How fast can you run 40 yards? How high can you jump? How many times can you push 225 lbs. off your chest?
NFL Scouting is a numbers game. Whether or not those numbers have any impact on who can actually play football is anybody’s guess, but every NFL team relies on a select few to scout potential players and figure out who the next prime time players are.
That numbers-driven atmoshpere was on full display Wednesday at the Murhpy Center for NC State’s Pro Day as 15 football players tried out for scouts from every NFL team. The atmosphere felt more like meat market than a workout session. But when millions of dollars and jobs are on the line, I guess that’s what to expect.
Running back Toney Baker, who came back in 2009 after missing two years due to injury, was perhaps the most intriguing player for scouts to assess. He did not disappoint, running an unofficial 4.53 40-yard dash and doing 27 reps on the bench press. He weighed in at 235 lbs. and recorded a 37″ vertical.
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Here’s JP Giglio’s story from today’s N&O.
The audition for NFL scouts at N.C. State on Wednesday attracted an array of hopefuls.
The last-call long shots outnumbered the legitimate draft prospects, but there was a little bit of everything for the approximately 30 scouts to measure, evaluate and test at the Murphy Center. There were former five-star recruits, former walk-ons and a former basketball player who hadn’t played football since middle school.
Mostly, there were a lot of numbers being thrown, not entirely unlike a livestock auction. There were the usual metrics (the 40-yard dash, the bench press, vertical jump) and the not-so usual (hand size?).
Toney Baker, N.C. State’s leading rusher in 2009, hoped Wednesday’s tests would ease any doubts about a knee injury that cost him two seasons and also show his increased bulk.
