Finding Broncos: Combine Winners and Losers

The 2023 NFL Scouting Combine is underway and kicked off with the interior defensive line. With the status of Dre'Mont Jones up in the air, the Denver Broncos could be looking hard at the position group.

Measurements:

For interior defensive linemen, you want to have solid length in the arms to help keep blockers off your body.

Winners:

Mazi Smith | Michigan:

Smith will be a nose tackle in the NFL that can work out as a 3-tech. With 33-3/4 inch arms, there is plenty of length to keep blockers off his chest.

Zacch Pickens | South Carolina:

This isn't the only time Pickens will be mentioned, but his 34-3/8 inch arms show up on tape, keeping interior offensive linemen off his body.

Moro Ojomo | Texas:

Ojomo is one of the outer defensive linemen that will line up as a 4-tech or 5-tech. At 6'3", he has 34-1/2 inch arms, and the better-than-expected length can help his draft stock.

Jerrod Clark | Coastal Carolina:

Clark is a big man at 6'3" and 343 pounds, but his 33-3/4 inch arms are a big win for a nose tackle.

Losers:

Calijah Kancey | Pitt:

Kancey had a good day overall and was expected to be undersized, but his 30-5/8 inch arms are hard to overcome. Those are tied for the fifth shortest among interior defensive linemen.

Gervon Dexter | Florida:

Standing at 6'6", you want to see a bit more length in the arms than 32-1/4 inches.

Jalen Redmond | Oklahoma:

Redmond will be a 4/5-tech in the NFL, and he didn't measure up with his length at 6'2" and 32-5/8 inch arms.

Athletic Testing

The explosion testing is significant for interior defensive linemen. You want good jumps, and while the 40-yard dash overall isn't a big deal, the 10-yard split is. The winners and losers may not be the fastest or longest jump as the player's size is factored in.

40-yard dash:

Winner: Gervon Dexter | Florida:

Dexter, at 310 pounds, put up a time of 4.88 seconds.

Loser: D.J. Dale | Alabama:

Dale had the third slowest time of 5.26 seconds, which he ran at 302 pounds. The two slower ones were over 320 pounds.

10-yard split:

Winner: Calijah Kancey | Pitt:

At 281 pounds, Kancey ran a 4.67 official 40, with a 10-yard split of 1.64, slightly behind Aaron Donald (the player comparison for Kancey) at 1.59 seconds.

Loser: Gevon Dexter | Florida:

While 1.81 wasn't a terrible time, you want to see more explosion from Dexter.

Vertical Jump:

Winner: Jalen Redmond | Oklahoma:

While Redmond wasn't of ideal size, he had plenty of explosion, putting up a 34.5-inch vertical jump.

Loser: D.J. Dale | Alabama:

Despite being short, squat, and not overly explosive, his 25.5-inch vertical was the worst of the group, including some 320+ pound nose tackles.

Broad Jump:

Winner: Zacch Pickens | South Carolina:

Pickens tied with Redmond for the longest broad jump at 9-foot-8.

Loser: D.J. Dale | Alabama:

While Dale wasn't expected to test well here, his second-worst 8-foot-2 jump hammers home the lack of explosion concerns.

3-Cone Drill:

Winner: Keeanu Benton | Wisconsin:

Benton is a big defensive lineman and put up a time of 7.34 seconds.

Loser: Jaquelin Roy | LSU:

With a time of 8.01 seconds, Roy has the 19th-slowest time.

20-yard Shuttle:

Winner: Jalen Redmond | Oklahoma:

Redmond had the fastest time on the day with a 4.51-second shuttle.

Loser: Jaquelin Roy | LSU:

Roy struggled with the athletic testing and had the second slowest shuttle time on the day, taking 5-seconds to get through the drill.

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Position-Specific Drills:

The drills are where you want to see good technique, awareness, smooth moving, and the ability to listen to the coaches. There were six drills, each with a winner and a loser.

