The NFL Scouting Combine kicks off on Tuesday at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis. Here is a look back at Falcons' players participating in the combine before entering the NFL.
WR Julio Jones
QB Matt Ryan
CB Desmond Trufant
WR Mohamed Sanu
RB Devonta Freeman
TE Jacob Tamme
S Keanu Neal
LB Philip Wheeler
DE Tyson Jackson
LB Sean Weatherspoon
WR Justin Hardy
P Matt Bosher
RB Tevin Coleman
DE Adrian Clayborn
DT Ra'Shede Hageman
OLB Brooks Reed
LS Josh Harris
FS Dashon Goldson
T Tom Compton
QB Matt Ryan
DE Derrick Shelby
OLB Courtney Upshaw
DT Grady Jarrett
NT Chris Mayes
OLB Vic Beasley, Jr.
G Andy Levitre
TE Austin Hooper
C Alex Mack
S Ricardo Allen
T Jake Matthews
CB Robert Alford
OLB Tyler Starr
TE Levine Toilolo
OLB De'Vondre Campbell
LB Deion Jones
CB Blidi Wreh-Wilson
CB Jalen Collins
DE Martin Ifedi
With the 2017 Scouting Combine in the rearview mirror, it's time to break down how the week-long event impacted draft boards across the league.
Here's a look at five players the Falcons could target who improved their stock in Indianapolis.
DE Solomon Thomas – 6-foot-5, 273 pounds
Thomas didn't make any headlines at a single event, but combined, his performance during a variety of drills was encouraging. His bench press, 20-yard shuttle, 40-yard dash, three-cone, broad jump and vertical jump were all historically above the 80th percentile at defensive line, according to mockdraftable.com. NFL.com's Lance Zierlein said the Stanford Cardinal "combines strength, quickness, and a muscle-car motor to drive him around the field making play after play," and it's easy to see why.
G Forrest Lamp – 6-foot-4, 309 pounds
It's important for offensive linemen to be quick in the Falcons' outside zone blocking scheme, and Lamp may have proved he's agile enough to fit in Atlanta's system. Among OLs, the former Western Kentucky Hilltopper finished among the top 10 in the 40, the 20-yard shuttle and the three-cone. Moreover, his 34 bench press reps and 9'3'' broad jump ranked in the 93rd and 94th percentile at his position, respectively. That combination of strength and speed is tough to find.
LB/DE T.J. Watt – 6-foot-4, 252 pounds
The younger brother of J.J. and Derek Watt, T.J. entered the combine following a productive campaign at Wisconsin, where he earned All-Big Ten honors by recording 11.5 sacks and 15.5 tackles for loss in 2016. He only improved his value last week. His 37'' vertical and 6.79-second three-cone ranked second among linebackers; his 4.13 20-yard shuttle was tied for first at his position. Overall, his combine stats were eerily similar to Clay Matthews'.
TE Evan Ingram – 6-foot-3, 234 pounds
If your name isn't O.J. Howard or David Njoku, it's difficult to stand out in this year's crop of tight ends. But that's exactly what Evan Ingram did at Lucas Oil Stadium. The Ole Miss product ran a scorching 4.42-second 40 and leaped 10'5'' in the broad jump, both above the 90th percentile for his position. His three-cone performance was impressive, too: By finishing in 6.92 seconds, he ranked second among tight ends in 2017, behind only Howard.
DE Jordan Willis – 6-foot-4, 255 pounds
The Big 12 Defensive Player of the Year out of Kansas State turned heads at the combine with his 4.53 40-yard dash, which was more than a tenth of a second better than Myles Garrett's time (4.64). Willis' 10-yard split was impressive, too, proving he has the kind of explosiveness NFL teams want to see from their pass rushers. He solidified his spot as one of the quickest linemen with the fastest three-cone (6.85 seconds) and third-best 20-yard shuttle (4.28 seconds) at his position. His 10'5'' broad jump is also notable, as it shows he has impressive lower-body strength.
