2016 NFL Scouting Combine: Defensive Lineman and Linebacker Preview

2016 NFL Combine Results - Weigh-Ins and 40 Times:
QB | RB | WR | TE | OL | DL | LB | DB

2016 NFL Combine Stock Report:
QB | RB | WR | TE | OL | DL | LB | DB

2016 NFL Combine Field Drills Recap:
QB | RB | WR | TE | OL | DL | LB | DB

2016 NFL Combine Weigh-In Recap:
QB | RB | WR | TE | OL | DL | LB | DB

2016 NFL Combine Bench Recap:
RB | TE | OL | DL | LB | DB

2016 NFL Combine Previews:
Day 1: OL and RB | Day 2: QB, WR and TE | Day 3: DL and LB | Day 4: DB

2016 NFL Rumor Mill:
Rumor Mill by Pat Yasinskas | Rumor Mill by Tony Pauline





NFL Combine Previews written by Tony Pauline of DraftInsider.net.

Check back for daily updates or follow Tony Pauline @TonyPauline.

Tony will be covering the Combine for us, so he’ll have more previews and rumor-mill updates. You can see any updates posted on the NFL Draft Scouting Combine home page.



Defensive Line

Dadi Nicholas is expected to be the top tester of the defensive line group and is also expected to take part in linebacker drills. His numbers should include a 40 time somewhere near 4.55 seconds and a vertical jump near 40 inches.

Southern Utah’s James Cowser is another who will initially work out with the defensive linemen then do alternate position drills at linebacker. Cowser should weigh in between 247 pounds and 252 pounds, time the 40 in the 4.6s, then jump 32-to-33 inches in the vertical and the high nines in the broad.

Expect a monster workout from Mississippi junior Robert Nkemdiche. I’m told he could run the 40 under 4.7 seconds and a time in the low 4.6s is not out of the question. He has been as fast as the high 4.5s on occasion in training. Besides a very fast 40, Nkemdiche’s vertical jump will be 35 inches or better. Even before receiver Laquon Tredwell announced he would not run the 40 at the combine, I heard rumblings that Nkemdiche would time faster. The Dallas Cowboys and San Diego Chargers have been keeping tabs on the talented junior in the lead up to the combine.

Louisiana Tech big man Vernon Butler has been timing under five seconds in the 40 during training and is expecting to touch near 32 inches in the vertical jump.



Jason Fanaika of Utah has dropped some weight since the Senior Bowl and is expected to tip the scales near 265 pounds and then run the forty in the high 4.6s.

Senior Bowl performer Bronson Kafusi should run in the mid-4.7s.

Darius Latham of Indiana will weigh in at 320 pounds, and from all accounts, he’s in really good shape. He has the potential to run under five seconds in the 40, and I’m told he’ll turn in good shuttle times.

Lawrence Thomas of Michigan State is expected to run the forty in the 4.9s at 290 pounds. Teams almost universally agree they’ve not yet seen Thomas at his best position. For the most part, he lined up at defensive end in a four-man line during his senior season, then did the same at the Senior Bowl. Teams project him as a two-gap end in a three-man line or even inside to tackle in a four-man front.

Willie Henry of Michigan could turn in some solid numbers. He’ll likely be a shade under 6-foot-2 and weigh 300 pounds. His 40 time will be in the low fives, though he has tested in the 4.9s during training. Expect Henry to break the 30-repetition mark on the bench.

Luther Maddy of Virginia Tech is expecting only to participate in the bench at the combine, as he’s still recovering from a procedure to clear tendonitis from his knee.




Linebackers

It could be a good news/bad news scenario for Travis Feeney of Washington. The good news is expect him to run fast, very fast, as in a 40 time in the low 4.5s to high 4.4s. The bad news could be medical red flags on shoulder issues that have been a constant issue for Feeney throughout his college career. Keep an eye on the bench press; if Feeney doesn’t participate in the bench, it’s likely a harbinger of things to come.

Jared Norris, who struggled with a hamstring injury during the Senior Bowl, is now 100 oercent and expects to time the 40 in the high 4.5s.

I’m expecting good testing marks from Mississippi State junior Beniquez Brown. He’ll weigh in the low 230s, will time on the low 4.6s in the 40, and time in the low sevens in the three-cone after completing 25-plus reps on the bench. Brown met with the Detroit Lions for an official interview on Thursday.





Back to the 2016 NFL Draft Scouting Combine Page.



2016 NFL Combine Results - Weigh-Ins and 40 Times:
QB | RB | WR | TE | OL | DL | LB | DB

2016 NFL Combine Stock Report:
QB | RB | WR | TE | OL | DL | LB | DB

2016 NFL Combine Field Drills Recap:
QB | RB | WR | TE | OL | DL | LB | DB

2016 NFL Combine Weigh-In Recap:
QB | RB | WR | TE | OL | DL | LB | DB

2016 NFL Combine Bench Recap:
RB | TE | OL | DL | LB | DB

2016 NFL Combine Previews:
Day 1: OL and RB | Day 2: QB, WR and TE | Day 3: DL and LB | Day 4: DB

2016 NFL Rumor Mill:
Rumor Mill by Pat Yasinskas | Rumor Mill by Tony Pauline







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