NFL draft analyst Dane Brugler of CBSSports/NFLDraftScout.com joined RTI Radio on Tuesday afternoon and hit on a variety of draft-related topics involving both the Vols and the national scene.
Our first question for him involved former Vol cornerback Justin Coleman, who turned a lot of heads at the NFL Scouting Combine a couple weeks ago with these numbers and measurables:
Size: 5-11, 185 pounds
Arm length: 31 1/4″
Hands: 9 3/8″
Best 40-yard dash: 4.53 seconds (official)
Bench reps (225 pounds): 20 (3rd among DBs)
Vertical: 37.5 inches
Broad jump: 124 inches
3-cone drill: 6.61 seconds (best at the combine by a DB since 2011; best overall at the combine this year)
20-yard shuttle: 3.98 seconds (5th among DBs)
60-yard shuttle: 11.21 seconds (3rd among DBs)
We asked Brugler if Coleman bolstered his chances to be drafted with his strong performance in Indianapolis. Here’s his full response.
“Justin Coleman – he’s interesting. Based on the past few years, based on his senior season, to be honest, I wasn’t overly-impressed. He impressed me at the East-West Shrine Game, I had a chance to see him up close and personal, right there on the sideline. He had a nice week there at Tampa. And then he went to the combine and did what he needed to do, running a 4.53 40, he looked good in the other drills, including an outstanding number in the three-cone: 6.61.
“So you know, it makes me go back to the tape. He’s one of those guys that, based on what I’ve seen the last few months, it’s making me kind of go back and see if I was missing something on the tape, or does he workout better than he plays football? None the less, Coleman, a player I’m going back to, because on tape, a little upright in the backpedal. When he was beat by speed, he didn’t have the recovery speed to make that up. But you know he had good play recognition, great quickness on the ball, and those types of qualities is what you want in a defensive back, so I think there’s a good chance you could see Justin Coleman sneak into the later rounds, but definitely a player I need to do more homework on.”
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