Reuben Bain Jr. Talks NFL Draft Stock Questions, Value at Scouting Combine
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INDIANAPOLIS — At the NFL Scouting Combine, Miami edge rusher Rueben Bain Jr. wants NFL teams to know a few things — he’s a versatile player and he has no “real interests out of football.
“I eat, sleep and breathe football,” Bain said when talking to reporters Wednesday when asked of what he wants to convey to teams in meetings. "That’s all I do.”
While so much of the outside talk about Bain as a prospect involves concerns about his arm length, he says NFL teams have not been asking him about it.
“None of the teams seem to be too concerned with it, as long as I just talk the talk and walk the walk, play with technique, nobody really asked me about it.”
Bain has frequently been projected to be selected in the first five picks of the draft. At pick No. 4, the Tennessee Titans seem to be in prime position to select a Hurricane with their first selection for a second straight year. Depending on how the league evaluates other top defensive prospect, Ohio State safety Caleb Downs, Bain could go as high as the second pick.
For Bain, though he holds special meaning with his iconic No. 4 jersey, he’s not concerned with the number of the pick he’s selected with.
“I don’t really care for the number, I just know that whatever team end up picking me is going to get the best out of me, best player in the draft, in my opinion,” Bain said. “I’m going to come in with the mindset to work everyday.”
In that third and final year of college for Bain, he made a great pitch to NFL teams, recording 83 total pressures, according to Pro Football Focus.
“I feel like I’m versatile and i got a high motor I could do it at any position at any time with the best effort, and that's on film, that’s not something I’m just saying”
Even for someone who has known and played with Bain for half a decade dating back to high school, linebacker Wesley Bissainthe, Bain's skillset is inexplicable.
"I don't know, man," Bissainthe said of how Bain is able to play like he can. "Just playing with him from high school, I always seen it. He always had that edge about him. I feel like he's always been a different player."
Coming off the end of the impressive season, Bain and the rest of Miami’s draft prospects had the challenge of beginning preparation for the NFL draft very shortly after competing its season in its National Championship loss.
“Cautious of how I came from that last game straight into training and knowing I have to slowly prep my stuff into training rather than just going full-go what I wanted to,” Bain said. “I was trying to do as much as possible, but my trainers were holding me back, but in a good way. Just making sure I’m being safe and cautious.”
Entering the NFL, Bain has the mentorship of NFL Hall of Famer Jason Taylor, Miami’s defensive ends coach. Over his career with the Hurricanes, Taylor has been a reliable mentor and idol of Bain.
“I’d be in his house, putting on his Hall of Fame jacket and rings, just envisioning myself," Bain said of Taylor. "For me, it was constant motivation, a father figure away from home.”
If Bain is selected within the first 10 picks like he's expected to be, he'll be the first Miami defensive player to be selected that high since Antrel Rolle was selected with the eighth pick in the 2008 draft. In his career, Bain will continue be a representation for his hometown.
“I never thought I was going to stay home until coach (Mario) Cristoball got there, he completely changed my mind,” Bain said. “Just staying home and putting on for the city I grew up watching or grew up being around, it was an opportunity second to none. … It was probably the best decision I ever made.”
