Now that the 2009 NFL Combine is over and all the prospects have returned to their corner of the globe it's time for fans and experts alike to analyze the results and recalculate what they think the draft will look like this April. Whatever the landscape of 2009 mock drafts looked like last week doesn't matter anymore. With fresh stats from the Combine to use now, most mock draft authors will begin tweaking their picks and releasing their mock drafts version 2.0. To help us all get a better handle on what this means for Saints fans let's review some of the things we've learned these past few days and how it will shape draft talk in Who Dat Nation.
Aaron Curry
Before the Combine, Curry's name was linked with the Saints in a handful of mock drafts. If you still think the Saints might have a chance to snag him with the 14th pick you should probably un-tap your Kool-Aid keg. Curry was just plain nasty in Monday's workouts as he solidified his position as the top linebacker in the draft. He should be a top five pick.
Brian Cushing
Like Aaron Curry, Cushing had an awesome combine and did wonders for his value. Brian was a top performer in six of the seven workouts. He did so well, in fact, that he will probably now be off the draft board by the time the Saints are on the clock. If Cushing did somehow fall to the Saints at 14th they would probably be stupid not to snag him and ignore their need for a DB. Or even better, use it as a bargaining chip for a sweet trade down. I wouldn't plan on it though.
Malcolm Jenkins
Once touted as the best cornerback in the draft, Malcolm Jenkins is now being viewed as the top safety in the draft. This is good news for Saints fans. If Jenkins is viewed as a safety, his draft stock would inevitably lower and the chance of him being available when the Saints pick would be much more likely. Personally, I think the possibility of a versatile player who could play either cornerback or safety would be just what the doctor ordered for the Saints. I'm likin' it. He didn't have the best of Combine performances, but finished with the best 3-Cone time and top five in the 20-yard Shuttle. Still, the fact of the matter is that Jenkins is a talented football player.
James Laurinaitis
I'm just not a fan of James Laurinaitis for the Saints. Personally, I don't want to see New Orleans draft any linebacker unless it's Aaron Curry (not happenin') or maybe even Brian Cushing (also probably not happenin'), but Laurinaitis just seems to have this aura of dud surrounding him. He's already got the reputation for dissappearing in big games. Laurinaitis performed well in the 3-cone drill and well enough in the 20-yard shuttle but he layed an egg in the 40-yard dash. I hope he's still not on the Saints radar.
Studs and Duds
After taking a look at the cornerback and safety top performer lists I must say I am surprised by a lot of the names that appear and just as surprised by the names that don't appear. Here are a few players who really helped themselves yesterday and who may be possible targets by the Saints.
- Kevin Barnes - Cornerback - Maryland - Top performer in 40-yard dash, Vertical Jump, Broad Jump, 3-cone Drill and 20-yard Shuttle.
- Lardarius Webb - Cornerback - Nicholls State - Top performer in 40-yard dash, 3-cone Drill and 20-yard Shuttle.
- Donald Washington - Cornerback - Ohio State - Best performance in both the Vertical Jump and Broad Jump.
- David Bruton - Free Safety - Notre Dame - Top performer in 40-yard dash, Vertical Jump, Broad Jump, 3-cone Drill and 60-yard Shuttle.
- Sherrod Martin - Free Safety - Troy - Top performer in 40-yard dash, 3-cone Drill 20-yard Shuttle and 60-yard Shuttle.
- C.J. Spillman - Free Safety - Marshall - Top performer in 40-yard dash, Vertical Jump and 60-yard Shuttle.
These guys will probably start showing up a bit more often on future mock drafts. Particularly as second and third round options. We will take a better look at all of these players as we get closer to the draft.
There were also a few prospects who didn't make much of an impression during yesterdays workouts. Did some of these guys decide not to participate and wait for their respective pro day? What happened to...
- William Moore - Safety - Missouri - Didn't finish as a top performer in any workout.
- Rashad Johnson - Free Safety - Alabama - Didn't finish as a top performer in any workout.
- Alphonso Smith - Cornerback - Wake Forest - Didn't finish as a top performer in any workout.
- Patrick Chung - Strong Safety - Oregon - Only finished as a top performer in the Bench Press.
Random Fact
Ever wonder who foots the bill for the NFL Combine every year? The teams do! Each NFL franchise pays a $75,000 fee to help host the Combine making the total hosting cost $2.4 million. This buys each team all of the medical reports, test results and video tapes of the workouts and drills.
Make the jump to see a complete list of all the top linebacker, cornerback and safety performers for each workout.
