Combine Day 1 Recap

Story of the Day
The small school OT prospect Terron Armstead. While he did have solid showings in the Shrine Game and Senior Bowl, not many knew about this guy out of Arkansas-Pine Bluff coming in but he certainly made a name for himself on Day 1. He owned the top 40 time among offensive linemen with a 4.71 and at just under 6'5" and 306 lbs., that's certainly impressive. He also performed in the top 10 on the bench press logging in 31 reps. While these numbers aren't nearly as important as game film, he's gotten the attention of the scouts and they'll certainly go back and do more research. Clearly he's a physical freak and his performance today certainly improved his stock and he is now firmly entrenched in the Day 2 conversation. (Photo Credit: AP Photo/Ben Liebenberg)

Others That Impressed

• Top OT prospects Luke Joeckel, Eric Fisher, and Lane Johnson. The three top offensive tackles in the draft all looked good solidifying their first round grade. I expect Joeckel to go in the top 5, Fisher to go in the first half, and Johnson to go in the back half of round 1.
• Top guards Chance Warmack and Jonathan Cooper. Warmack didn't run all that well and didn't participate in bench press but he still looked smooth in drills. Top 10 talent. Jonathan Cooper out of UNC also did well and helped his stock. Mid-first round grade.
• Oregon guard Kyle Long. He looked good in drills and had fluid movement. Could be an ideal fit in a zone blocking system. He is a little raw though and still needs to refine his technique. Currently carries a Day 2 grade.
• Top TE prospects Zach Ertz and Kyle Eifert. Both looked good all day. They ran similar 40 times in the 4.7s and looked smooth in catching drills. Both are first round talents.

Disappointments

• Alabama OT D.J. Fluker. While he didn't severely hurt his stock, Fluker put up 21 reps on the bench press which is lower than what you'd want ideally for a starting offensive tackle. He'd do well to work on his strength and improve on that number before his pro day. He's still in the late first round conversation but he didn't help himself with that result.
• USC Center Khaled Holmes and Kent St. guard Brian Winters. Granted they both allegedly suffered pectoral strains while lifting but posting up only 13 and 9 reps on the bench press respectively is very disappointing for offensive linemen and they'll have to improve on those numbers at their pro days. They both were on the fringe of being Day 2 prospects coming into the combine.