NFL Combine 2014: Defensive backs close it out in Indianapolis

COACH KEVIN SUMLIN: Johnny. Locker room. Got a couple scouts waiting for you in there.

JOHNNY MANZIEL: What? Who?

It’s true that the Combine is the most important measuring stick for NFL hopefuls, but not getting invited isn’t an automatic death sentence for a player’s professional career. After all, 335 prospects got invited this year, but there are only 256 spots open in the draft, so a lot of them will be left out of the loop. That opens a potential door for non-invitees to get scouts’ attention over the next month.

Let’s take a look at the most notable Combine snubs who have managed to carve out an NFL career.

“I have no idea where is,” a source close to Muema told the Union-Tribune. “[San Diego State coaches] have been trying to track him down, too. Every time they do, his phone is off. ... It’s a frustrating deal.”

“It’s a big mystery,” said Lou Farrar, Muema’s high school football coach. “At this point, we just hope he’s safe. As long as he’s safe. That’s all that really matters.”

Let’s have Patriots head coach Bill Belichick sum the whole thing up from an NFL perspective.

“The medical part of it’s huge,” Belichick said at the combine. “Having some interaction with the players personally is good, certainly good for me, because I’ve had almost zero over the course of the year. because of the demands of our season. Just being able to see them in person, even though the drills, they’re workout drills, they’re not really football drills. But there’s certainly something to be said for being able to line up the guys all together and watch them compete with each other and go through it all.”

That might mean improving your stock from a Day 3 to a Day 2 pick, or moving up from the middle to the top of the first round. Here is a closer look at five players who had successful trip to the Combine and five who will need to rebound at their pro days and other workouts.

Greg Robinson, OT, Auburn

The corners ended up being just as fast as advertised. In the early-going, it was Justin Gilbert who stole the show. The Oklahoma State product ran an unofficial 40-yard dash in 4.35 seconds, just behind Phillip Gaines, who clocked an unofficial time of 4.34 seconds in the early runs.

Gilbert did better than both Alabama’s Ha Ha Clinton-Dix and Michigan State’s Darqueze Dennard. Dennard is projected to be a first-round pick, and while he ran well, he finished above 4.4. Dennard’s official time was 4.51 seconds, while Clinton-Dix ended up at 4.58. Both players will be high draft picks regardless.

A few players stood out above the crowd, posting some very impressive numbers. Gilbert had arguably the best day of all, posting a blazing 4.37-second 40-yard dash and looking smooth throughout the drills. The combine was also a success for Dennard, who ran a 4.51-second 40, answering some questions about his speed. Verrett posted impressive numbers across the board, including a 4.38 40 and a 39-inch vertical jump. Washington State’s Deone Bucannon did well for himself, finishing among the top safeties in a number of categories. The big-hitter ran a 4.49 40 to go along with a 125.0 broad jump.

Here is a complete look at the defensive back combine results:

There are two constants every year at the NFL Scouting Combine. NFL hopefuls will do extremely athletic things and Rich Eisen will don a pair of football cleats to go with a suit and run a 40-yard dash. Eisen was back at it on Tuesday, his 10th year of running the 40, clocking in with a 6.00 on his first attempt. On the second attempt, he made “history” with a 5.98, sneaking under the 6-second threshold.

And because this is 10 years of Run Rich Run, it’s only appropriate that we made a megamix for the occasion, from Pony to Foghat to Benny Hill ...

McGill, who stands at 6’3 and weighs in at 211 pounds, clocked an unofficial 4.47 for his 40-yard dash. Someone of his size running a sub-4.5 is pretty incredible. His second attempt clocked in at 4.44 seconds, building on his first. McGill has been considered a late-round talent, though he’s been discussed in the middle rounds as well.

SB Nation’s Matthew Fairburn has McGill pegged as the No. 21 cornerback coming out this year. It’s safe to say that he bumped up his stock significantly, provided his 40 time holds, which it should. That combination of size and speed will convince some team to take him fairly early on in the draft.

Wobble, baby. Wobble, baby. Wobble, baby. Wobble. (Yeah.)

Run swiftly! (Yeah, yeah!)

