INDIANAPOLIS?The quarterbacks, wide receivers and running backs took to the Lucas Oil Stadium turf on Sunday, and here is a look at the day's most notable workouts at the NFL Scouting Combine:
Good impressions
Alabama wide receiver Julio Jones (8) can't get to a second-half pass as Penn State's D'Anton Lynn (8) defends. (AP photo) Julio Jones, WR, Alabama. He definitely had a good day and locked up the spot as the No. 2, at worst, receiver in the draft. He definitely is a well-built receiver who showed great speed in his 40 (4.39 seconds) and explosiveness in his vertical and broad jumps. He displayed good hands throughout the receiving skills, too. He also eased concerns about his lack of quickness/burst.
Jordan Todman, RB, UConn. He showed strong running and receiving skills during the position drills. He showed great agility and change-of-direction skills after putting-up a good 40-yard dash time (4.4 seconds).
Ryan Williams, RB, Virginia Tech. Despite not running a great 40-time (4.58 seconds), he still had an impressive workout. He appeared quick and explosive with great balance and body control throughout the drills. He also showed soft hands, even though he wasn't utilized much as a receiver in college.
Christian Ponder, QB, Florida State. On a day where no QB displayed standout accuracy, Ponder seemed to be the most consistent. He showed strong footwork, smooth and easy passing mechanics and good enough arm strength to make all NFL throws.
Randall Cobb, WR, Kentucky. He ran fast (4.45 seconds in the 40), showed excellent quickness in and out of cuts and caught the ball well. His size and receiving skills project as a perfect fit as an NFL slot receiver. Also an elite kickoff and punt returner, he could end up being a late first-round pick.
Dion Lewis, RB, Pitt. His lateral quickness was impressive during running drills. He changed directions suddenly and without losing speed. He did not run fast in a straight line but confirmed his exceptional agility, body control and balance.
Denarius Moore, WR, Tennessee. He ran well (4.45 seconds), and then followed-up with a strong positional workout. He showed a natural ability to locate passes over his shoulder, adjusting his body to catch the ball at full speed. He looked good running the gauntlet drill and quickly turned up the sideline.
Titus Young, WR, Boise State. He showed excellent hands with the ability to extend and pluck the ball away from his body on every route. He caught every ball and showed rare ability to sink his hips with explosive quickness and body control, as he turned up the sideline after passing through the gauntlet drill. Unfortunately, a leg cramp ended his day early.
Austin Pettis, WR, Boise State. He showed the best combination of route-running ability and hands. He lacks pure speed or acceleration to threaten a defense downfield, but he shows excellent body control, balance and quickness coming out of breaks to make plays on underneath and intermediate routes. He is smooth and fluid but not sudden or explosive in his movements.
Bad impressions
Cam Newton, QB, Auburn. Despite his multimillion dollar smile and charismatic personality, his on-field workout was unimpressive. Since he didn't take snaps from center in college, it was not surprising that he appeared slow and unnatural with three-, five- and seven-step drops. After overthrowing all three deep balls, he then sailed two consecutive "out" routes 10-yards over the head of the receivers. He clearly must improve his fundamentals and techniques.
Ricky Stanzi, QB, Iowa. After Newton sailed passes high, Stanzi stepped up and threw passes into the ground in front of his receivers. Stanzi had a poor week at the Senior Bowl and was equally unimpressive Sunday. He simply lacks athletic skills and accuracy.
John Clay, RB, Wisconsin. He lost a lot of weight -- down to 230 pounds -- to try and impress in the timed drills and failed miserably. He was outclassed by his peers. He looked slow and stiff, and some teams could well project him at fullback moving forward in the draft process.
Damien Berry, RB, Miami (Fla.). He ran poorly in the 40-yard dash and then showed little explosive athleticism in the position drills. He ran the first drill incorrectly, after the four players who went before him did it the right way.
Jonathan Baldwin, WR, Pitt. Despite having great size and wingspan, he did not show the ability to quickly drop his hips to make sharp cuts. He lacks any special receiving skills, and his run-after-catch ability is barely average because it takes him so long to re-start after slowing down to make the catch. He had a drop and did not use his great length to catch a high pass away from his body downfield.
Edmond Gates, WR, Abilene Christian; Ricardo Lockette, WR, Fort Valley State. The two fastest receivers in a straight line -- both recorded 40 times at 4.37 seconds -- struggled as route-runners. Both had trouble getting into and out of breaks on horizontal routes. They also had trouble in dropping their weight and changing directions, especially when moving toward the sideline at full speed.
Other notable performances
Colin Kaepernick, QB, Nevada. With all of the attention given to Newton and Missouri's Blaine Gabbert, it is hard to understand why Kaepernick doesn't get more credit for having similar size and athletic skills. He followed up a strong showing at the Senior Bowl with a solid workout Sunday. He still shows some inconsistency because of an elongated throwing motion.
Mark Ingram, RB, Alabama. Although he did not run fast (4.62 seconds in the 40), he confirmed his outstanding quickness, body control and balance throughout the workout. His game tape and college production speak volumes. Strong, physical runners rarely impress during these workouts.
A.J. Green, WR, Georgia. He had a solid but unspectacular day. He ran well in the 40 -- 4.48 and 4.51 seconds -- and caught the ball well, but his route-running in some drills were not great. Still, he has the size and athleticism to remain as the No. 1 receiver on all teams' draft boards.
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