Inside The Bills

RBs have lofty 40 time goals

The running backs don’t have their workouts until Sunday, but a few of them have some lofty goals for a 40 time.

Virginia Tech’s David Wilson is one of the top backs in the draft and has been clocked mainly in the low 4.4s. He said he wants to run sub 4.35, which isn’t outlandish though the Field Turf track in Indy isn’t known as a fast one. Miami’s Lamar Miller, who is a similar back to Wilson in running style and speed took it a step further.

“I’m trying to break the clock, run a 4.2 or 4.3,” he said. “My best time is a 4.3 flat. I’m going to try to run in the 4.2 range.”

Miller, much like Wilson has run in the low 4.4s historically, but you never know with these prospects doing nothing but training for the Combine how low they can get their 40 times.

Florida’s Chris Rainey is expected to turn in one of the fastest times at the Combine this weekend, but his prediction as to what he’ll run seems a bit ridiculous.

“I’m going for the 4.1,” he said. ”I’m going for the big one.”

The all-time best 40 time was turned in by Tennessee RB Chris Johnson (4.24).

Melvin Ingram a point guard?

South Carolina DL/OLB Melvin Ingram was a versatile player for the Gamecocks playing several positions on both sides of the ball. Little did anyone know he was a high school point guard for his basketball team.

“I was a scorer,” said Ingram when asked if he was a pass first point guard.

Ingram was also 225 pounds at the time, so I’ve got visions of that wide body driving the lane and teenage kids getting out of the way. Ingram brings a versatile skill set to the table. He’s played nose tackle, three-technique DT, defensive end, OLB and ILB in his college career.

College teammates not a factor

There’s a common thought among outside observers that an NFL club might lean toward taking a prospect that had on field chemistry with a player already on their roster from their college days together at the same school. As far as the Bills are concerned it’s not much of a factor in draft decisions.

Some Bills fans have proposed that because Marcell Dareus and DL/OLB Courtney Upshaw played together at Alabama, that their on field chemistry would be almost instantaneous if they played together again in the NFL. Bills head coach Chan Gailey addressed this subject with Buffalobills.com.

“No, I don’t think that’s a factor at all when we’re looking at things,” said Gailey. ”Would a down the line receiver that had played with the quarterback you got last year? Maybe, but really it has no effect whatsoever when you’re talking about top round draft choices. You’re picking them for their worth and their worth alone.”

Iowa OT tears pectoral

Iowa tackle Markus Zusevics had a mishap during the bench press at the NFL Combine.

Zusevics tore his pectoral muscle on Friday and will not participate in the rest of the workouts for offensive linemen. Zusevics is seen as a fifth-round prospect.

OT Martin to do some work

Stanford OT Jonathan Martin cited food poisoning as the reason he would not be working out at the NFL Combine, but feeling better the last day or so he’s going to partially participate with his fellow linemen in the workout.

That according to CBSSports.com’s draft analyst Rob Rang, who says Martin will do just the positional drills, not the 40, vertical leap, etc.

Martin is widely considered one of the top 3 offensive tackle prospects in this year’s draft class, and could be a consideration of the Bills at 10.

Some prospects embracing workout

While some of the top flight prospects are pulling out of workouts here at the NFL Combine, others are embracing the opportunity to showcase their physical talent.

One example is Dwayne Allen, the tight end prospect from Clemson.

“I decided to just come out here and have fun. A lot of other guys are pulling out because of injuries and other reasons. This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. I dreamed about coming to the combine and competing, so now that the opportunity is here, nothing is going to hold me back. I’m doing everything. I just got done benching. I got 27 reps. Feeling good. Can you see the pumped chest? Can you see it? You see it?”

QB Tannehill update

Texas A&M QB Ryan Tannehill won’t be participating in drills at the Combine due to a broken foot, but he’s optimistic about his outlook after surgery.

Tannehill has a screw surgically implanted in his foot by renowned foot specialist Dr. Robert Anderson in Charlotte, NC. He’s the same doctor that both Kyle Williams and former Bills DE Aaron Schobel consulted for their foot and heel problems.

“It happened during training,” Tannehill said. “I was rolling out and I went to plant and throw and just felt a pop in my foot. Looking back the doctors believe that I probably had a stress fracture in the foot already and it was just a ticking time bomb.”

Tannehill recently got married and had to use crutches to get down the aisle.

Small school QB breaks pinkie

Tennessee-Chattanooga QB B.J. Coleman will not be throwing at the NFL Combine after a freak mishap during training two weeks ago.

Coleman suffered a broken fifth metacarpal in his throwing hand in training.

“I was training and working drills and it was just a freak thing, my feet came out from under me and all my weight came down on my pinkie,” said Coleman. ”It just happened to get injured. You do things all your life and it’s the first time the bone breaks.”

Coleman won’t be throwing along with a couple of other drills that require use of his hand, but will participate where he can.

“I will try to participate in the three cone drill and broad jump. I can’t swipe with my hand on the vertical leap or any kind of 40 starts. This injury is kind of a minor hiccup. I’ve been in a cast for two weeks and I’ll be out of it in one more. So three weeks total and then I can start gripping and stuff like that. It’s the fifth metacarpal. The doc said I didn’t need surgery, but they immobilized it.”

