NFL Combine 2017 schedule: Player arrival dates, testing, and on-field workouts

Over 300 NFL prospects have accepted invitations to participate in the 2017 NFL Scouting Combine in Indianapolis, and hope to join a long list of successful rookies who first made a splash at this annual event. The four-day interview ranges from Feb. 28 to March 6, and boasts the best talent eligible to go pro. This will mark the first time most of these players will get a chance to perform for teams first-hand and have a chance to talk to them about their fit and future.

Hundreds of team scouts and player personnel will fill hotel and conference rooms preparing to evaluate the next round of rookie talent. Over the course of the week, every move these players make will be analyzed, from the size of their hands to how they handle some attention from the national media. Teams are under just as much pressure to get all the information they need to make smart draft decisions — or at least decisions that don’t make the entire fanbase mad.

The event’s guest list reads like a red carpet lineup for some of college football’s top players. Quarterback Deshaun Watson, who led Clemson to its first national championship since 1981, will be there to participate in every aspect of the pre-draft dog and pony show. The standout members of the Alabama defense he carved up — Jonathan Allen, Ryan Anderson, Reuben Foster, Marlon Humphrey, and Tim Williams — will be there as well for what promises to be an awkward reunion.

Other potential first-round selections like Leonard Fournette, Dalvin Cook, Mike Williams, Mitch Trubisky, Christian McCaffrey, and Zach Cunningham will make the trip to Indiana in hopes of boosting their draft stocks as well.

Prospects are busy most of the day and into the night during their time in Indy, with last year’s players joking about trying to take naps in between events. The early part of their trip is filled with medical and psychological testing, along with team meetings and media availability.

Once more of the logistical aspects are taken care of, the players finally take to the field for both workout and position drills. All players have the option to participate in the workout drills, which include the coveted 40-yard dash, vertical jump, broad jump, bench press, 3-cone drill, and shuttle run.

Each player will go through a four-day tryout with the rest of their position group, starting the day they arrive in Indianapolis.

Tuesday, Feb. 28:

— Special teams players, offensive linemen, running backs arrive
— Special teams players, offensive linemen, and running backs go through hospital pre-exam and X-rays, overflow testing, orientation, and interviews

Wednesday, March 1:

— Quarterbacks, wide receivers, tight ends arrive
— Quarterbacks, wide receivers, and tight ends go through hospital pre-exam and X-rays, overflow testing, orientation, and interviews
— Special teams players, offensive linemen, and running backs go through measurements, medical examinations, overflow testing, and interviews

Thursday, March 2:

— Defensive linemen and linebackers arrive
— Defensive linemen and linebackers go through hospital pre-exam and X-rays, overflow testing, orientation, and interviews
— Quarterbacks, wide receivers, and tight ends go through measurements, medical examinations, overflow testing, and interviews
— Special teams players, offensive linemen, and running backs go through psychological testing, an NFLPA meeting, workouts, media, bench press, and interviews

Friday, March 3:

— Defensive backs arrive
— Defensive backs go through hospital pre-exam and X-rays, overflow testing, orientation, and interviews
— Defensive linemen and linebackers go through measurements, medical examinations, overflow testing, and interviews
— Quarterbacks, wide receivers, and tight ends go through psychological testing, an NFLPA meeting, media, bench press, and interviews
— Special teams players, offensive linemen, and running backs go through an on-field workout (timing, stations, skill drills), then depart from Indianapolis

Saturday, March 4:

— Defensive backs go through measurements, medical examinations, overflow testing, and interviews
— Defensive linemen and linebackers go through psychological testing, an NFLPA meeting, media, bench press, and interviews
— Quarterbacks, wide receivers, and tight ends go through an on-field workout (timing, stations, skill drills), then depart from Indianapolis

Sunday, March 5:

— Defensive backs go through psychological testing, an NFLPA meeting, media, bench press, and interviews
— Defensive linemen and linebackers go through an on-field workout (timing, stations, skill drills), then depart from Indianapolis

Monday, March 6:

— Defensive backs go through an on-field workout (timing, stations, skill drills), then depart from Indianapolis