The Combine's Here, Bitch!

[Direckshun]

http://www.arrowheadpride.com/2014/2...-list-workouts

2014 NFL Combine schedule: TV channel, online streaming, invite list, workouts and more
By Matt Conner
on Feb 20 2014, 10:12a

he road to the NFL Draft is longer in 2014 than any other offseason given the league's decision to push it back a few weeks to May 8-10. For the next three months, draftniks will circle around prospects like hawks, analyzing their every move and weighing the pros and cons of each player.

The process starts en masse this week with the start of the 2014 NFL Combine in Indianapolis. If you love the Draft, then this is a big week for you.

For those who are new to the NFL Combine, it's a seven-day event broken up into four-day shifts for each position group (quarterbacks to punters). Each group comes to Indy for four days to meet with representatives from each NFL team for medical assessments, interviews and a number of workouts. It's termed the Underwear Olympics for that reason, as teams fall in and out of love with prospects based on 40-yard dash times and vertical leaps.

The quick guide to the Combine

• NFL Network will televise; NFL.com will stream
• Andy Reid (Thursday, 2:15 p.m.) and John Dorsey (Friday, 12:15 p.m.) will speak to the media (full schedule here)
• Workouts take place Saturday-Tuesday
• Here are the players invited

Now that you have the basics, let's dive into a little more what's going down this week in Indianapolis.

The Combine workout schedule

Here are the days the actual workouts for each position group:

Saturday, Feb. 22: Tight Ends, Offensive Linemen, Special Teams

Sunday, Feb.23: Quarterbacks, Running Backs, Wide Receivers

Monday, Feb. 24: Defensive Line, Linebackers

Tuesday, Feb. 25: Defensive Backs

There are four groups of players arriving as shown above. Each group has four days of events.

Day 1: Travel to Indianapolis* ~ Registration ~ Hospital Pre-Exam & X-rays ~ Orientation ~ Interviews

Day 2: Measurements ~ Medical Examinations ~ Media ~ Interviews

Day 3: NFLPA Meeting ~ Psychological Testing ~ PK/ST Workout ~ Bench Press ~ Interviews

Day 4: On-Field Workout (timing, stations, skill drills) ~ Departure from Indianapolis

With the first arrivals coming on Wednesday, that puts the first day of workouts on Saturday.

The players invited

Every top college football player will likely be in attendance in Indianapolis, even if some of the top athletes won't participate in the workouts. The NFL invited over 300 players to attend. Teddy Bridgewater to Jadeveon Clowney, your favorite college players will likely be there.

Who is eligible to be invited to the Combine? Basically, seniors without college eligibility left and those who have declared early.

And how are players selected to the Combine? Read this:

Participants are determined annually by a Selection Committee. The Directors of both National and BLESTO scouting services, which combined represent twenty-five NFL teams, are joined by members of various NFL player personnel departments to form the committee. The participating NFL executives can rotate on a yearly basis, and remain anonymous. ALL eligible players are reviewed and voted on by the committee members. Each athlete receiving the necessary number of votes, by position, is then extended an invitation. While it is not a perfect science, the goal of the committee is to invite every player that will be drafted in the ensuing NFL Draft.

You can find the full list of players expected to attend at the bottom of this post. While the list is comprehensive, there are a few players every year who are drafted but didn't get invited to the Combine.

The workouts

The most important one is not a workout -- it's the interview. Teams will have the opportunity to interview players where they'll get about 15 minutes with them. With so little time, the questions have to be precise and all have a purpose.

The second most important item there is getting the medical check-up -- essentially confirming that the player is healthy or checking out previous injuries. Team doctors will want this information so the GMs and coaches can make an informed decision.

Some of the other workouts, via Big Blue View:

40-yard dash: Measures straight line speed over a distance. Not very important for non-skill position players, but coming from the 40-yard dash is the "10-yard split." That is the time it takes to travel the first 10 yards of the event and gives a measurement as to the player's explosion and first step. Very important for defensive and offensive linemen. Dontari Poe had a 10-yard split of 1.7 at 330 pounds, which is decent for a linebacker.Bruce Irvin at 235 pounds had a 10-yard split of 1.57, which is a good number for a defensive back. Both help push those players into the middle of the first round.

Bench press: Fairly simple, it measures upper body strength. Moreso it shows if you have stayed in good condition over the offseason. Poor numbers here possibly indicate not working hard enough.

