by O second day of training on the field at the NFL Combine in Indianapolis, defenders – corners first, safeties second – took to the stage in Indianapolis. A handful of prospects raised their stock with strong performances, while others sent scouts back to tape, questioning their initial valuation.
Here are some of the winners and losers from Friday’s Indianapolis field practices, starting with a breakdown of some notable prospects:
|
Christian Gonzalez (Oregon) |
4.38 seconds |
— |
41.5 inches |
11 ft-1 |
1.54 seconds |
|
Kelee Ringo (Georgia) |
4.36 |
— |
33.5 |
10 ft-2 |
1.55 |
|
Joey Porter Jr. (Penn State) |
4.49 |
— |
35 |
10ft-9 |
1.50 |
|
Deont Banks (Maryland) |
4.35 |
— |
42 |
11 foot-4 |
1.49 |
| Martin Jartavius ​​(Illinois) | 4.46 | — | 44 | 11 ft-1 | 1.47 |
|
Jakorian Bennett (Maryland) |
4.30 |
— |
40.5 |
11 ft-1 |
1.48 |
| DJ Turner (Michigan) | 4.26 | — | 38.5 | 10ft-11 | 1.47 |
| Sydney Brown (Illinois) | 4.47 | — | 40.5 | 10ft-10 | 1.51 |
| Cam Smith (South Carolina) | 4.43 | — | 38 | 11 ft-2 | 1.49 |
| Emmanuel Forbes (Mississippi State) | 4.35 | — | 37.5 | 10ft-11 | 1.48 |
winners
Christian Gonzalez, CB, Oregon I’ll just say – Gonzalez solidified himself as a CB1 in this class with his showing at Indianapolis. What I mean by that is most people and teams will have him as CB1, and he will likely be the first cornerback off the board. At 6 feet and 197 pounds, the former Colorado-turned-Oregon star ran a 4.38 with a 41.5-inch vertical leap and an 11-foot wide jump. He made comparisons to Patrick Surtain II from some reviewers and tested a little better.
Deont Banks, CB, Maryland: Running 4.35 with a 42-inch vertical jump and a wide jump of 11 feet 4 will get you drafted in the first round in the corner in most situations. Banks is quality size too, at 6 feet and 197 pounds with arms just under the 32-inch limit many teams have today. We all expected Banks to test like a gazelle this weekend, and he did.
Jartavius ​​Martin, S, Illinois: Martin’s 44-inch vertical is the tallest yet on this year’s combine, and his 11-ft-1 width was the best among safeties. Dude has bunnies as they used to say back in high school. Oh, he also ran a 4.46 and had an incredibly fast split of 1.47 over 10 yards, also at the top of his position. He will instantly be one of the most explosive safety guards in the NFL this fall.
Jakorian Bennett, CB, Maryland: Banks was supposed to be Maryland’s headliner. Bennett channeled his inner Lee Corso and said “not so fast my friend”. Bennett ran the second-fastest 40-yard (4.30 seconds) time with a 40.5-inch vertical—just 1.5 inches lower than Banks—and an 11-ft-1 width. These Sea Turtles Play With Rockets On Top Of Their Shells.
Julius Brents, CB, Kansas State: Brents was 6-foot-3 and 198 pounds with ridiculous, offensive tackle like 34-inch arms at the weigh-in. So he approached the rarefied 11-foot-6 wide Bryon Jones territory that initially looks like a typo but is in fact not. It had a 41.5-inch vertical and ran a solid 4.53 on the 40, too. Most corners as big as Brents are not as explosive as he is.
Sidney Brown, S, Illinois: Brown slayed the Senior Bowl and continued the pre-draft process with his combined training. At a stocky 5-foot-10 and 210 pounds, Brown cruised to a 4.47 cornerback in the 40 and had an impressive 40.5-inch vertical with a wide 10-foot-10 jump. He’s a three-tier, multi-level security that can do it all.
DJ Turner, CB, Michigan: The prize for the fastest 40 between corners — who may eventually be the fastest among all participants combined – goes to Turner, who flew to a 4.26. It will make many come back to the movie because it didn’t look as fast in the movie. But the number is the number.
Losers
Joey Porter Jr., CB, Penn State: From a measurement standpoint, Porter and his gargantuan 34-inch arms were the obvious winners. Workout, not so much for the Penn State stud with NFL lineages, especially when compared to his contemporary cornerbacks in this class. The 10 foot 9 width is nothing to be ashamed of, but in this atomic group of athletic curves, it ranked 12th. Your big jump? Tied for 18th. See, this is not an inventory drop effort; it just didn’t compare to the other perceived upper corners of the class.
Christopher Smith III, S, Georgia: Smith spent a lot of time patrolling the deep middle on some epic loaded Kirby Smart saves in Georgia. Captain. He probably screwed up his team’s interviews. Running 4.66 with a 33-inch, 9-foot-8-wide vertical jump doesn’t scream a great athlete, which will detract from your squeaky clean draft stock.
Kelee Ringo, CB, Georgia: Ringo ran a 4.36, so it wasn’t too bad for the Georgia star. However, based on immensely high expectations, the 4.36 was a bit of a letdown, and its heels — 33.5 inches vertically and 10-ft-2 wide — weren’t surprisingly good. Ringo doesn’t mirror exceptionally. His game is almost entirely based on his burst and long speed. I wish we had seen a better overall display of him. I assume he feels the same way.
The 2023 NFL Draft will be held April 27-29 in Kansas City, Missouri.
For live reaction from yesterday’s festivities, check out friday live blog. The quarterbacks, wide receivers and tight ends take the field on Saturday.
