The-Hogs.net - Washington Football Discussion, Redskins to Commanders Era

(Feb. 15, 2007) -- Here's a breakdown by position of the key defensive players that will be at the RCA Dome for this year's Scouting Combine in Indianapolis. We are listing the top players at each position and players you might not know about prior to their workouts. We will try and point out who will be the Danieal Manning of this year's draft class. Manning, from Abilene Christian, was the 42nd overall pick in the 2006 draft and became a starter for the Chicago Bears.

These rankings can and will change after the Combine because of the physical aspects like health or injury problems (Marcus McNeill of the Chargers dropped in the 2006 draft when teams became concerned about his back) and the workouts, where a player might run faster than had been expected (49ers tight end Vernon Davis moved up to the sixth pick last year after running a 4.37 in the 40-yard dash).

Each player is listed with a number that he will wear at the workouts so you can follow them during the live coverage on NFL Network. You can check below for the schedule of events.


NOTE: The Combine track will be fast, which is great for running good times. Over the past two Combines (2005 and 2006), over 21 defensive backs ran times of 4.40 and under in the 40-yard dash. Of those 21, 11 ran for times of 4.35 and under. Last year, Tye Hill and Tim Jennings both ran 4.30 and improved their draft positions (Hill went 15th overall and Jennings was picked in the second round by the Colts and earned a Super Bowl ring). Thirty-four of the 38 linebackers in attendance ran and worked out, with four of them running under 4.60, including A.J. Hawk, who ran a 4.59 and was the fifth player selected in the draft. Players will run on a new FieldTurf surface this year, which Marvin Harrison and Dwight Freeney say is very fast.

Defensive linemen -- 50 players invited

First players likely to be picked (listed alphabetically):

1. Victor Abiamiri, Notre Dame (No. 1)
2. Gaines Adams, Clemson (No. 2)
3. Jamaal Anderson, Arkansas (No. 6)
4. Alan Branch, Michigan (No. 11)
5. Adam Carriker, Nebraska (No. 16)
6. Tim Crowder, Texas (No. 19)
7. Charles Johnson, Georgia (No. 28)
8. Quentin Moses, Geogia (No. 35)
9. Jarvis Moss, Florida (No. 36)
10. Amobi Okoye, Louisville (No. 37)
11. Anthony Spencer, Purdue (No. 45)
12. LaMarr Woodley, Michigan (No. 49)
* Some players in this group will be worked out as a linebacker in a 3-4 defensive scheme.

More names to know:

Jay Alford, Penn St. (No. 5)
Baraka Atkins, Miami, Fla. (No.
Dan Bazvin, Central Michigan (No. 9)
Kareem Brown, Miami (Fla.) (No. 12)
Brandon Mebane, California (No. 33)
Jay Moore, Nebraska (No. 34)
Quinn Pitcock, Ohio State (No. 39)

Wild cards: Ikaika Alama-Francis, Hawaii (No. 4): Recovering from injury
Justin Harrell, Tennessee (No. 23): Coming off an injury
Marcus Thomas, Florida (No. 46): Off-the-field problems

air_hog wrote:...Anderson... all work out at the Combine on NFL Network because I will really be paying attention to how they look.