Vertical and Broad jump: Another measurement of explosion and lower body strength. Also important for wide receivers and defensive backs to show off their leaping ability.

3-cone drill: Essentially a change of direction drill. Most important for skill position players. Shows off lateral agility and ability to accelerate out of a turn. One of the drills that translates best on the field. A good score in the 3 cone is often a marker for a high draft pick.

20/60-yard shuttles: Shows the ability to come to a complete stop and accelerate. Obviously important for any position and a good score here is indicative of explosion and body control. As you can see, explosion is a big factor here and one that the NFL is keen to see.

Position-specific drills: Each position has specific drills that test for many different attributes. Change of direction and hip swing for defensive backs, hands skills for wide receivers during the "gauntlet," kick slide drills for the offensive linemen, power for the defensive linemen in hitting bag drills and accuracy for quarterbacks in throwing drills.

How do I watch the Combine?

NFL Network will televise some of it.

NFL.com will stream the action.

KCChiefs.com will have full video of Andy Reid and John Dorsey's press conferences but will not stream them live.

[Exoter175]

Originally Posted by Direckshun

Uko looking REALLY good in these drills.

Pretty good midround candidate for the 4-3 D, particularly one that just asks him to shoot gaps.

Uko can't play the run too well. He could play in a 3-4 as a passrushing specialist, like Bailey's been doing the past few years.

If we're talking about shooting gaps, might as well convert Skov over, I haven't seend blitz timing like that since Polamalu was in college

[OldSchool]

Jesus, looking at Donald's movement drills again, is it just me or does he look better than some of the possible LB conversion guys?

[Direckshun]

Clowney has approximately less than zero charisma.

[RunKC]

At this point I severely doubt Chris smith or Marcus smith make it to round 3

[Direckshun]

No Twitter updates from the guys at the Combine for about 20 minutes now.

Everybody out at lunch, I guess.

[RunKC]

Shun, who do you like in round 1 and 3 after watching the combine?

[Exoter175]

Originally Posted by Direckshun

No Twitter updates from the guys at the Combine for about 20 minutes now.

Everybody out at lunch, I guess.

And an extended commercial break to boot!

[Direckshun]

Originally Posted by RunKC

At this point I severely doubt Chris smith or Marcus smith make it to round 3

I think Chris is a goner, that's for sure. He can play both 34 and 43.

Marcus is more limited to rushbacker in a 34. It's possible he lasts.

Keep in mind, the value will be ridiculous at every one of our picks this year.

Guys who are 2nd round talents will be there for us at the bottom of the 3rd.

[Exoter175]

Sam looked really bad on the attack drills, that was almost awkward watching it.

[Direckshun]

Originally Posted by RunKC

Shun, who do you like in round 1 and 3 after watching the combine?

A TON of guys. lol. The question is, what position are you curious about?

At receiver, just to pick one position, I think Odell Beckham and Brandin Cooks are slam dunks in the 1st.

In the 3rd, you'll probably get Abbrederis, Huff, maybe Ellington, and a guy like Jeff Janis may be on the Chiefs radar in the 3rd as well.

[Exoter175]

Originally Posted by Direckshun

A TON of guys. lol. The question is, what position are you curious about?

At receiver, just to pick one position, I think Odell Beckham and Brandin Cooks are slam dunks in the 1st.

In the 3rd, you'll probably get Abbrederis, Huff, maybe Ellington, and a guy like Jeff Janis may be on the Chiefs radar in the 3rd as well.

I think you'll find Robinson slip to the third, perhaps even the 4th now.

[Direckshun]

Originally Posted by Exoter175

Sam looked really bad on the attack drills, that was almost awkward watching it.

He looks a little doughy, too, compared to some of the more powerful muscle-freaks like Chris Smith.

He's honestly going to be a special teams guy for a year.

[Direckshun]

Originally Posted by Exoter175

I think you'll find Robinson slip to the third, perhaps even the 4th now.

Probably. Do you take him? I'd be concerned about separation.

[Exoter175]

Originally Posted by Direckshun

He looks a little doughy, too, compared to some of the more powerful muscle-freaks like Chris Smith.

He's honestly going to be a special teams guy for a year.

For his sake, I hope he's one of those guys that is more of a gamer than a performer, because his draft stock is hurting by being at the combine and being compared to everyone else.

[OldSchool]

Originally Posted by Direckshun

Probably. Do you take him? I'd be concerned about separation.

Reminds me of Cincy's Sanu.