Every year, 330 college football players with dreams of playing in the National Football League head to Indianapolis to compete at NFL Combine. These players will have an opportunity, through physical and mental tests, to impress representatives from the NFL’s 32 teams.
The NFL Combine kicks off on Wednesday, February 27 and will run through Monday, March 4. Here is the workout schedule sorted by position group. Workouts will be broadcast live on the NFL Network from 9 AM – 7 PM on March 1, 3 and 4 and from 10 AM – 7 PM on March 2. The NFL Combine takes place at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis, Indiana. Besides the NFL Network, it will also be streamed on FuboTV. Here is when the workouts will take place:
- Friday, March 1: Running Backs, Offensive Line, Kickers, and Special Teams
- Saturday, March 2: Quarterbacks, Wide Receivers, and Tight Ends
- Sunday, March 3: Defensive Linemen and Linebackers
- Monday, March 4: Defensive Backs
Drills taking place on the field
Players will perform drills specific to the position they play, as well as general field workouts to show athleticism and strength. Below we will go over which exercises benefit particular position groups.
40-yard dash
Everyone’s favorite drill is the 40-yard dash. Over the last couple of years, Adidas has only added to the love of the dash. Adidas has offered $1 million, and more recently, a private island to anyone who can break the record while running in their cleats. Chris Johnson sparked the new age of 40-yard dash love when he set the record in 2008. Johnson Ran a 4.24 which blew scouts and fans away. Johnson’s record stood for nine years until John Ross ran a 4.22 at the 2017 combine.
This drill is advantageous to all skill positions and to guys who can outperform the rest of their group. The exercise registers a player’s top-end speed and indicates, to an extent, how athletic they are. While the participant is running the timers are also clocking their 10-yard splits. Teams use this measurement to gauge things like a receivers burst into their route, or a pass rushers initial movement toward a quarterback.
Bench Press
The bench press requires the athletes to bench 225 pounds as many times as they can. Scouts will use this workout to determine the upper body explosiveness of a player. The results of this test can provide insight into how linemen will fair competition.
Broad and Vertical Jump
The broad and vertical jump are measurements of a player’s lower body strength. The Broad jump requires players to jump as far forward as possible from a standing position. The vertical jump is a measurement of how high a player can jump from a standing position. Outshining your peers in the vertical jump could see players stock rise showing teams that the player can out jump the competition.
Three-Cone Drill
The three-cone drill is used to measure an athletes quickness and balance. For linemen, this drill shows how well a player can carry around his weight while moving laterally. A cornerback who is sluggish in this drill could point to an inability to follow shifty receivers in the NFL. A receiver who struggles here could shed light on his deficiencies in shaking a CB to get open.
For example, at the 2015 Combine, Los Angeles Rams cornerback Marcus Peters posted 7.08 seconds in the three-cone drill. This score was 4th most among CBs who participated in the exercise. Although Peters may be one of the top CBs in the NFL, his short area quickness deficiency showed in the 2019 Super Bowl. Every time Peters was matched up with New England Patriots wide receiver Julian Edelman, he struggled to stay within five yards.
Shuttle Drills
The 20 and 60-yard shuttles are similar to the three-cone drill. They measure a players ability to change direction and short area quickness. The 60-yard shuttle shows the agility as well as a players endurance.
Off the Field: Measurements
Along with positional and general field workouts, players are put to the test mentally and measured up like they’re an undocumented specimen. These measurements include height and weight, arm length, and hand size.
Hand size is a big deal to some people when it entails the quarterback position. In my personal opinion, unless someone’s hands keep them from holding a football, this is a none issue. If a player has played QB his whole life and learned how to throw a football with the hands he has, why does the size matter?
Phillip Rivers has some of the smallest hands in the NFL with a 9 3/4″ hand, this hasn’t stopped him from playing at an elite level his entire career. Tyrod Taylor, on the other hand, has some of the biggest at 10″ and he hasn’t been able to find much success anywhere he’s been.
This year we are witnessing this happen with quarterbacks Kyler Murray from Oklahoma and Daniel Jones from Duke. Murray won the Heisman trophy and electrified college football this year and went toe to toe with Alabama in the College Football Playoffs. Whereas Jones performed adequately at Duke but did nothing spectacular, yet most draft sites have Jones ranked above Murray.
Off the Field: Testing
Another big aspect of the combine is the mental tests. Teams will attempt to intentionally get under the skin of players to see how they will respond. It gives teams an idea of a players character and how their personalities might mesh or clash within the organization.
Leading up to the 2017 draft scouts were gushing over Alabama linebacker Reuben Foster’s physical ability. His only red flag as a prospect was his off-field issues and run-ins with police. Foster was sent home from the combine after an altercation with a hospital staff member. The San Francisco 49ers took a chance on the highly talented LB but were forced to cut him after only one season and multiple more run-ins with the police.
The combine is just another tool for scouting a football player. It should never be an end all be all for an opinion on an athlete. Hopefully, these breakdowns will help you better understand why the NFL uses these drills at the combine.