Jarvis Jones Underwhelms At Pro Day
By Luke Sims
Mar 21, 2013; Athens, GA, USA; Georgia Bulldogs linebacker Jarvis Jones participates in drills during Georgia pro day at the University of Georgia. Mandatory Credit: Dale Zanine-USA TODAY Sports
Georgia’s Pro Day was Thursday and highlighted a number of potential impact players heading to the 2013 NFL Draft. Among them was OLB/DE Jarvis Jones, the controversial potential top-10 pick with a spinal stenosis diagnosis that may keep teams away. Well, now teams have more reason to steer clear of Jones.
Players generally do better at their Pro Day than they do at the NFL Scouting Combine. A good Pro Day can be a saving grace for players on the bubble between rounds. It was especially important for Jones do to well at Georgia’s Pro Day because he didn’t work out at the combine. Unfortunately, he underperformed.
Jones ran a 4.92 40-yard dash on Thursday. For an outside linebacker, that is quite slow. It puts Jones in the lower tier of combine participants. A slow 40-yard dash time isn’t a death knell for players though, especially if they are much faster in “game speed” or are better at positioning and awareness. Jones also performed poorly in the broad jump (9’3″).
Jones did post a decent 20 reps in the bench press, but it wasn’t enough to overshadow his less impressive performances.
I like Jones a lot and would be thrilled to see him slip to the second round in the NFL Draft. If the Jags are still impressed by his abilities, they could take a shot at him then. For now, it looks like Jones may have slide all the way out of the first and won’t be a potential first rounder for the Jacksonville Jaguars at #2 overall. Jones did perform well during his linebacker drills and is known to be more of an effort linebacker than a speed rusher. He may not be a perfect fit for a lot of schemes but could still surprise and has a lot of raw talent.
– Luke N. Sims
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