What did NFL coaches and GMs really think about top prospects at the combine?

Combine buzz included the Seattle Seahawks riveting re-set (“Pete is kicking ass and retaking his team,” one of Seattle head coach Pete Carroll’s NFL peers said). The Kirk Cousins tour brought reaction (familiarity bred a downgrade in Washington, but Cousins is ready to hit the jackpot elsewhere while one NFL general manager said a popular combine refrain was “When was the last time he won anything?”)

Primary combine chatter, however, was on this varied batch of NFL prospects. NFL teams have returned from Indianapolis, studied their combine results, began tinkering with their draft boards and prepping for a slew of these college players’ campus workout days over the next few weeks.

Here are searing combine takes from my discussions with several NFL general managers, head coaches and scouts:

“I’m sitting up in one of those suites at the combine and I’m watching these guys warm up, get ready,” one NFL head coach said. “And you’d never think you were at a football event. It looked like an Olympic event. A track meet. The way they warm up nowadays, the routines, it’s all track. They come more prepared with a lot of this kind of training. The talent keeps evolving.”

He added: “With that said, these are some fast dudes.”

I kept hearing that.

That this combine featured one of the deepest pools ever of athletic, speedy players.

Their college football tape will tell their stories. Their interviews with teams will, too. So will what others from their circles have to say about them. As will how they contrast and compare with their peers.

But the initial, glaring, overall trait of this combine group is athleticism and speed.

“It’s a really talented group,” said one longtime NFL scout. “I mean, the linebackers, the corners, the safeties, the wide receivers, the running backs, there is some pervasive speed in these groups. Even the big offensive linemen this year seem to have a little more dance in them. The entire group is so deep in athleticism and speed that, sure, you have to get it right in rounds one and two in the draft. But you are really going to make your mark in rounds four, five and six. There is a lot of candy in that jar.”

I asked these experts which players glowed as dynamic, athletic, speedy, raw athletes even before analyzing the football part of it.

These names kept surfacing:

Calvin Ridley, Alabama WR: “He is a natural,” one scout said. “He just explodes.”

Marcus Davenport, UTSA DE: “Size, length, runs, got a burst,” another scout said.

Josh Allen, Wyoming QB: “It’s not just the deep ball,” a scout said. “It’s his size, it’s the zip on his throws from sideline to sideline. You look and go, `Oh, I’d like one of those please.’ No matter what your quarterback situation is, you’d like to have that on your team.”

Da’Ron Payne, Alabama DT: “Big guy, mobile guy, really looks the part,” an NFL head coach surmised.

Penn State running back Saquon Barkley was not in the aforementioned group because he deserves his own space.

Few in the league will be surprised if he vaults into the No. 1 draft spot.

“The Cleveland Browns are in a unique situation where the first thing about them is they are just trying to win A game,” one NFL head coach said. “And none of these rookie quarterbacks in this draft, to me, is a sure thing. Sam Darnold had an off year. Josh Rosen got his coaching staff fired. Josh Allen couldn’t even win the Mountain West Conference. Baker Mayfield, you just don’t know how he fits into your locker room and franchise.

“And here comes Barkley, who I thought at Penn State was sort of a scat back around 5’10 and 210 pounds or so. And he measures 6’0 and 233 pounds at the combine. With that size and how fast he is and what he can do, he’s a freak.”

Barkley is more, said one NFL scout.

“Everything you heard about him you saw at the combine and more. Explosive, the intangibles of his hip movement, the way he runs and reacts after catches. He didn’t leave a stone unturned. It was effortless work by him. You want a clean player, you’re looking at it. And his attitude is something I like – it’s ‘This is what I do and that’s it.”’

Shaquem Griffin, the Central Florida linebacker who because of a degenerative condition at birth does not have a left hand, provoked vigorous combine discussions.

Here are two frank views, first from a seasoned NFL scout:

“I saw him at the Senior Bowl. And my question was is he going to be able to tackle at the NFL level? Become a sure tackler? And then he comes to combine and runs a 4.38 in the 40. Everybody on the field was like, what? We looked at our watches twice. Did he get a jump on us? He checked out great in all of the drills. And I kept coming back to can he wrap up and tackle in the open field in the NFL? He’s done it in college but this is a different level. Maybe he’ll find a way. He’s always found a way. What we look at as a handicap or disability he does not. Whoever ends up drafting him will always have this in the back of their minds – can he tackle and pass defend on a consistent basis? It’s the elephant in the room.”

This from an NFL head coach:

“He came in running a 4.58 in the 40 and ran a 4.38, yet, his 10-yard splits in both were the same times. So, I’m a little questioning of that time. I want to see what the time is in his pro day. He’s a young man who has overcome in his whole life. He’s always figured it out. People like that just don’t hide. You’d almost love to have someone like that on your team, someone with that type of toughness that sets an example. You can’t bet against him. I wouldn’t. Can he figure out how to make plays in the NFL? It looks like he has always found a way to adjust.”

Combine workouts and drills produced varying value, but medical evaluations and team interviews with players provided essential cores.

Two players were repeatedly identified to me as combine interview winners. These two players radiantly talked the talk.

Rashaan Gaulden, Tennessee CB — “The guy just oozes leadership,” an NFL head coach said. “There is no question in my mind that this is a player that during his NFL career will quickly become a team captain.”

Roquan Smith, Georgia LB — “Outstanding,” said an NFL scout. “He is a guy you’d be tempted to make a captain as a rookie. His instincts in communication are off the charts.”