Linebackers
40-yard dash
Name
Time
Curry, Aaron
4.56
Arnoux, Stanley
4.61
McRath, Gerald
4.61
Matthews, Clay
4.67
Phillips, Jason
4.69
Brinkley, Jasper
4.72
Cushing, Brian
4.74
Freeman, Marcus
4.74
Follett, Zack
4.75
Fokou, Moise
4.76
Bench Press
Name
Reps
Cushing, Brian
30
Freeman, Marcus
30
Maiava, Kaluka
30
Felder, Anthony
28
McKillop, Scott
27
McKenzie, Tyrone
27
Brinkley, Jasper
26
Curry, Aaron
25
Casillas, Jonathan
24
Robinson, Lee
24
Vertical Jump
Name
Height
Curry, Aaron
37.0
Follett, Zack
37.0
Freeman, Marcus
37.0
McKillop, Scott
35.5
Matthews, Clay
35.5
Brinkley, Jasper
35.5
Ellerbe, Dannell
35.0
Williams, Worrell
35.0
Cushing, Brian
35.0
Broad Jump
Name
Distance
Curry, Aaron
10'4"
McRath, Gerald
10'3"
Arnoux, Stanley
10'1"
Fokou, Moise
10'1"
Matthews, Clay
10'1"
Phillips, Jason
10'0"
Cushing, Brian
10'0"
Levy, DeAndre
9'11"
Sintim, Clint
9'11"
McKillop, Scott
9'11"
3-cone Drill
Name
Time
Cushing, Brian
6.84
Matthews, Clay
6.90
Laurinaitis, James
6.93
Freeman, Marcus
6.98
Maiava, Kaluka
6.98
McKillop, Scott
7.00
Ellerbe, Dannell
7.00
Brinkley, Jasper
7.03
Fokou, Moise
7.09
20-yard Shuttle
Name
Time
Freeman, Marcus
4.12
Matthews, Clay
4.18
Maiava, Kaluka
4.20
Cushing, Brian
4.22
Ellerbe, Dannell
4.23
Laurinaitis, James
4.24
Fokou, Moise
4.28
Phillips, Jason
4.32
Brinkley, Jasper
4.32
60-yard Shuttle
Name
Time
Curry, Aaron
11.35
Fokou, Moise
11.41
McRath, Gerald
11.51
Arnoux, Stanley
11.64
McKillop, Scott
11.66
Cornerbacks
40-yard dash
Name
Time
Webb, Lardarius
4.46
Davis, Vontae
4.49
Hughes, Brandon
4.50
Owens, Christopher
4.51
Barnes, Kevin
4.52
Bench Press
Name
Reps
Davis, Vontae
25
Word-Daniels, Jahi
24
Francies, Coye
24
Pegues, Derek
23
Trent, Morgan
23
Quin, Glover
22
Burnett, Joe
22
Allen, Asher
22
Vertical Jump
Name
Height
Washington, Donald
45.0
Butler, Darius
43.0
Moore, D.J.
39.5
Mouton, Ryan
39.5
Barnes, Kevin
38.5
Fletcher, Bradley
38.5
Quin, Glover
38.0
Trent, Morgan
38.0
Broad Jump
Name
Distance
Washington, Donald
11'3"
Butler, Darius
11'2"
Mouton, Ryan
10'9"
Barnes, Kevin
10'8"
Hughes, Brandon
10'8"
Trent, Morgan
10'7"
3-cone Drill
Name
Time
Jenkins, Malcolm
6.59
Burnett, Joe
6.68
Harris, Victor
6.68
Johnson, Bruce
6.71
Barnes, Kevin
6.72
Davis, Vontae
6.75
Webb, Lardarius
6.77
20-yard Shuttle
Name
Time
Barnes, Kevin
3.96
Harris, Victor
3.98
Trent, Morgan
4.01
Johnson, Bruce
4.05
Jenkins, Malcolm
4.07
Davis, Vontae
4.07
Powers, Jerraud
4.08
Webb, Lardarius
4.10
60-yard Shuttle
Name
Time
Trent, Morgan
11.07
Akins, Kevin
11.12
Hughes, Brandon
11.25
Burnett, Joe
11.27
Owens, Christopher
11.40
Safeties
40-yard dash
Name
Time
Clemons, Chris
4.41
Bruton, David
4.46
Spillman, C.J.
4.50
Vaughn, Chip
4.51
Martin, Sherrod
4.52
Bench Press
Name
Reps
Ellison, Kevin
32
Sanford, Jamarca
29
Chung, Patrick
25
Hodge, Stephen
22
Vertical Jump
Name
Height
Bruton, David
41.5
Spillman, C.J.
41.5
McBath, Darcel
38.0
Broad Jump
Name
Distance
Bruton, David
11'0"
Taylor, Curtis
10'9"
Clemons, Chris
10'7"
Delmas, Louis
10'6
3-cone Drill
Name
Time
Martin, Sherrod
6.60
Bruton, David
6.60
Delmas, Louis
6.67
20-yard Shuttle
Name
Time
Martin, Sherrod
3.98
Vaughn, Chip
4.12
60-yard Shuttle
Name
Time
Bruton, David
10.96
Martin, Sherrod
11.17
Spillman, C.J.
11.27