Players to watch at NFL Scouting Combine

One of the more anticipated workouts at the NFL Scouting Combine will not happen.

LSU cornerback Derek Stingley Jr., a freak athlete who could be a high selection despite being limited to just 10 games the last two seasons, is not yet 100 percent after a foot injury and will not work out on the field in Indianapolis.

He’s not the only high-profile player who will limit his appearance at the annual event to just off-the-field activities. He was expected to put up impressive numbers in the 40-yard dash and vertical leap, two of the most talked-about drills each year.

That could open the door for Memphis wide receiver Calvin Austin III to set the pace in the sprints. The 5-foot-9 former walk-on made two all-conference teams and was a member of the sprint relay teams for the Tigers.

While team interviews and medical exams already are underway in Indianapolis, on-field work begins Thursday.

In addition to Stingley, Alabama offensive tackle Evan Neal and Mississippi quarterback Matt Corral are expected to limit their combine participation to the off-field portion.

That first group to actually take the field will include quarterbacks, one of the glamour positions at the event. This year, however, there is no sure-fire top-10 pick.

Pittsburgh quarterback Kenny Pickett could make his case this week, but all eyes will be on Liberty’s Malik Willis.

“In terms of the upside, I don’t know how you’d see anybody other than Malik Willis just in terms of what he can do once he gets it all figured out, but he’s got a huge arm,” NFL Network draft analyst Daniel Jeremiah said. “Not real tall obviously, just a little over 6 feet, but he is built. This guy can really power the football. He can make off-platform throws. He can create. You can use the design quarterback run game with him and he’s outstanding with that. He’s just so strong and physical. I think he would be the one with the most upside.”

Corral, Cincinnati’s Desmond Ridder and North Carolina’s Sam Howell are the other signal-callers believed to be in the mix as potential first-round selections.

UNR quarterback Carson Strong also got an invite and could greatly help his draft stock with a good showing this week.

The Raiders potentially could have their sights set on a quarterback, though it most likely wouldn’t be an early-round selection. At this point, it would probably be later in the draft on a developmental prospect to groom in the new system.

But the Raiders are a team that enters the draft process as a bit of an unknown. They are coming off a playoff berth, but have a new coach and general manager.

Last season, there were glaring needs at right tackle and safety and they ended up using their first two picks on exactly those positions.

Now they have several needs even if they aren’t quite as obvious. Wide receiver and cornerback will be positions to follow, as will offensive line and linebacker.

The old regime developed a pattern of using many of their picks on players from elite college programs, but how will Dave Ziegler and Josh McDaniels approach the process?

Jeremiah believes some insight can be gained by looking at their former employer.

“To me you just go back to the Patriots,” he said. “You kind of look at, ‘OK, this is a Patriots’ type player.’ What does that look like? Usually it’s somebody that’s got some versatility, they’ve got outstanding football intelligence so they can be able to do different things, and they can handle volume because it’s an offense and a defense that morphs and changes all the time. Those types of players I think you can try and identify them in that way.”

He cited cornerback and wide receiver as the team’s two biggest needs before free agency alters the construction of the roster and listed Ohio State’s Chris Olave and Penn State’s Jahan Dotson as receivers for Raiders’ fans to pay attention to at the combine.

“Both these guys are going to run in the 4.3s,” Jeremiah said. “So they’re going to fly around in Indy, and maybe that helps elevate them up the board a little bit.”

As far as cornerbacks, Washington’s Kyler Gordon is a player that could really help himself should he put up the kind of numbers he is expected to this week.

“He’s big time explosive,” Jeremiah said. “When you get to the combine he’s going to jump over 40 inches. He’s going to run in the 4.3s. He’s a dynamic athlete.”

Florida’s Kaiir Elam and Clemson’s Andrew Booth have also been mentioned as names to watch for the Raiders.

One name to monitor at linebacker will be Georgia’s Nakobe Dean.

“He’s a top-10 player for me, but I know in talking to a lot of teams, teams are obsessed with trying to find the longer, rangier, off-the-ball linebackers,” said Jeremiah, who compared his instincts as an undersized linebacker to Jonathan Vilma. “When you talk about the center of your defense and having that intelligence, the toughness, the leadership, he’s got all that stuff in spades. I think he’s outstanding.”

The player that will be the most difficult to miss is undoubtedly Daniel Faalele of Minnesota. The offensive lineman is expected to perform very well in the bench press, but the biggest news could come out of his formal measurements.

He is listed at 6-foot–8 and 387 pounds.

Contact Adam Hill at ahill@reviewjournal.com. Follow @AdamHillLVRJ on Twitter.