Tennessee-Chattanooga’s pro day is March 22nd, but Coleman’s pro day has been moved to April 2nd due to the injury.

Luck won’t throw

Stanford QB Andrew Luck has decided not throw here at the NFL Combine.

“I’ve decided not to throw,” said Luck. “I will participate in everything else. This was a decision I reached on my own.”

Heisman Trophy winner Robert Griffin III also will not be throwing here at the Combine.

WR Blackmon not running

Add another receiver to the list of prospects that won’t run here at the NFL Combine, only this time it’s the top WR in the draft class.

Oklahoma St. WR Justin Blackmon said he will not run here this weekend due to a tender hamstring that he tweaked during training a couple of weeks ago. In order to be ready to run on his pro day on March 7th, Blackmon said he took the advice of his advisors not to run until then and skip the 40 at the Combine.

The scene with RGIII

Robert Griffin III is wrapping up his media appearance at the NFL Combine and it is a sea of humanity surrounding the QB prospect here in Indy. Take a look.

There were easily 150 to 200 media members surrounding the podium as Griffin spoke about everything from bringing Baylor to prominence to his teammate Kendall Wright.

WR Fuller won’t run until late March

Texas A&M WR Jeff Fuller is one of the handful of big-bodied receivers in this year’s draft class. A lot of the bigger wideouts are hoping to run fast 40 times to improve their stock and separate themselves from the rest of the pack. Fuller however, won’t get that chance this weekend.

“Unfortunately I got a stress fracture in my foot during the Senior Bowl, so I’m not going to be participating in anything until March 25th at my pro day. The normal one is on the 7th, but (Ryan) Tannehill had the (foot) injury as well so we’re both going to be working out on the 25th.” 

Fuller is referring to his teammate and quarterback Ryan Tannehill whose foot injury held him out of the Senior Bowl. Fuller had some nagging injuries during his college career, so the stress fracture certainly doesn’t help his cause.

WR Broyles hopes for May return

Oklahoma WR Ryan Broyles was one of the most prolific receivers in Big 12 Conference history, but an ACL injury this past November put him behind in this pre-draft process.

“Surgery went well. Rehab is going well,” said Broyles Friday in Indianapolis. ”I’m running a little bit and moving around. I’m on pace to be cleared in May. I’m hoping to have a pro day in early April to show I’m moving around and on pace to be cleared for a May minicamp.”

Broyles, who set an NCAA record for receptions in a college career with 349 and is second in NCAA annals with 4,586 yards, suffered an ACL tear and slight meniscus tear. He had famed orthopedist Dr. James Andrews do his surgery. Though he can’t perform in drills at the combine he’s eager to get back to football. 

“I’m ready for what comes next,” he said. ”Coming back for my senior year you never want it to end that way missing the last three games. I feel blessed to have played at Oklahoma, so it really hurt. But surgery went well. I have high hopes and am ready to take the next step.”

Broyles (5’10″ 187) is seen as a mid-round draft pick.

Bills working to get Chandler done

Bills Assistant GM Doug Whaley shed some light on the talks concerning free agent TE Scott Chandler during a live chat with Bills fans Friday morning.

“We’re in contact with his representatives and we’re trying very hard to get him back in the fold and get a deal done with him,” said Whaley.

Bills GM Buddy Nix said they’ll meet with Chandler’s reps in Indy over the next few days.

Bills pick from Seattle slotted

The coin flips to determine the tiebreakers between Carolina and Miami and Kansas City and Seattle have been made.

Miami and Kansas City both won the coin flips so the Dolphins will pick eighth, Carolina ninth and Kansas City 11th and Seattle 12th. So the Bills will pick 9th (their own pick) and 12th in the fifth round with the pick they get from the Seahawks as part of the Marshawn Lynch trade.

Doug Whaley chat this morning

Have your fingers ready to rap out your questions for Bills Assistant GM Doug Whaley this morning.

Whaley will be joining Buffalobills.com this morning (Friday) at 10:15 for a live chat. Just go to the home page of Buffalobills.com to enter the chat as Buddy Nix’s right-hand man answers your questions.

Luck still undecided on throwing

He’s the consensus number one pick in the upcoming draft, and though his workout is only a couple of days away Andrew Luck still hasn’t made a final decision on whether he’s going to throw in his workout.

Luck appeared on NFL Network’s Total Access program Thursday and said he was still undecided.

“I haven’t decided what I’m going to do completely yet at this point so it could be all of it, maybe none of it, we’ll see,” Luck said. “I’m sure I’ll sit down in the next couple of days, talk to my dad and my agent and formulate the plan.”

Meanwhile Robert Griffin III said he would probably not throw during an appearance on the Dan Patrick radio show this past week.

Quarterbacks, running backs and wide receivers report to the Combine Friday morning. Stay close to Buffalobills.com for full coverage.

No Richardson at Combine

Alabama RB Trent Richardson, the consensus top back in this year’s draft class, won’t be putting his talents on display at the NFL Combine this week.

