Tennessee football: Ranking all four Vols by NFL Combine performance in 2022
There are probably five Tennessee football players who could be selected in the 2021 NFL Draft, but only four of them received invites to last week’s NFL Combine. Theo Jackson, the Vols’ most productive defensive player, was robbed of that shot, so teams will just have to go off of film study with him. That’ll likely work to his advantage.
The other players who were invited to the combine, however, have now given scouts more than just film study to see what they can do. Raw, physical talent will be added to their evaluations, but did they benefit from that, or did the combine hurt them long-term?
We know that scouts can overvalue or undervalue players by overrating the combine, but there’s no point denying it’s completely useless. Let’s look at which Vol gained the most from the event relative to their position. This is a ranking of all four Tennessee football players at the 2022 NFL Combine based on their performance.
4. player. Scouting Report. Pick Analysis. Offensive lineman. Knoxville, Tenn.. Cade Mays. 839
6’5″ 311 pounds; 34.125″ arms; 10″ hands
Combine results according to NFL.com:
- 40-time: 5.24 seconds
- Vertical jump: 26 inches
- Broad jump: 102 inches
- 3 cone drill: 7.57 seconds
- 20-yard shuttle: 4.71 seconds
Cade Mays wasn’t even top five in speed among SEC offensive linemen. In terms of physical attributes that are more applicable to his position, he wasn’t in the top 10 in any of them either. Add in that he’s 14 pounds lighter than his expected weight was, and all in all, it’s safe to say the combine did nothing for him.
Now, to be fair to Mays, his selling point isn’t just his physical attributes. For him, you have to plug in the film a bit more than most offensive linemen, as he’s all about versatility. Mays pretty much played every position on the line during his college career.
Last year, he was one of Tennessee football’s most effective blockers despite playing right tackle while playing right guard the year before. Such play could make him a tweener for physical measurements, and pro teams should take that into account. He hit the bare minimum, so he should still be fine in the draft.