The 2026 NFL Scouting Combine concluded in Indianapolis, where several draft prospects delivered notable performances during on-field workouts. These workouts are only one part of how teams assess players for the upcoming draft, but they provide important insight into each prospect’s athletic abilities.
Among the offensive players, Deion Burks from Oklahoma stood out with a 40-yard dash time of 4.3 seconds, ranking third among wide receivers. He also posted the second-best 10-second split at his position and led all receivers in both the vertical jump (42.5 inches) and bench press (26 reps). Jeff Caldwell of Cincinnati recorded a top 10-second split of 1.48 seconds and had strong results in the vertical and broad jumps while measuring in at an impressive 6 feet, 5 inches and 216 pounds.
Georgia’s Monroe Freeling measured at 6 feet, 7 inches and weighed 315 pounds, posting a fast time among linemen in the 40-yard dash (4.93 seconds) and placing highly in other drills. Quarterback Taylen Green from Arkansas ran a record-setting 4.36-second forty and set marks that were best for his position since 2003.
Bryce Lance from North Dakota State ran a solid forty at 4.34 seconds and performed well in other agility drills, showing he could compete beyond FCS competition. Tight end Kenyon Sadiq from Oregon recorded a tight end combine record with his speed and finished high among his peers in multiple categories.
Arkansas running back Mike Washington Jr., who measured at over six feet tall and weighing over 220 pounds, ran the fastest forty among running backs with a time of 4.33 seconds.
On defense, Texas Tech’s David Bailey showed why he is considered one of the top prospects by recording fast times among edge rushers along with an explosive broad jump performance. Dani Dennis-Sutton from Penn State impressed with leading marks in both broad jump and three-cone drill while maintaining solid times elsewhere.
Malachi Lawrence from UCF continued to boost his profile with fast times as a defensive end as well as strong leaping ability shown through vertical and broad jumps.
Linebacker Jacob Rodriguez (Texas Tech) displayed agility that complements his playing style by leading linebackers in certain quickness drills despite not topping every category for speed or explosiveness.
Ohio State’s Sonny Styles led all linebackers at this year’s combine in three key areas: forty-yard dash (4.46 seconds), vertical jump (43.5 inches), and broad jump (11 feet, two inches). His performance earned him one of the highest unofficial relative athletic scores for off-ball linebackers since tracking began more than two decades ago.
Dillon Thieneman of Oregon ranked near the top among safeties across several drills including speed, jumping ability, and strength exercises such as bench press repetitions.
The Atlanta Falcons are based in Atlanta, Georgia (official website) where they compete within the NFL’s NFC South division (official website). The franchise began play as an expansion team in 1965 (official website), reached Super Bowls twice—in both 1998 and again nearly two decades later (official website).
