Florida has had 238 players invited to the NFL Combine, which is the most in the SEC.
GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Eight former Gators participated in the 2019 NFL Scouting Combine over the past four days, with five taking part in at-least some testing and on-field workouts.
That group created quite a buzz in Indianapolis as they went through a series of drills, tests and interviews with NFL personnel (including coaching staffs, executives, player personnel and medical staffs). Last weekend amounted to a major job interview for the athletes to participate in ahead of the 2019 NFL Draft on April 25-27.
UF's eight combine invitees as well as other former Gators will have one more chance to impress scouts and talent evaluators prior to the draft.
The Gators will host their Pro Day on March 27 inside Ben Hill Griffin Stadium.
Here are the measurements and results for all eight Florida players in Indy:
Chauncey Gardner-Johnson, DB
NFL Combine Grade & Analysis:
Height: 5'11"
Weight: 210
Hands: 9 1/4″
Arm length: 30 7/8″
40-yard dash: 4.48 seconds
Bench press: 17 reps of 225 pounds
Vert jump: 36 inches
Broad jump: 117 inches
3-cone drill: 7.03 seconds
20-yard shuttle: 4.2 seconds
Quote of Note:
- "Go watch the Florida State game from last year and that is who he should be in the NFL. He's fast and he will hit you. He's going to get cornerback love because of his size, but he's a free safety."
- – Sourced AFC Personnel Director
Jawaan Taylor, OL
NFL Combine Grade & Analysis:
Height: 6'5"
Weight: 312
Hands: 10″
Arm length: 35 1/8″
Bench press: 24 reps of 225 pounds
Quote of Note:
- "Throwback right tackle with adequate foot quickness for pass-protection duties and above-average size and nastiness to fit the "road grader" model. Taylor strains to cave, kick or drive his opponent out of the way. His feet are good enough to slide out on speed rushers and redirect them past the pocket."
- – NFL.com Analyst Lance Zierlein
Jordan Scarlett, RB
NFL Combine Grade & Analysis:
Height: 5'11"
Weight: 208
Hands: 8 7/8″
Arm length: 30 3/8″
40-yard dash: 4.47 seconds
Bench press: 21 reps of 225 pounds
Vert jump: 30 inches
Broad jump: 116 inches
3-cone drill: 7.37 seconds
20-yard shuttle: 4.63 seconds
Quote of Note:
- "He's a wildcard from a maturity standpoint, but he's built for the league and athletic for the league so it's probably just a matter of where he ends up and how long he can stick around."
- – Sourced NFC Southeastern Conference Scout
Cece Jefferson, DL
NFL Combine Grade & Analysis:
Height: 6'1"
Weight: 266
Hands: 9 5/8″
Arm length: 33 5/8″
40-yard dash: 5.02 seconds
Bench press: 17 reps of 225 pounds
Vert jump: 30.5 inches
Broad jump: 108 inches
3-cone drill: 7.5 seconds
20-yard shuttle: 4.53 seconds
Quote of Note:
- "Short, powerful edge defender with good eyes and instincts, but a lack of explosiveness and rush talent… He has NFL awareness and power and his 2017 tape as a reduced rusher showed promise. While there isn't much draft buzz around Jefferson these days, his game could translate as a backup 4-3 base end with sup-rush potential inside."
- – NFL.com Analyst Lance Zierlein
Jachai Polite, DL
NFL Combine Grade & Analysis:
Height: 6'3"
Weight: 258
Hands: 9 3/4″
Arm length: 32 5/8″
40-yard dash: 4.84 seconds
Vert jump: 32 inches
Quote of Note:
- "Instinctive rusher with natural feel for attacking the pocket and the explosive athletic ability to finish the job. Polite's frightening speed to the edge is the foundation for his pass-rush success, but it's the potential diversity and fluidity of his attack that makes him such a compelling prospect. Scouts say beware of his floor, but his electrifying rush potential could be hard to pass up in today's pass-happy league."
- – NFL.com Analyst Lance Zierlein
Martez Ivey, OL
NFL Combine Grade & Analysis:
Height: 6'5"
Weight: 315
Hands: 10 3/8″
Arm length: 36 1/4″
Quote of Note:
- "Former five-star recruit who has been inconsistent and underachieved relative to expectations upon his arrival. His tape was better as a guard than tackle and he has good length which gives him a chance if he gets leaner, stronger and executes the coaching."
- – NFL.com Analyst Lance Zierlein
Fred Johnson, OL
NFL Combine Grade & Analysis:
Height: 6'7"
Weight: 326
Hands: 10 5/8″
Arm length: 34″
Quote of Note:
- "He started football late and I don't know if he really loves football to be honest, but he's been getting better and he works at it. Some teams won't touch really tall guards, but I think that's all relative to how tall your quarterback is."
- – Sourced AFC Pro Personnel Director
Vosean Joseph, LB
NFL Combine Grade & Analysis:
Height: 6'1"
Weight: 230
Hands: 9 5/8″
Arm length: 31 3/8″
Quote of Note:
- "His tape has no middle ground, it's either really impressive or really ugly. Now go look at his production this year and you realize you can coach some ugly out of his play. He's a '5' right now but we can turn him into a '9.'"
- – Sourced AFC Defensive Coach
No matter how this process plays out and where they all end up in the NFL, these guys will always be Gators.
