The biggest quote in this article to me is below. Tells you David Bells and Burks 40 is of no concern to them.
Maybe the best example is rookie receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown, whom the Lions scooped up in the fourth round.
“Like Dan was saying, you just find football players that you love,” Holmes said. “It was St. Brown this past year. Nobody was happier than me when St. Brown ran a 4.6 [at his pro day]. Absolutely. That was like, Oh, we’re definitely taking this guy , because there’s nothing on tape that deterred you. It’s like, This guy is a total fit for what we do . And when you keep hitting on those kind of guys …”
Before the combine I was calling David Bell a longer St. Brown, so the quote below caught my eye. I wonder if Holmes was like, Oh, we’re definitely taking this guy when Bell ran his 4.65? It should make him available at #66, right?
“Like Dan was saying, you just find football players that you love,” Holmes said. “It was St. Brown this past year. Nobody was happier than me when St. Brown ran a 4.6 [at his pro day]. Absolutely. That was like, Oh, we’re definitely taking this guy , because there’s nothing on tape that deterred you. It’s like, This guy is a total fit for what we do . And when you keep hitting on those kind of guys …”
Notable 40-yard dash times
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Tyquan Thornton (Baylor): 4.28
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Velus Jones Jr. (Tennessee): 4.31
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Calvin Austin III (Memphis): 4.32
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Danny Gray (SMU): 4.33
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Bo Melton (Rutgers): 4.34
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Christian Watson (North Dakota State): 4.36
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Garrett Wilson (Ohio State): 4.38
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Chris Olave (Ohio State): 4.39
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Alec Pierce (Cincinnati): 4.41
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Skyy Moore (Western Michigan): 4.41
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Isaiah Weston (Northern Iowa): 4.42
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Khalil Shakir (Boise State): 4.43
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Jahan Dotson (Penn State): 4.43
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Kevin Austin Jr. (Notre Dame): 4.43
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Wan’Dale Robinson (Kentucky) 4.44
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George Pickens (Georgia): 4.47
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Braylon Sanders (Ole Miss): 4.48
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Jalen Tolbert (South Alabama): 4.49
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Jalen Nailor (Michigan State): 4.50
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Tre Turner (Virginia Tech): 4.51
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Treylon Burks (Arkansas): 4.55
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Makai Polk (Miss. State): 4.59
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David Bell (Purdue): 4.65
WR losers
David Bell, Purdue: Bell wasn’t expected to rock his combine workout. But seeing the numbers gave disappointing vibes. Running 4.65 is far from ideal. As is a vertical under 35 inches and a broad jump that didn’t hit the 10-foot mark. Bell wins with precise routes and elite ball-tracking skills. He’s a lower-level athlete by NFL standards at the receiver spot.
Treylon Burks, Arkansas: Let me be clear with Burks’ 40. Running 4.55 at just north of 6-2 and 225 pounds is not horrible. I wouldn’t even consider it “bad.” But there were many Deebo Samuel and A.J. Brown comparisons for Burks before the combine, but the Arkansas star simply isn’t as explosive or fast as either of the two star professionals.
Charleston Rambo, Miami: At over 6-0 and 177 pounds, Rambo had the height-weight combination to test through the roof. Unfortunately that didn’t happen. A time close to 4.60 in the 40 and less-than-stellar the jumps will move him down boards across the league.
dang Chris Olave was middle of the pack , lol oooo k
Bell has a little Jerry Rice in him (and I don’t mean the back door). Similar size and speed, with good moves and hands. Not saying he will be anything close to Jerry, but imagine the possibilities for the Lions if he was?
A lot of people make fun of the combine, but I always love to see the testing numbers come in.
Before the combine, most draft analysts, who I assume watch lots of tape of the prospects, didn’t even have Christian Watson close to the top 50 players. He was Dane Brugler’s 14th best wide out.
Now, would it be surprising if the Lions took him at 32? Or would it be surprising if he was gone by 32? Watson looks like a really good prospect and would be perfect for the Lions offense.
I hadn’t watched anything of Watson until today and now I’m impressed. The speed is there on tape, and the ability to make guys miss in tight quarters… a dangerous YAC weapon. Sign me up. This guy has it.
Several guys in the Missouri Valley football conference “have it” this year. Trevor Penning from Northern Iowa is solid in the first this year. I posted in another thread that I thought Watson just made the first round conversation of WR’s into a 6 way race, not a 5 way, and that we should be able to pick up 1 at 32 or 34. People will argue all day long that the gym shorts Olympics shouldn’t change much of anything when it comes to where they had a guy slotted. Well, FCS guys simply haven’t had the exposure. Trey Lance last season was an outlier. I wonder if Penning would have gotten the attention he has gotten if not for fellow Northern Iowa OT Spencer Brown who went in the 3rd last year to the Bills.
Yeah, Christian Watson is making me feel like a weathervane. I saw him mocked to the Chiefs at #30 yesterday morning, so this is the new normal.
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