Unfortunately, not every prospect sees their NFL Draft stock improve at the NFL Combine. Which prospects underwhelmed at the showcase in Indianapolis this past week? David Bell and DeMarvin Leal are a couple of fallers after the event, but a few other prospects also saw their shine wear off.
Which players hurt their stock at the 2022 NFL Combine?
It’s very important to note this: Underwhelming athletes aren’t automatically bad players. In fact, there are many redeeming qualities for each player on this list. The NFL Combine is a great opportunity, but the setting isn’t ideal for every player, and competition is ruthless. When someone rises up, someone else has to slide down. That’s just how it is, unfortunately.
With that in mind, let’s get into the list for the 2022 NFL Combine. How did these players underwhelm, and what can they do to right the ship, before and after the draft?
Kenyon Green, G, Texas A&M
Once viewed as a potential top-10 pick, Kenyon Green is slowly dropping down boards. He should still be a top-50 pick. His tape is too good for him not to be. But Green was just above-average in composite testing. He did have a solid 1.81 10-yard split at 6’4″, 323 pounds, but his other numbers — a 26-inch vertical, a 102-inch broad jump, and 20 bench reps — were decent at best.
Green shows more athleticism on film, so it’s important to let that take precedence. Green is quick off the snap and has lots of power locked within his frame. But he didn’t look as sharp during testing in Indianapolis. Meanwhile, his main competition at the top of the guard board, Zion Johnson, put on a show. If Green can train hard ahead of his pro day and improve his numbers, that could help him solidify his stock.
David Bell, WR, Purdue
David Bell‘s dominant outings against various Big Ten squads rendered him a draft darling early on in the process. But at the 2022 NFL Combine, the former Boilermaker put up surprisingly pedestrian numbers. The first sign of uncertainty came when he weighed in at 212 pounds, heavier than his listed weight. Then, Bell ran a 4.65 40-yard dash, put up just a 33-inch vertical and 118-inch broad, and scored poorly in agility drills.
You can tell on tape that Bell isn’t an elite athlete — but the hope is that he would at least clear the above-average mark. Instead, he came in with a Relative Athletic Score (RAS) of just 2.72. That number is made more concerning when you think back to Bell’s play style. He has some route-running savvy, but he’s not an elite separator, and his routes aren’t very sudden. He has some RAC, but the margin for error will be slimmer for him at the next level. His strong catching instincts help raise his floor, but his ceiling isn’t inspiring.
Kyren Williams, RB, Notre Dame
I try to identify speed and explosiveness on tape as best I can. But if I miss on a guy, I’ll own it. I overestimated Kyren Williams‘ athleticism by a decent margin. He plays with more urgency and speed than his numbers imply, but his athletic testing was incredibly underwhelming, especially at his size. At 5’9″, 194 pounds, Williams ran a 4.65 40-yard dash, logged a 32-inch vertical, and posted a 116-inch broad jump.
Altogether, Williams earned a RAS of just 1.75, ranked 1,254th all-time out of 1,519 running backs with data available. The joint lack of top-end speed and size is most concerning. Few running backs under 200 pounds have ever succeeded without at least good quantified speed. Williams does play faster than his numbers, and his pass-catching and pass-blocking ability give him utility as a prospect. But his upside might not be as high as previously thought.
DeMarvin Leal, DT, Texas A&M
DeMarvin Leal might not be sliding as far as other players on this list. However, he continues to distance himself from the top-10 projections before the season. Maybe that’s more attributed to the draft community overcorrecting in response to the early hype. Whatever the case, Leal isn’t quite the blue-chip prospect he was once billed to be. There’s still a lot of appeal with Leal, and he should still be a top-50 pick. But he looks like more of a tweener than a hybrid on the defensive line.
At 6’4″, 283 pounds, Leal’s situated between defensive tackle and defensive end size-wise. And his 5.00 40-yard dash, 27.5-inch vertical, and 106-inch broad jump aren’t overly inspiring numbers. In my opinion, the best path for Leal is to put on 5-10 pounds and move inside to 3-technique full-time. There, he’d be more of a mismatch with his athleticism and lateral agility. His versatility is valuable, but he might be a master of none at this point.
Darian Kinnard, OT, Kentucky
Darian Kinnard‘s sheer size makes it easy for him to earn fans. The Kentucky OT is 6’5″, 322 pounds, with a tremendously wide reach. On tape, his sheer wingspan can be difficult to run around, and when he latches, his grip strength can be suffocating. I was intrigued by Kinnard’s upside early in the process but had some questions about his athleticism — notably, his lateral mobility. He appeared stiff and heavy-footed on tape at times, and his 2022 NFL Combine numbers only exacerbated those concerns.
Kinnard wound up with a below-average RAS of 3.28. He did have a decent 10-yard split — a sign of the straight-line explosiveness that does show up off the line. But Kinnard’s raw explosiveness drills were underwhelming, and his agility drills were also poor. His 4.96 shuttle and 8.11 three-cone were both in the worst 25% of tackles ever to test. Kinnard’s lacking agility has been an issue for a while, and it could force him inside to guard. He has the physicality and power to thrive there, but he’ll have to work on lowering his pad level.