wide receivers at the combine participated in on-field workouts, and the stars absolutely showed up.
Smith-Njigba in particular put on a clinic with his body control and route running. Despite not running a 40, he showed scouts exactly what they wanted to see after his injury-plagued season. The same incredible shiftiness and ability to put his foot in the ground and change directions on a dime. Everything he ran, from a quick dig to a corner fade, was textbook.
Josh Downs also excelled in just about every route. He impressed with his quick hips and late hands on his comeback route, along with natural hands in the gauntlet and a really nice curl route.
Zay Flowers showed an impressive first step and clean route running, while delivering a big catch on his comeback route. He didn’t have as many wow moments for me, but was consistently good through every rep.
Running Back
1st Team: Jahmyr Gibbs, Alabama
2nd Team: Bijan Robinson, Texas
3rd Team: Deuce Vaughn, Kansas State
It was a really nice day for the running backs, and it was tough to narrow the list down to just 3 players.
18 of the 27 running backs participated in drills, but most of the top running backs participated. They didn’t disappoint.
Jahmyr Gibbs looked the most natural and explosive in drills, gliding almost like Justin Jefferson on his routes. He has so many careful details and deception in his route running, and showed some incredibly fast feet when the bags were out.
The crown jewel of the class, Bijan Robinson, also had a really nice day. He was a natural in routes with clean hands and good route running. He took all his routes at full speed, and tracked the ball well on his wheel route. He always kept his feet underneath him and looked really smooth on his Duce Staley drill.
Deuce Vaughn was built for most of these drills. His feet are so fast, and his start-and-stop ability is second to none. He was textbook through the Duce Staley drill, with a great pivot route and a really nice grab to close out the day on his wheel route.
Tight End
1st Team: Darnell Washington, Georgia
2nd Team: Sam LaPorta, Iowa
3rd Team: Brenton Strange, Penn State
Only 14 of the 20 tight ends went through drills, with notable players like Dalton Kincaid, Luke Musgrave, and Luke Schoonmaker not participating.
Darnell Washington ended up stealing the show with two superstar moments. The first was a textbook showing in the lone blocking drill, where he complete manhandled the sled with perfect leverage and power, and the next was a truly unreal one handed catch right at the end of the night. Combine that will solid showings in the other drills, and there’s no other option for the first team.
OH MY, DARNELL WASHINGTON.
WHAT A CATCH. @GeorgiaFootball
📺: #NFLCombine on @nflnetwork
📱: Stream on NFL+ pic.twitter.com/OYN4vaJ4a3— NFL (@NFL) March 5, 2023
Sam LaPorta looked like the best tight end on the field until the fade route, where he struggled a bit and Washington shined. LaPorta was a natural on the wheel route, and tracked the ball exceptionally well all day. His corner route and gauntlet drills were also very impressive, moving quick and catching the ball effortlessly.
Brenton Strange also had a quietly really good workout. He tracked the ball very well over his shoulder, had clean footwork on his routes, and caught the ball well all day. He also showed really nice power and leverage in the blocking drill.
Offensive Line
1st Team: Peter Skoronski, Northwestern
2nd Team: Anthony Bradford, LSU
3rd Team: Broderick Jones, Georgia
42 of the 51 offensive linemen participated in drills, and I probably should’ve broken it down into an offensive tackles and interior group to give a shoutout to some more guys.
Peter Skoronski didn’t run the 40 as fast as I hoped he would, but he looked just as athletic in field drills as I anticipated. He showed some really good bend on his fold block, and put up very solid pass protection reps. He had the ankle strength to bend and change directions quickly, and looked like a weapon blocking the screen drill.
Anthony Bradford of LSU was probably the biggest surprise of the day. He was incredibly flexible with some quick feet and smooth hips, and it was easy to forget that he was one of the heaviest linemen on the field at 330+ pounds. His pass rush drops were really impressive, and he showed good bend going around the edge on the screen drill.
Broderick Jones narrowly beat out Matthew Bergeron for the 3rd team spot. He looked quick and natural on the long pull, with an impressive wide base when shuffling. He has very nice footwork and maintains properly balance throughout his reps, while having the explosion to burst off of blocks.
All-Drills Team Defense
Interior Defensive Line
1st Team: Jalen Redmond, Oklahoma
2nd Team: Bryan Bresee, Clemson
3rd Team: Zacch Pickens, South Carolina
There were 19 interior defensive linemen at the combine, and 3 of the best chose not to participate in on-field drills (Jalen Carter, Calijah Kancey, Mazi Smith).
As a result, the group wasn’t particularly strong.
Jalen Redmond stood out the most to me thanks to his quickness and flexibility. It was obvious right away in the wave drill, and he showed impressive body control during the Run and Club drill.
Bryan Bresee was very close to taking the first team spot, showing great bend in the 4 bag agility, the ability to make sharp turns, and good ankle flexibility. I pushed him down to the 2nd Team because he seemed out of control on the 8s towel drill.
