BY FRAN DUFFY

I find the National Football Scouting Combine to be a test of expectations. Fast players should look fast. Slow players should look slow. When the results don’t match the expectations, that is when more work must be done.

Below you’ll find my expectations for this position group this week in Indianapolis. Who do I expect to stand out? Who does this week mean the most for? What are the drills I prioritize most? Here are my thoughts on all of that and more!

Workout Warriors:

These are the players who I expect to perform best in the athletic testing portion of the workout.

Nick Emmanwori (South Carolina)

Emmanwori is a freaky explosive athlete with outstanding range, especially when you consider that he’s listed at 6-foot-3, 227 pounds. The junior covers a ton of ground, and my guess is that he will be deemed one of the big ‘winners’ of the week and a consensus first-round selection by the time the trip is over.

Malaki Starks (Georgia)

Not to be outdone, Starks is a great athlete for the position as well. Considered by most to be the top safety in this class (I have the gap between him and Emmanwori to be miniscule), Starks has the speed to carry vertical routes and the quickness and change of direction to match up in man-to-man coverage. He should be one of the top testers at the safety spot.

Billy Bowman (Oklahoma)

Bowman is one of the smaller safeties in attendance in Indianapolis but he’s also one of the quickest and smoothest in and out of breaks. That matchup ability should be reflected in testing this week. I would expect him to have some of the best athletic scores and have one of the better position workouts.

The Drill To Watch:

I am a big proponent of studying the position work at this event. That is my focus when I’m inside Lucas Oil Stadium - not the athletic tests! Here’s the drill I weigh the heaviest and who I expect to shine when it’s that time of the night.

One of my favorite drills for the DBs is called the ‘Box’ drill, where a player will backpedal, drive forward, come to balance, run back as if he’s reacting to a vertical route, then break again to find the football. A couple of things to note in this drill:

• As always, these drills are designed to put stress on the prospects. After executing a couple of athletic moves on command from a coach on the field, can the player find the ball and finish at the catch point for an interception? This will indicate his comfort in reeling in any pass that comes their way in coverage.
• Before that point, however, you want to see easy change of direction and body control. Can the prospects execute these movements with good pad level, light, active feet, and a change in speed on the break. This all speaks to a player’s overall athleticism, which is obviously very important when it comes to his ability to stay in a receiver’s hip pocket in man-to-man coverage.

Here are the players who have a chance to shine in these drills.

Jonas Sanker (Virginia)

Sanker has played all around the formation for the Cavs secondary. A fluid, smooth athlete, he’s always under control and has matchup ability at the position. His movement skills should absolutely show up in this environment; I expect him to look really good in this session.