Stanford’s star running back Christian McCaffrey isn’t risking any injuries prior to the NFL Draft.
Many might have wondered why their favorite team hasn’t worked out star running back prospect Christian McCaffrey privately. Today that question has been answered.
McCaffrey is taking part in pre-draft visits with teams that may be interested in drafting him, but he won’t be working out with these teams during those visits. Mike Florio of ProFootballTalk is reporting that McCaffrey has declined all private workout requests, but no NFL team is concerned by this rejection either.
"“The trend toward putting the hay in the barn with the Pro Day session has expanded quietly in recent years,” Florio says. “Teams no longer are huffing and puffing about it as much as they once did, and the media is more focused on gathering information about who worked out for which team, not who didn’t work out at all.”"
McCaffrey has been locked in many mock drafts as a potential top-fifteen selection. He may be assured by teams or his agent that his stock is correctly in that area as well and he doesn’t want to risk injury due to the financial impact it could cause.
The projected first round pick was criticized by many for sitting out the Sun Bowl for Stanford in his final appearance in Cardinal and White. McCaffrey clearly did this with the intent of not being injured, so his stance on private workouts shouldn’t come as much of a surprise either, especially considering the injuries that potential first-round cornerbacks Sidney Jones (Washington) and Fabian Moreau (UCLA) suffered during their pro days that impacted their draft stock severely.
The bottom line is we’ll see these declines for private workouts happen more regularly throughout the years and given how polarizing McCaffrey’s name is can be the main reason why this story has garnered attention.
Next: 2017 NFL Mock Draft: McCaffrey goes in top-fifteen
McCaffrey nailed his NFL Combine and Pro Day performance. What more can you want from the talented prospect?