NFL Combine 2013: Linebacker Prospects Under The Microscope

Linebackers are the last of the position groups we'll put under the microscope based on their Combine performance. And we're going to do so in largely the same format we've used for the previous posts. Once again we'll start by looking at the target measurements for linebackers. Note that there are different expectations for OLBs and ILBs as listed below:

Because there are significant differences in the two positions, I've split them into two tables, based on the position designation for each player on the CBSSports big board. We'll start with the OLBs and look at how many target measurables each prospect met:

OLB 2013 Combine measurables (click column header to sort)

The two standout prospect as measured by their Combine performance are Jamie Collins out of Southern Mississippi and Sio Moore out of Connecticut, with Moore being the more powerful player and Collins more athletic. Zavier Gooden also looks like a good prospect here, and what he doesn't have in vertical power he makes up for in agility.

A little further down Cornelius Washington dazzles with extraordinary measurements. Washington projects as a DE but was bunched in with the linebackers at the Combine, where he proved to be an athletic freak. Unfortunately, reports are that he didn't come close to replicating his athletic performance over four years of college ball. He's been described as "lost on the field", had trouble tackling and looked lost against the run (Here's a detailed write-up on Washington). Couple that with an arrest and a suspension from school, and you see why he's not ranked very high. Which is too bad, because his athletic markers beat DeMarcus Ware in all four drills Washington participated in.

ILB 2013 Combine measurables (click column header to sort)

Jonathan Bostic and Steve Beauhernais could be interesting later-round prospects, but overall, this may not be the best year to get an inside linebacker. Perhaps there is more to be gleaned by looking at a couple of addition metrics.

Once again, we'll be looking at five different metrics to get a better feel for this OLB/ILB draft class (read up on the details here if you are unfamiliar with these metrics):

2. Kirwan Explosion Index: [BENCH PRESS REPS + VERTICAL JUMP + BROAD JUMP = EXPLOSION NUMBER]

3. Explosive Power: (VERT+3.5*BROAD)*(WEIGHT/HEIGHT)/3000

4. Lateral Agility: [40-YARD DASH TIME - 20-YARD SHUTTLE = LATERAL AGILITY]

5. Speed Score: [(WEIGHT * 200) / (40-TIME ^ 4) = SPEED SCORE]

Linebackers, 2013 Combine additional metrics (click column header to sort)

The same players emerge in this analysis. Moore and Collins stand out as very fast and explosive players. Now let's take a look at at how that athleticism translated on the field. To do this, we'll use a modified version of the Production Ratio that's calculated as follows:

TFLs + Sacks + Pass Breakups + INTs
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Number of games played

When I ran the numbers, I excluded the freshman seasons of almost all players. For most players, this meant the 2009 season, for the players marked with an (*) this meant the 2010 season. Also, this table contains all players invited to the Combine, even though they may not have run a single drill there, like Jarvis Jones, whose spinal stenosis kept him off the field at the Combine. The table is sorted by the production ratio.

Jarvis Jones tops this list as one of the most disruptive college players over the last two years. If he is cleared medically to play in the NFL, he should be a great asset for the team drafting him.

Second on this list is Keith Pough, a small-school prospect who was formidable against the run at Howard. He was the first player out of Howard ever invited to the Shrine game and looked good there, but there are questions about how he'll hold up against NFL-type competition. The watch-out for guys like Pough and others like Khaseem Greene and Chase Thomas is that while they had very good production at their schools, they don't show the type of athletic markers teams look for in prospects.

Moore and Collins pop up at the top of the table for the third time: both have the college production to match their athleticism, and both are strong against the pass and the run. Scouts would probably be more comfortable with either prospect if they had played in the SEC, so while both may need a little development time, they are going to be solid additions to whichever team drafts them.

Had the Cowboys not moved out of the second round last year, they are on record as saying the would have taken ILB Bobby Wagner. As such, it's not unrealistic to expect them to look for a linebacker again this year. Who would you have the Cowboys target?