Zacch Pickens also deserves some attention. After a strong Senior Bowl showing, Pickens picked up right where he left off. He was incredibly smooth in the wave drill, and had a nice fluid run through the Run and Club drill.
Edge Rusher
1st Team: YaYa Diaby, Louisville
2nd Team: Nick Hampton, Appalachian State
3rd Team: Will McDonald IV, Iowa State
There were 44 edge rushers at the combine, but a fair number of them didn’t participate in drills (including Myles Murphy, Tyree Wilson, Felix Anudike-Uzomah, Andre Carter, BJ Ojulari, and others).
YaYa Diaby didn’t have a single poor drill, starting with fast turns in the wave drill and ending with a surprisingly clean rep on the zone drop despite being well over 250 pounds. He showed the flexibility and strength of an NFL edge rusher with some nice versaility.
Nick Hampton had very clean turns, quick feet, and a very clean backpedal. Many of the edge rushers struggled with the conversion drills which had them dropping back into coverage, but not Hampton.
The edge rushers had been split into two groups, some labeled as defensive linemen and some as linebackers. Hampton was for some reason with the defensive linemen, even though I think he has the fluidity to be an off ball linebacker if needed. He put up clean rep after clean rep.
Will McDonald also had a very nice showing, and got better as the drills went on. He had great bend around the edge, a strong first step, and quick feet in the 4 bag agility. He added in some really nice hands in the short zone drop. McDonald was a day removed from a 104 degree fever, but didn’t look like it slowed him down in drills.
Linebacker
1st Team: Daiyan Henley, Washington State
2nd Team: Henry To’oTo’o, Alabama
3rd Team: Jack Campbell, Iowa
There were only 22 true linebackers at the combine, with 6 not participating in on-field work, most notably Ivan Pace, Dorian Williams, and DeMarvion Overshown.
Of those who did work out, Henley continued to catch my eye. There’s no better words to describe him other than “smooth.” He accelerates well, he had no wasted movement, and he had an impressive backpedal which will help him cover at the next level.
I also liked what Henry To’oTo’o showed. The Alabama linebacker had some impressive footwork in the opening wave drill, looked clean in the coverage reps, and even impressed with his quickness and body control on the pass rushing reps, which he hasn’t really had to do in his college career.
Jack Campbell is one of the biggest linebackers in the recent years of the combine, but he moved just as well as the smaller guys. He moved his feet very well, and was very smooth in the shuffle-sprint-change direction drills. He also shows remarkably quick footwork in coverage drills.
Safety
1st Team: Jartavius Martin, Illinois
2nd Team: Jammie Robinson, Florida State
3rd Team: Ji’Ayir Brown, Penn State
22 safeties were at the combine, and all but 2 of them participated in drills. It was a strong showing from the group as a whole.
Jartavius Martin was one of the best performers in athletic testing, but he was just as dominant on the field drills. He looked so natural attacking the ball in the gauntlet drill that he could be playing on offense, and the final true DB drill showed his incredible fluidity. His backpedal was smooth for a safety, and he changed directions effortlessly.
Jammie Robinson had some of the quickest feet at the combine. He also kept his feet underneath him, and was able to quickly change direction while also having impressively quick hips. He’s got a strong build and was able to put his foot in the ground and burst upfield as well as anyone.
Ji’Ayir Brown disappointed in the athletic testing, but had a very solid day in the field drills. He tracked the ball very well in the air and did a good job of finishing his catches. Brown had very good hips to turn and run in coverage, and was as good as any DB covering the 45 degree break.
Cornerback
1st Team: Clark Phillips III, Utah
2nd Team: Christian Gonzalez, Oregon
3rd Team: Cameron Mitchell, Northwestern
Cornerback was one of the biggest groups at the combine, with 37 participants. Although many didn’t participate in field drills (Devon Witherspoon, Joey Porter Jr., DJ Turner, Eli Ricks, plus others), it was still a very competitive workout and tough to choose only three players.
Clark Phillips absolutely killed it in the drills, with lightning fast hips, a low center of gravity, and extremely quick feet. While the size-speed combination didn’t look as good as some had hoped, his on-field workout looked exactly like what you saw on tape. Incredible body control, footwork, and quick acceleration.
Christian Gonzalez almost took the 1st team spot, with incredible quickness covering the quick out drills, and incredibly impressive start-stop abilities in the W drill. He turned and ran on the 45 degree break incredibly well, and showed a great ability to attack the ball in the air.
Cameron Mitchell of Northwestern quietly had himself a really impressive day of drills. His line drills were very solid to start, but it was the Teryl Austin drills where he really showed out with his ability to change directions and flip his hips.
If you have any questions about how I pick my All-Drills team, or think I missed someone, feel free to leave a comment below! There were plenty of deserving players who I didn’t get to mention.
