Last year, Still Trap made his annual venture to the NFL Combine in Indianapolis, Indiana.� Trap was able to get as far as the conference rooms in the RCA Convention Center, where he was able to see weigh-ins and weight-lifting, as well as the rooms for testing and interviews.� Trap was able to talk to a couple of Stiller coaches in this hallway, but was unable to see the �red meat� of the Combine, the running and drills on the RCA Dome turf.
But that was last year.
This year Still Trap went further�and into the RCA Dome,
along with Still Ovie.� Together, Trap
and Ovie had a memorable day hobnobbing with the NFL elites�.Vermeil, Gruden,
Coughlin, Bellichick, Billick, Fox, Davis, Green, Turner, Erickson, Mariucci,
Mularkey, Asslett, Sherman, Al Davis, Jerry Jones, Capers, Wannstedt,
Edwards,Donohoe��!
Ironically, as we made our way through the Convention
Center, the first person we passed was Tom Donohoe.� He smiled.� We nodded, and
moved on.� We passed the media center �
a large room where the media congregates, waiting for players to be bought out
so they can be interviewed.� ALL of the
major media has access to this room.� To
THIS ROOM ONLY.� There is no action in
this room, only computers, and a makeshift stage.� Further down the hall is the entrance to the Combine hallway with
rooms, and down that hall, the entrance to the Dome.� The entrance to the Combine hallway is blocked with a curtain,
and steel rail.� An usher, and two
policemen guard this entrance.� No one
can get past this without special credentials.�
Trap and Ovie could not enter here, as they did not have any
credentials.
Trap and Ovie got into the Combine hallway, and
subsequently, into the RCA Dome.
The Dome is a glorious place, especially when there are only
a hundred or so spectators.� Big, white,
and round, with the enormous expanse of green field!� We had our choice of seats � all 55,000 of them.� Trap hadn�t checked ahead of time, but Trap
and Ovie soon found out it was tight ends day.�
(Trap is getting tired of talking in third person�)� We settled into some seats just off the
field above where the TE�s were stretching.�
The players then came over to the near side where we sat, and lined up
for a flexibility measurement session.�
Very methodically, three Combine guys measured how far behind their
backs the players could pull their arms, over their heads, and up from
below.� They had the players stand on a
table and touch their toes or go farther below the edge of the table.� Every measurement is recorded by a person
with a yardstick, while another person watches the knees to eliminate any
cheating.� It is very precise, and the
measurement is called out loud �+4�, or �-1� if the player didn�t quite touch
his toes.� Try doing this standing on
the edge of a table hanging down!
The players then went across the field to the 40-yard dash
setup.� There are cones and timing
strings at the 10-yard mark, the 20-yard mark, and of course, the 40-yard
mark.� Trap and Ovie went all the way
around the stadium to sit close to the �40� action.� On the way, walked by Chucky Gruden, said �hi�, and continued
around when, out of nowhere, a shout comes our direction, �hey � ya gotta
watchout when the guys in the suits come around!�� (Trap and Ovie both wore suits.)�
It was Jim Asslett.� Trap turned
around, and said, �Hey Jim!� How�s it
going?� Take it easy.�� Asslett laughed, and we moved on.� We decided to take a seat right behind Ken
Whisenhunt and James Daniels, the new tight ends coach.� It turned out to be a good spot, as
Whisenthunt was timing the 40�s on his watch, and whispering the times to
Daniels, or showing his watch after each one.�
While we didn�t get all the times, we heard enough of them, and were
able to gauge Whisenhunt�s reactions.�
The players run one 40, and then run another when everyone is
finished.� There is no rest time in
between, other than the time the line takes to go through.� Surprisingly, a lot of these guys took their
shoes off in between runs.� The fastest
TE in the entire group was Michael Gaines, who Whisenhunt had timed at 4.5.� He was cut, and he looked like a track
star�his fluorescent green shoes also helped.�
He flat out flew.� Right behind
him was Ben Watson, and impressive specimen out of Georgia.� He, too, looked like a track star.� He ran a 4.57.� The guy that was catching ALL of the NFL�s eyes was clearly Big
Jason Peters.� This guy is HUGE.� He is not a fatboy, either.� He is just freaking BIG.� Trap heard he weighed in at 332.� Standing next to all the other tight ends,
he is just towering.� He is muscular, he
is broad, and he is mammoth.� He ended
up running a 4.85, and then a 4.8 in his second run.� Whisenhunt was stunned.�
He showed the watch to Daniels both times.� The Stillers are clearly interested, but so is the rest of the
league.� This guy looks to be a difference
maker.� Ben Hartsock ran well � a
4.76.� He has HUGE thighs, and is solid
muscle.� Kris Wilson from Pitt ran a
4.6, but looked small for a tight end.�
Bobby Blizzard pulled a calf muscle before the end of his first 40, and
did not run the second.� Keith Willis
was SLOW.� Don�t know the time, but some
of the coaches had sundials.
