Top 10 Players Who Need to Have a Good NFL Combine

Jan 3, 2014; Arlington, TX, USA; Oklahoma State Cowboys quarterback Clint Chelf (10) fumbles the ball after being hit by Missouri Tigers defensive lineman Michael Sam (52) and defensive lineman Shane Ray (56) recovers the ball and returns it for a touchdown in the fourth quarter at the 2014 Cotton Bowl at AT&T Stadium. Missouri beat Oklahoma State 41-31. Mandatory Credit: Tim Heitman-USA TODAY Sports

1. Shane Ray, Defensive End, Missouri Tigers

The questions surrounding Shane Ray are nearly the exact opposite of the questions surrounding Leonard Williams. Ray invokes the same questions his former Missouri teammate Michael Sam brought on last year. Is he the product of a great system? Is he too small to make it at the NFL level? Will he be seen as an in-between player from an outside linebacker to a defensive end?

At 6’3″ 245 pounds, these are legitimate questions. Ray showed all year he had speed with 14.5 sacks, which is really his only focus in Gary Pinkel’s pass rush system. So his shuttle and his 40-time really don’t mean anything, and honestly, neither do his position drills, except to show that he has the base of skills we all expected him to have coming in. But for Ray overall, physical attributes of a certain caliber are all that matter when breaking him down.

That means we have to see how Ray does with the bench pressing to measure how strong he truly is, and his vertical is huge. Ray’s length is a big question mark, and his vertical could make up for that. If he can show that he has strength and can provide length, then we have a different story here. But remember, he padded stats by having two sacks against Florida and South Carolina each, who had bad quarterback play, and Kentucky, who had questionable offensive line play.

So we still have very legitimate reasons to be concerned about Ray, and the NFL Combine could do a lot to alleviate those concerns.

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