JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — The NFL Scouting Combine, in a lot of ways, is a dying event. Fewer and fewer athletes are testing in an already uncontrolled environment that isn’t anything like what happens on the football field.
With that in mind, there was still enough testing done at this week’s event for the Jaguars and James Gladstone’s staff to be able to find some standouts. Throughout the week, we will look at some of those standouts at positions of need. Next up: safeties.
Never again miss one major story related to your beloved Jaguars when you sign up for our 100% FREE newsletter that comes straight to your email with the latest news. SIGN UP HERE NOW.
One of the most physically impressive safeties in this year’s crop is Kansas State’s VJ Payne. Payne started over 40 games in college and was a team captain, so he certainly checks quite a few boxes for a Jaguars team that covets these types of leaders. Outside of that, though, he is also a tantalizing talent.
At 6-foot-3 and 206 pounds, Payne has the frame and length to be an impact player at the next level. He tied for the fifth-best 40-yard dash at 4.40 and had the fourth-best 10-yard split at 1.52 seconds. He is a name to watch moving forward.
Standing at 6-foot-2 and 208 pounds, Iowa safety Xavier Nwankpa offers solid size at the position and has some enticing measurables. In a safety class that lacks size to some degree, Nwankpa certainly stands out as a player who looks as close to a prototype as perhaps anyone else in the draft class.
Nwankpa’s 40 time might not have stood out amongst this extremely athletic safety group, but a 4.48 40-yard dash at his size is still an impressive time, and he had the eighth-best broad jump among all safeties. It was a solid day for this Day 3 option.
A true speed demon, Robert Spears-Jennings had a fantastic showing in the 40-yard dash to potentially put his name on the map. The Jaguars could get faster at safety after starting Andrew Wingard and Eric Murray last season, and Spears-Jennings would certainly give the Jaguars a boost.
Spears-Jenning ran a 4.32 40-yard dash, the second-best time amongst safeties in this year’s class. His 1.5110-yard split was also the third-best among safeties, and his broad jump was the seventh-best among this year’s safeties. Spears-Jennings clearly has the traits to be an athletic piece in an NFL secondary, and perhaps the Jaguars are the team to unlock him.
Read more on Sports Illustrated