That according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter, who reported that Richardson’s reps sent a memo to all 32 NFL clubs informing them of Richardson’s minor knee procedure to address discomfort three weeks ago. Richardson, according to the NFL Network had a knee injury in practice leading up to the National Championship game and had surgery not long after the game.

The procedure is being terms minor as the memo reportedly states that he’ll be cleared to do on-field drills at the end of March. But that means Richardson will also miss the Alabama pro day on March 7th. Richardson is the consensus top back in this year’s class.

Prospects expected to test well

Here’s a rundown of some NFL prospects expected to test well at the NFL Scouting Combine this week courtesy of National Football Post.

The list includes players at multiple positions. The one I find most interesting is Illinois pass rusher Whitney Mercilus. Known as a physical freak it’s not surprising to see him on this list. Knocked for being a one-year wonder it’ll be interesting to see what a strong workout at the Combine can do for his draft stock.

ESPN draft analyst Mel Kiper believes it could solidify Mercilus as a late first-round pick knowing the DE class is not a deep one this year.

“If his workouts equate to what they need to be and what they think he is I think he goes between 22 and 32,” Kiper said of Mercilus.

Mayock’s updated prospect rankings

NFL Network draft analyst Mike Mayock has updated his Top 5 position rankings in advance of the NFL Combine, which starts on Thursday. Here’s what he’s got.

Mayock also listed who fell out of his top 5 and who rose up his rankings position-wise.

Quarterback
1. Andrew Luck, Stanford
2. Robert Griffin III, Baylor
3. Ryan Tannehill, Texas A&M
4. Brandon Weeden, Oklahoma State
5. Nick Foles, Arizona

New entries: Weeden, Foles

Running Back
1. Trent Richardson, Alabama
2. David Wilson, Virginia Tech
3. Lamar Miller, Miami (Fla.)
4. Doug Martin, Boise State
5. LaMichael James, Oregon

Wide Receiver
1. Justin Blackmon, Oklahoma State
2. Kendall Wright, Baylor
3. Michael Floyd, Notre Dame
4. Rueben Randle, LSU
5. Alshon Jeffery, South Carolina

Rise: Wright
Fall: Floyd, Jeffery
New entry: Randle
Out: Wake Forest’s Chris Givens

Tight End
1. Orson Charles, Georgia
2. Coby Fleener, Stanford
3. Dwayne Allen, Clemson
4. Deangelo Peterson, LSU
5. Ladarius Green, Louisiana-Lafayette

Rise: Charles
Fall: Allen, Green
New entry: Peterson
Out: Missouri’s Michael Egnew

Tackle
1. Matt Kalil, USC
2. Riley Reiff, Iowa
3. Jonathan Martin, Stanford
4. Mike Adams, Ohio State
5. Cordy Glenn, Georgia

Rise: Kalil
Fall: Reiff
New entry: Glenn (switched groups from interior offensive lineman to tackle)
Out: Troy’s James Brown, Florida State’s Zebrie Sanders

Interior Offensive Lineman
1. David DeCastro, Stanford
2. Peter Konz, Wisconsin
3. Kevin Zeitler, Wisconsin
4. Amini Silatolu, Midwestern State
5. Kelechi Osemele, Iowa State

Fall: Osemele
New entry: Silatolu
Out: Glenn (switched groups from interior offensive lineman to tackle)

Defensive End
1. Melvin Ingram, South Carolina
2. Quinton Coples, North Carolina
3. Andre Branch, Clemson
4. Whitney Mercilus, Illinois
T-5. Vinny Curry, Marshall
T-5. Nick Perry, USC

Rise: Ingram, Branch
Fall: Coples, Mercilus, Perry
New entry: Curry
Out: Syracuse’s Chandler Jones

Defensive Tackle
1. Michael Brockers, LSU
2. Jerel Worthy, Michigan State
3. Dontari Poe, Memphis
4. Devon Still, Penn State
T-5. Fletcher Cox, Mississippi St.
T-5. Kendall Reyes, UConn
T-5. Brandon Thompson, Clemson

Rise: Brockers, Poe
Fall: Still, Thompson
New entry: Reyes

Linebacker
1. Courtney Upshaw, Alabama
2. Luke Kuechly, Boston College
3. Dont’a Hightower, Alabama
4. Ronnell Lewis, Oklahoma
5. Sean Spence, Miami (Fla.)

New entries: Lewis, Spence
Out: North Carolina’s Zach Brown, Arizona State’s Vontaze Burfict

Cornerback
1. Morris Claiborne, LSU
2. Dre Kirkpatrick, Alabama
3. Janoris Jenkins, North Alabama
4. Trumaine Johnson, Montana
5. Leonard Johnson, Iowa State

Rise: Kirkpatrick
Fall: Jenkins, Leonard Johnson
New entry: Trumaine Johnson
Out: Nebraska’s Alfonzo Dennard

Safety
1. Mark Barron, Alabama
2. Harrison Smith, Notre Dame
3. George Iloka, Boise State
4. Markelle Martin, Oklahoma State
5. Phillip Thomas, Syracuse

New entry: Phillip Thomas
Out: South Carolina’s Antonio Allen