The tight ends then ran a drill called the �gauntlet�.� QB�s and Combine helpers line up every 10
yards in 2 lines across the width of the field.� The tight ends ran in between these two lines of �throwers�, and
passes were thrown to them from one side, then the other.� As soon as they caught one ball, they
dropped it, and looked the other way for the next.� It is a difficult drill to run, and it separates the men from the
boys as far as pass catching.� There was
ONE player who stood out in this drill.�
DO NOT believe what you have read in the papers, or on the net � only
ONE player showed he had SUPERB hands, and never dropped a pass.� This player was Kris Wilson from Pitt. �He CLEARLY outshined everyone in the
gauntlet.� He caught all of his passes
out AWAY FROM HIS BODY.� Think what Plex
is SUPPOSED to do!� The other tight ends
used their bodies, or had their hands in tight to their bodies to cushion the
passes.� Wilson was outstanding.� The two track stars, Watson and Gaines, both
dropped passes.� The gauntlet is run
twice, as well, from opposite sides of the field.� The big boy, Jason Peters, caught all his balls the first time,
but dropped two the second time, including getting hit in the head with a pass
when he didn�t turn to look for it.� He
DID, however, appear to have very soft hands.�
Tim Euhus made a great catch in the gauntlet, as did Chris Cooley, Jeff
Duggan, and Ben Troupe.� Ben Hartsock
caught almost all of his passes, but ran the gauntlet SLOW�much slower than the
other TE�s.� Blizzard ran the gauntlet,
and the rest of the passing drills, despite having his calf bandaged all the
way to the knee.
After the gauntlet, the tight ends ran a variety of pass
patterns, first on one side of the field, then the other.� Cones were set up to signify where each cut
was supposed to happen.� The patterns
were short out�s, short in�s, a post pattern, and a flag pattern.� Three quarterbacks who were throwing these
passes were Luke McCown, Robert Kent, and Scott Rislov.� McCown was clearly the class of these three,
and Trap and Ovie witnessed McCown warming up with 60-yrad tosses with
ease.� He had a terrific drop, and a
strong arm, with excellent accuracy.�
Trap predicts that McCown could be heard from in the NFL in the
future.� He is tall, but also
skinny.� Could be a decent project for
some team.
Back to the passing drills:�
One thing stood out � the two track stars had trouble avoiding �rounding
off� their cuts.� Sure, they were quick
and fast, but they did not run sharp patterns.�
Trap has heard since that Watson was written highly in some combine
reports�yes, he has speed, but his patterns were below average!� Wilson again shined on all of these drills,
and made a spectacular catch that actually drew applause from the deathly
silent crowd.� Duggans and Troupe made
great catches on flag patterns 40 yards downfield.� Hartsock was steady, if not terrific, but ran patterns fairly
slow.� Big Jason Peters again showed
good hands, and ran fairly decent patterns.�
He did have a little trouble staying inbounds when the pattern was a
�down-out-and up��the cones are set up to force the receiver to cut sharp to
head upfield.� Peters has 300 pounds
rumbling to the sidelines!� He rounded
the cut, but got upfield, and made the long catch.� Trap doesn�t think Peters hurt himself, though � how often is
this pattern actually run by a tight end, anyway?� After the passing drills, there was a somewhat lame blocking
drill, where each tight end held a blocking pad for another, and the tight end
came out of the stance and blocked the pad.�
Hard to tell how well the guy does in this type of drill.� It was noteworthy that Duggan, one of the
smaller tight ends, had Peters holding the blocking pad�Duggan barely budged
him!
