Not only is the Combine over, but I also heard it will be the final event in the hostory of the Hoosier Dome, as it is slated to be demolished to pave way for the new Colts' stadium. To bad the elder Irsay has passed away, as they should probably exhume his remains and rebury it under the demoltion site! Ouch, bitter, eh?
The combine both helped and hurt some players. The 40 yard dash separates the men from the boys, although all the drills are taken into consideration with the scouts as they prepare the draft boards. Seeing the RB from East Carolina blaze through the 40 in sub 4.3 speed increased his value, while Arkansas' McFadden did nothingto diminish his, with a blistering 40 as well. Interesting to see that the largest group of sub 4.4 40's came from the DB's. Even though the Ravens specifically need not only a future starter this season, they'll need depth as well as this position, as 2007 showed what an embarassing weakness their lack of depth was. Hopefully, they'll make a run at the Pat's Asante Samuel, but will still take one of the upper tier DB's early in the draft as well. In some of my earlier postings, I had them taking Ohio State's Malcolm Jenkins, but he has decided to return for his senior year at OSU.
Most of the top QB's didn't provide much additional insight at the Combine. At the same time, the D-linemen (Sedric Ellis) showed that he's not too much behind LSU's Glenn Dorsey, especially now with the past leg injury history coming to the forefront. If by chance, BC's Matt Ryan falls to the 8th spot, I'd be very disappointed if the Ravens let him slip by, no matter who else is available. A lot of mock drafts has us taking either USC's DT Sedric Ellis, who would be converted to a DE to take over for Trevor Pryce, which would be a great pick. However, now I don't think Ellis will be there, but I also like Miami's DE Calais Campbell, as his height and weight will make him a prototypical pass rushing DE in the NFL, even though he is only listed on ESPN's draft board as the 26th best prospect.
Either way, the key to this draft will be the free agency that begins tomorrow and will refilter each tem's needs prior to April's draft.
Let the bidding wars begin!