**Notre Dame Combine Invitees: Results & Analysis**

[CanadalovesND]

Manti will make his living "in the box". You will see him as a run stopper and a coverage guy against short routes and zone across the middle and in the flat.

 

[Ironman8]

Where did you get these from? I'm seeing Lee and Bowman at 4.72.

ESPN

 

[Whiskeyjack]

Manti will make his living "in the box". You will see him as a run stopper and a coverage guy against short routes and zone across the middle and in the flat.

Are there systems in which MLBs do more than these two things?

 

[Grahambo]

He also had a press conference that people thought was very well done. I think Te'o will be fine.

 

[irishroo]

You have nothing to answer my requests. Vontaze Burfict and Brandon Spikes say hello to your theory and laugh at the NFL war room.

Is the argument that 40 time doesn't matter during the draft process or that it doesn't matter once you're in the League? If it's the former, I disagree. We see every year plenty of guys who put up outrageous 40 times and subsequently shoot up draft boards. If it's the latter, totally agree. Straight line speed over a relatively long distance is almost never utilized in football at the ILB position (or most other positions). Laurinaitis, Bowman, Spikes, Burfict, Lee, etc. have proven you don't need elite straight line speed to be among the best players in the game.

 

[CanadalovesND]

Are there systems in which MLBs do more than these two things?

That's my point. He's going to do what MLB's are expected to do. It almost seems like people think he needs to have the characteristics of a DB to succeed.

 

[Irish Houstonian]

Is the argument that 40 time doesn't matter during the draft process or that it doesn't matter once you're in the League? If it's the former, I disagree. We see every year plenty of guys who put up outrageous 40 times and subsequently shoot up draft boards. If it's the latter, totally agree. Straight line speed over a relatively long distance is almost never utilized in football at the ILB position (or most other positions). Laurinaitis, Bowman, Spikes, Burfict, Lee, etc. have proven you don't need elite straight line speed to be among the best players in the game.

Tend to agree, but might want to step back from calling those guys "among the best in the game". Does even one of those guys have a single Pro-Bowl?

 

[IrishLax]

The bottom line is that Te'o is the new Tebow.

People are looking for ANYTHING to knock him on. They could just as easily be talking about his good 10-yard split and very solid performances in the shuttle / cone drill. It's the same reason people single out the 'Bama game while ignoring that Ogletree played EVEN WORSE than Te'o in the SEC Championship game. It's biased sensationalism at its finest.

Instead the headline is "slow 40" so ESPN can talk about it on Sports Center, PTI, Around the Horn, etc. Saying "he did good in some things, bad in others" doesn't sell. I think if Te'o's draft stock actually gets hurt it will be because the team doesn't want to draft a distraction/unpopular player.

 

[dudesthisisthebest]

Tend to agree, but might want to step back from calling those guys "among the best in the game". Does even one of those guys have a single Pro-Bowl?

Lol, yea Burfict and Laurinaitis are quite the stretch.

 

[IrishLax]

Tend to agree, but might want to step back from calling those guys "among the best in the game". Does even one of those guys have a single Pro-Bowl?

Bowman definitely does. Made it last year. Don't know others off the top of my head.

 

[STLDomer]

The bottom line is that Te'o is the new Tebow.

People are looking for ANYTHING to knock him on. They could just as easily be talking about his good 10-yard split and very solid performances in the shuttle / cone drill. It's the same reason people single out the 'Bama game while ignoring that Ogletree played EVEN WORSE than Te'o in the SEC Championship game. It's biased sensationalism at its finest.

Instead the headline is "slow 40" so ESPN can talk about it on Sports Center, PTI, Around the Horn, etc. Saying "he did good in some things, bad in others" doesn't sell. I think if Te'o's draft stock actually gets hurt it will be because the team doesn't want to draft a distraction/unpopular player.

 

[PLACforever]

LAX is right
I haven't seen much about Ogletree's DUI hurting his draft stock, but Manti runs .07 seconds slower than "NFL scouts wanted" and all of the sudden he's the next Ryan Leaf.
F the media, yellow journalism is the new standard.

My source for the quote: (see how it's done media d-bags?)
*"NFL front office personnel were looking for the Notre Dame linebacker, who measured at 6-feet-1¼ inches and 241 pounds, to run at least a sub 4.75."
Manti Te'o runs 4.82 in 40-yard dash at NFL scouting combine - ESPN

 

[Me2SouthBend]

The bottom line is that Te'o is the new Tebow.

People are looking for ANYTHING to knock him on. They could just as easily be talking about his good 10-yard split and very solid performances in the shuttle / cone drill. It's the same reason people single out the 'Bama game while ignoring that Ogletree played EVEN WORSE than Te'o in the SEC Championship game. It's biased sensationalism at its finest.

Instead the headline is "slow 40" so ESPN can talk about it on Sports Center, PTI, Around the Horn, etc. Saying "he did good in some things, bad in others" doesn't sell. I think if Te'o's draft stock actually gets hurt it will be because the team doesn't want to draft a distraction/unpopular player.