In an overall evaluation of the tight ends, based on what
the Stillers look for in a tight end, Trap would clearly rate Jason Peters as
the class of the field.� He is BIG, and
he can catch passes, something a Stiller tight end MIGHT do in this
century.� Most of the rest of the tight
ends are actually too small to be a Stiller tight end.� Hartsock might have a chance since he is so
chiseled and broad.� The two track stars
are too small for Cowherd, and so is Kris Wilson.� Courtney Anderson is tall, as is Keith Willis, but they are slow
� in the Bruener mold.� John Foschi, out
of Georgia Tech, could also be a possibility, as he showed something in the
blocking drill, and he was of decent size and speed.� Brett Pierce, Tim Euhus, Sean Ryan, Joe Duggan, and Chris Cooley,
are all too small.� A lot of these guys
will make good H-backs, something the Stillers don�t use.
Next, trap and Ovie stayed around to watch the DL�s.� Turns out, there were so many, they were
split into two groups.� We only watched
the first group.� Whisenhunt left our
area after the tight ends, so we didn�t have anyone close to get times from,
but we were still able to discern who was fast, and who wasn�t.� First � who was slow?� Dwan Edwards was glacially slow.� Ryan Boschetti was slow.� Jeff Womble was FAT.� Lardassed fat.� His stock had to tumble.�
Mathias Askew was average, so his stock probably fell.� Who was fast?� Bobby McCray.� Isaac
Hilton, who was also extremely chiseled.�
Nathaniel Abidi, though he looked rather small.� Claude Harriott, out of Pitt.� And Tommy Kelly and Jason Babin.� An intriguing player was Ahmad Childress,
who was fairly fast for 351 pounds!� He
is a huge mountain of a man, yet ran quite well.� Chad Pugh looked good as a possible backup for Fat Casey
Hampton.� Has the same large butt as
Casey � ran decently.�
Trap�s personal favorites have to start with Tommy Kelly,
out of Mississippi State.� He is an
incredible specimen.� He�s fast.� He has the long frame that Steel Phantom
always likes.� He has the size to play
DE in the 3-4 defense.� Trap also liked
Darnell Dockett out of Florida State.�
He ran well, but strained his groin, and did not run the second time.� He looks like a good 3-4 DE.� Another huge player that Trap thinks could
be the sleeper of this group is Ryan Bingham, from Nebraska.� He�s big and muscled.� Solid.�
He ran very well for a big man.�
Watch this guy, despite the fact that he comes from the traditionally
underachieving Cornhuskers!�
Side notes:
An interesting spotting � Dick LeBeau came over and hugged
Tim Lewis, who was sitting about five rows below us.� They talked for quite a while, and seem to have genuine fondness
for each other.�
Along that line, it was intriguing to Trap and Ovie that,
within 20 feet of where we were sitting at one point, the last 4 Stiller
defensive coordinators were there:�
Lewis and LeBeau, and to the left was Asslett, and walking down the
steps to the right was Dom Capers.�
Funny.
Mike Mularkey walked up the aisle next to us, and out of the
blue, says �hi� to Ovie.� Trap said,
�did he just say Hi to you??��
�Yep�.� Mularkey apparently
thought Ovie, in his charcoal gray suit, was some front office person�.
Chucky Gruden is short in person.� About 5�7�.� Has a little
pot-belly, too.�
Jerry Jones looked supremely fit for his age.� Who knows how much was plastic, and how much
was real, though.
Al Davis wore the SAME white jumpsuit as he wore last year.
Butch Davis colors his hair with some hideous red hair
dye.� Yuk.
No one talks to Dennis Erickson.� Does Trap�s heart good!
Everyone talks to Dave Wannstedt.
No sighting of William Laird Cowherd.
Donohoe and Mularkey sat up in a �box�, much higher from the
action than any of the others coaches or execs.� Why?� Don�t know.
Denny Green spent a LONG time talking with Oakland Al Davis.
Mike Tice is even bigger in person � he looks like someone
you would NOT want to fuk with.� Trap is
surprised that Moss gets away with anything with Tice�.?
Trap spoke briefly with Dick LeBeau before Trap and Ovie
left.� Thanked Dick for coming back, and
told him he was looking forward to the return of �Blitzburgh�.� Dick replied, �it�s great to be back, and
we�re gonna try to do just that.� I look
forward to it.�
This confirmed what Trap has been predicting � we will all
see a much more effective usage of the zone blitz schemes that have made LeBeau
famous for the 3-4 defense.� Trap is
betting that we will see Porter and Bell moved around a lot more to better
utilize their talents.� How he will make
up for Gildong�s liabilities remains to be seen�
Trap and Ovie plan on making the Combine trip an annual
experience!