20 things we learned from the 2020 scouting combine
The scouting combine is a fascinating fountain of draft and NFL knowledge. Here are the 20 most important things we learned this year.
Some players make you ignore the drills and go back to the tape.
Auburn defensive tackle Derrick Brown had the lowest three-cone time of any interior defensive lineman at this year’s combine at 8.22. His 5.16 40-yard dash was the fourth-lowest for the position. His broad jump of 108 inches was sixth-worst. And on and on. Then, you watch Brown on the field looking like some unholy combination of Ndamukong Suh and Gerald McCoy as he demolishes offensive lineman after offensive lineman, and those numbers become far less relevant. If teams in the top 10 of the draft order want to overcook those results, some team in the next few picks will happily find itself with a Pro Bowl-potential player falling into its collective lap.
*sees Derrick Brown's testing numbers*
*remembers seeing Brown once slide in and kill a run play from the freakin' SLOT area*
*does this with the numbers* pic.twitter.com/QuuePRjli0
— Doug Farrar (@NFL_DougFarrar) March 1, 2020
Iowa pass-rusher A.J. Epenesa didn’t test well with a 5.04 40-yard dash, 17 bench-press reps, and a 7.34 three-cone time, but listen to his former teammate, Iowa offensive tackle Tristan Wirfs, who blew up the combine with his own drills, via Mike Tanier of Bleacher Report:
“We had some battles. When I met with the Broncos, they said a scout was there [at Iowa practice] and I didn’t lose to A.J. So I said, ‘I’m glad you were there on that day.’ It goes back and forth, me and him. He was one of my best friends on the team. We will try to help each other get better. If he sees something that he beat me on, he’ll tell me what he saw. And when I beat him, I tell him what I saw.”
So, sometimes, it’s best to take the drills with a grain of salt and trust what you saw on the tape. At 6-foot-5 and 275 pounds, Epenesa projects very well based on his on-field exploits as a fluid mover with excellent hands. He’s also able to kick inside, and he’ll add to any hybrid front in the NFL.