Agreed. Love or Hate, 1 or the other no real in between. I bet Manti throws a better pass than Tebow.

 

[Ironman8]

Tend to agree, but might want to step back from calling those guys "among the best in the game". Does even one of those guys have a single Pro-Bowl?

Lol, yea Burfict and Laurinaitis are quite the stretch.

Bowman made the Pro Bowl with Willis this year, along with London Fletcher, whom Te'o was compared to by Pat earlier in the thread. James Lauranitis was considered a snub, and the first person that would have been chosen after that.

Burflict just had a great rookie season for the Bengals after going un-drafted. Both Lauranitis and Burflict made their all-rookie teams.

 

[Grahambo]

NFL.com compares him to Demeco Ryan.

 

[Grahambo]

Not relevant to ND but still:

Y! SPORTS LSU can’t be happy to hear that DE Sam Montgomery said he took the easier games off

 

[We_Are_ND]

Honestly shocked by Zeke Mottas Bench Press

 

[IrishSteelhead]

Not suprising....just horrible.

Good lord. There are middle school kids that can do more reps than that.

I don't get this one at all. Motta seemed way stronger than that. He does have very long arms, but, nevermind, those numbers are bad.

 

[irishog77]

Bowman wasn't just a pro-bowler, he was 1st team all pro. Lee was well on his way to a pro bowl this year (according to more than 1 writer) before he got hurt. Burfict had a great rookie year. Spikes (Takeo) was a great player...before he turned 58 and decided to still play. Spikes (Brandon) ran a 5 flat at the combine...but despite that Betty White-like speed, has managed to be a good player on one of the best (perennially) teams in the league.

So, yeah, comparisons to those players do matter.


As far as Lax's question on if MLB's ever run down the field-- no, not really. Urlacher does (did), but he was kind of an anomaly there, due to him being a former Safety. Cover 2 (and even more specifically, Monte Kiffin's version) probably requires the MLB to run down field a bit more than others, but yeah, I'll pretty much guarantee that teams won't be scared off of Teo because of his perceived slowness at 40 yards (or more) downfield.

 

[Irish Houstonian]

If you know you're only going to do about 11 reps, you should probably just say you have a slight shoulder separation or something.

 

[Irish Houstonian]

Bowman wasn't just a pro-bowler, he was 1st team all pro. Lee was well on his way to a pro bowl this year (according to more than 1 writer) before he got hurt. Burfict had a great rookie year. Spikes (Takeo) was a great player...before he turned 58 and decided to still play. Spikes (Brandon) ran a 5 flat at the combine...but despite that Betty White-like speed, has managed to be a good player on one of the best (perennially) teams in the league.

So, yeah, comparisons to those players do matter.


As far as Lax's question on if MLB's ever run down the field-- no, not really. Urlacher does (did), but he was kind of an anomaly there, due to him being a former Safety. Cover 2 (and even more specifically, Monte Kiffin's version) probably requires the MLB to run down field a bit more than others, but yeah, I'll pretty much guarantee that teams won't be scared off of Teo because of his perceived slowness at 40 yards (or more) downfield.

I agree with you guys here, I just think the players offered as proof aren't that great. Only Bowman made one Pro-Bowl, and he ran a full .1 faster than Te'o.

Bryan Cox -- now there was a good, slow MLB.

 

[tadman95]

Polian and McShay, in particularly, are being pretty upright about this. McShay saying Manti has had less time to prepare because of the NCG, then the hoax situation had to have some impact.

Polian saying the 40 time just indicates he may not be a 3 down player and teams will want a 3 down player in the 1st round.

Both think if he improves at the Notre Dame Pro day then those numbers will carry more weight. All in All pretty straight up.

 

[dudesthisisthebest]

Polian and McShay, in particularly, are being pretty upright about this, Mcshay saying Manti has had less time to prepare because of the NCG, then the hoax situation had to have some impact.

Polian saying the 40 time just indicates he may not be a 3 down player and teams will want a 3 down player in the 1st round.

Both think if he improves at the Notre Dame Pro day then those numbers will carry more weight. All in All pretty straight up.

That's why I think he could drop to second round

 

[NDPhilly]

Lol in December some predicted him as a top 5 pick.

 

[phork]

Lol in December some predicted him as a top 5 pick.

And he would have been if he hadn't lied and got depantsed by Bama.

 

[FightingIrishLover7]

I honestly always viewed Manti as a 5 star leader, and a 4.5 star player... He's a heck of a player, but he's not as naturally gifted as some.

Show me a combine test that shows leadership, then I'll listen.

 

[GoldenIsThyFame]

@Bturk35: Thought I'd mention that if I competed in the combine events with the linebackers I would have came in 2nd in bench and 5th in vert

#kickerstrong

 

[clashmore_mike]

Yeah but what about 40 time? That's all that matters!

 

[dudesthisisthebest]

Yeah but what about 40 time? That's all that matters!

Punter is one of the few positions where you may actually run 40 yards straight

 

[clashmore_mike]

lol