Wave Drill:

This drill gets the defensive lineman moving laterally, then a short backpedal. You don't want to guess at the coach's direction and keep up your speed throughout the drill.

Winner: Nesta Jade Silvera | Arizona State:

He moved smoothly while keeping his head up and flowing through the drill.

Loser: P.J. Mustipher | Penn State:

Mustipher is a 320-pound nose, so the issues with his movement were expected, but he kept dropping his head and guessing with the drill.

4-bag Agility:

This is footwork and feel drill. You have four bags on the ground you want to avoid, as they simulate players. However, you must keep your head up while tracking the ball.

Winner: Jerrod Clark | Coastal Carolina:

It was surprising how smooth Clark was with his movement at 343 pounds.

Loser: Siaki Ika | Baylor:

The Baylor Bear nose was trimmed down for the combine, his movement was clunky, and he had his head down throughout the drill.

Pass Rush:

This two-bag drill tests the bend at the top of the drop. Players want to stay low and tight.

Winner: Gervon Dexter | Florida:

Dexter kept low and tight when bending around the corner and started with a good and powerful slap.

Loser: Jaquelin Roy | LSU:

Roy was dragging his feet through the drill, which tripped him up.

Run and Club:

This drill tests chaining pass rush moves together as you maintain momentum throughout the rep.

Winner: Zacch Pickens | South Carolina:

Pickens is a strong run defender and needed to show his pass-rush ability. While he wasn't the best one at the drill, he was the one that benefitted the most.

Loser: Jaquelin Roy | LSU:

Unlike Pickens, Roy needed to show more as a pass rusher, and both drills were clunky.

Hoop Drill:

This drill is about staying low and tight to the hoops while showing bend to get down and grab a towel, then set it down.

Winner: Bryan Bresee | Clemson:

Bresee kept his shoulders low and good bend to get down to the towels.

Loser: Keondre Coburn | Texas:

It wasn't surprising to see Coburn struggle, as he isn't a pass rusher and will be a run defensive nose tackle in the NFL.

Body Control:

This drill is about keeping your body in control and not getting off-balanced while showing a quick reaction to the coach's direction.

Winner: Bryan Bresee | Clemson:

Bresee has struggled with injuries, but when you watch him on tape, there is no surprise he did well with the body control drill.

Loser: Jalen Redmond | Oklahoma:

Redmond was a little reckless with his movement and didn't stay balanced through the drill.

Overall

Winner: Calijah Kancey | Pitt:

Everyone knew Kancey would be undersized, and while his arm length remains a concern, his athleticism is easy to bet on.

Loser: P.J. Mustipher | Penn State:

The Penn State nose tackle had a rough day where he underwhelmed in every aspect.

Winner: Zacch Pickens | South Carolina:

Pickens was a big winner on the day, showing up well in the position drills and testing out quite well in the key testing.

Loser: Keondre Coburn | Texas:

The workout isn't always fair to the nose tackles, with Coburn being the second of three 320+ pound nose tackles to be a loser for the day. It was rough from Coburn, and he probably had the second roughest day.

Winner: Bryan Bresee | Clemson:

Bresee looked good in all the drills and showed athletic traits. However, the issue was about his injury history.

Loser: Siaka Ika | Baylor:

Seeing Ika slim down some was great, but he struggled in several drills. He kept his eyes on his feet, almost like he was unsure of his footwork.

Winner: Gervon Dexter | Florida:

Some testing and measurements were not ideal, but he was smooth and clean in the position drills.

Loser: Jaquelin Roy | LSU:

Roy had some hype heading into the combine, but he fell flat. Like another to "lose" at the combine, Roy confirmed what he is and isn't as a player.

Winner: Jerrod Clark | Coastal Carolina:

The big nose tackle showed good movement skills in the position drills and tested our well for a 343-pound nose tackle.

Loser: D.J. Dale | Alabama:

Part of the combine is to prove you are more than what you are on tape, and Dale only confirmed it. He struggled in the drills and didn't test out well. He still has a role in the NFL but didn't help himself.

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