The defensive backs got the morning started early with the first group, including Alabama’s Ha Ha Clinton-Dix and Michigan State’s Darqueze Dennard, running 40-yard dashes, but it was Justin Gilbert who stole the show before the day even began. The 6’0, 200-pound cornerback from Oklahoma State unofficially finished his 40-yard dash in 4.35 seconds, just one-hundredth away from the best time of the first group of defensive backs.

That honor belonged to Rice cornerback Phillip Gaines, who unofficially finished both of his attempts in 4.34 seconds. The relatively unknown cornerback is also 6’0, although he is seven pounds lighter than Gilbert.

The 2014 NFL Combine is in the books for the running backs and leading the field in the 40-yard dash was Kent State’s diminutive playmaker, Dri Archer. In fact, Archer was just two hundredths of a second from breaking the Combine record set by Tennessee Titans running back Chris Johnson in 2008 when he finished in 4.24 seconds.

Archer was far from the only running back that had a solid weekend, though. Georgia State’s Jerrick McKinnon, Baylor’s Lache Seastrunk and Auburn’s Tre Mason each put up impressive numbers as well.

He’s not 6-feet-5-inches tall or 240 pounds like Central Florida quarterback Blake Bortles. He’s not quite as loud or outwardly confident as Texas A&M quarterback Johnny Manziel. Bridgewater’s not quite as athletic as those quarterbacks, either.

But Bridgewater didn’t prove it in Indianapolis. He, along with Manziel and Fresno State Derek Carr, decided not to throw at the combine. Instead, Bridgewater will wait until his pro day where he can throw to his wide receivers and be in a comfortable environment.

This drill is designed to test several key aspects of defensive back play -- instincts, backpedaling, working with double moves, route timing and ball skills. The drill also tests a players’ fluidity. Playing the ball may be one of the more underrated aspects of secondary play with the rise of the passing game. Following the success of Richard Sherman, a converted wide receiver, coaches and scouts could start emphasizing ball skills more going forward.

The defensive backs will be the last group to workout, taking part in the final day of the combine on Tuesday.

The defensive backs were the last group to arrive at the Combine. They registered at Indianapolis on Saturday, underwent their measurements and interviews on Sunday and did the bench press on Monday. Now they get to show off their football skills in the position drills.

The top cornerback in this year’s class is Michigan State’s Darqueze Dennard and he should show well in position drills. The big thing to watch on him is his speed and how quick the 5’11 prospect moves to make up for his relatively short stature. Smaller cornerbacks can be successful in the pros, but they typically have above average speed. Lacking ideal size and speed can be hard to overcome against NFL receivers.

Khalil Mack and Anthony Barr are dueling to be the first linebacker off the board in the 2014 NFL Draft and the pair stayed even during the Combine on Monday, as they put up similar numbers to one another.

In the 40 yard dash, the pair essentially posted identical times, as they each unofficially posted 4.66 on their first run. On the second run, Mack edged Barr by a hundredth of a second with a 4.62 compared to Barr’s 4.63. The official times kept that margin, although it was a 4.65 for Mack and a 4.66 for Barr.

Take a closer look at the logo on the binder he’s flipping through.

Hope you didn’t write one of those “Death of the Patriot Way” columns last summer. If you did, it might be time to update it.

If you can’t wow everyone with a 4.3, then you should at least try to find some other way to make your 40-yard dash the talk of the town. UCLA linebacker Jordan Zumwalt did just that, infusing his sprint with a little profanity.

Quick, what was Zumwalt’s unofficial time on the 40? Of course you don’t know. I don’t either, because all I remember is him saying the f-word a handful of times. But I do remember it. Mission accomplished.

Here’s the gif of Clowney burning up the track.

Unfortunately, that was as close as either got to running the drills. Ford was shut down as a medical scratch on Monday, and Clowney was picking and choosing his events because of a hip flexor issue. He skipped the on-field drills, but was healthy enough to run an absurd 40 time, post a 10’4 long jump and a 37.5” vertical jump.

“Run what you want.”

Editor’s note: Those are actually Monster 24K headphones that Clowney’s wearing. We just wanted to spoof the Beats commercial.