2020 NFL combine: Day two winners and losers
By Raju Byfield
Salvon Ahmed (Washington)
Salvon Ahmed was expected to run a sub 4.4 40 yard dash, failing that, to time in the low 4.4’s. Instead, he was one of the slowest running backs at the NFL Combine despite weighing less than 200 lbs. He performed well in the agility drills, but his poorer than expected 40 coupled with his poor vision and feel for cutbacks on tape, may have relegated him to being a late day three selection. Ahmed has some exciting highlights, but his actual game tape is more of a mixed bag. He will look to improve his 40 yard dash at his pro day, and if he can, he can be drafted for a developmental role. However, if he cannot, he will be a late round flier at best who will receive a potentially harsh lesson about leaving school too early.
La’Mical Perine (Florida)
La’Mical Perine shed over 12 [pounds heading into his senior season, ostensibly, so he could be more explosive. Perhaps, he did so to avoid timing in the 4.8 range. Whatever the case, Perine was much less effective between the tackles, and did not show the same contact balance that he did in 2018. Despite his size, he was never much of a power back to begin with, but he was a much less impressive than in 2018 despite former backfield mate Jordan Scarlett being drafted by the Carolina Panthers.
NFL combine day 1 winners and losers. dark. Next
Perine is expected to be drafted as a receiving back, and had he ran a 4.4, or even a low 4.5, he could have ended up being selected at the end of day two. The more likely scenario now is that he is drafted in the early to mid part of day three, and that he is drafted to compete for a backup role, rather than to compete for a committee job. He has some interesting tools, and performed well enough in the agility drills to take a chance on, but no back outside of Salvon Ahmed may have dropped further down the draft boards of NFL teams.