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Day 2 NFL Combine Takeaways
Todd McShay
February 28, 2025
Welcome back to The McShay Report! Here are my NFL combine takeaways from Thursday, February 27. Please make sure to check out The McShay Show on Spotify and YouTube. We’ll be back Friday, livestreaming on YouTube at 8 p.m. ET.
Here are four thoughts from my second day at the combine:
Abdul Carter’s Injury Update: The potential no. 1 pick did not work out.
Other Edge Performers: Shemar Stewart stole the show.
An NFL Comp For Jalon Walker: What NFL teams want to see from the Georgia star.
Interior Defensive Linemen and Linebacker Standouts: Testing results that stood out most to me.
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Abdul Carter’s Absence and Injury Update
The biggest news of the day came early when Adam Schefter reported that Abdul Carter had a stress reaction in his right foot that prevented him from working out at the combine. The Penn State edge rusher won’t have surgery and plans to work out at his pro day on March 28.
I don’t care what Carter does at his pro day in terms of his measurables. I just want him to show enough to put away any speculation or skepticism that might build. As for what it means for the no. 1 pick, I keep hearing that Tennessee is open for business. They know they’re more than a quarterback away, and I believe those talks are starting to ramp up. One team to keep an eye on is the Giants: Will they try to move ahead of Cleveland to make sure they get the quarterback of their choice at no. 1? And what would the price be?
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Shemar Stewart Is a Classic Case Study in Traits Vs. Production
As for the workouts, Carter’s absence did little to dampen the anticipation around Thursday’s defensive linemen. The edge group was a lot more impressive and lived up to my expectations compared to the interior defensive line group. For me, the fireworks began with the vertical jumps. Arkansas’s Landon Jackson and Texas A&M’s Shemar Stewart delivered two of the highest weight-adjusted verticals recorded since 2003.
Stewart remains one of the most fascinating prospects in this year’s class. His sack production was underwhelming, but his traits are undeniable. Even if he doesn’t always get to the quarterback, his tape shows his ability to generate power from the ground up. That’s a critical component in knocking NFL offensive linemen back on their heels without needing a runway to do so. The next step for Stewart is developing a plan with his hands to exploit linemen when he has them off-balance to get home more consistently as a pass rusher. He has the tools and I see his effort on tape (watch his plays from Texas A&M’s game vs. Missouri, specifically plays 40-55 when the Aggies have a huge lead).
NFL evaluators will have to think about what they might be able to unlock if they can get him into their building. Stewart’s analogue is Travon Walker, the no. 1 pick in 2022 out of Georgia. They have very similar measurables, but I think Stewart has better torso flexibility to work through contact and even better lower-body explosion.
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James Pearce Jr. and Jalon Walker Were Other Edge Standouts
Another edge rusher who stood out was Tennessee’s James Pearce Jr., who ran a 4.47 40, which is rare for someone at his position. I believe he’s the second-most complete/NFL-ready pass rusher in this class. He’s not the biggest player—he can probably add bulk to his linear frame, and he has shorter arms than the ideal. But the speed I see on tape was confirmed with that 40 time. Also important is his 10-yard split time of 1.56 seconds (well below the 1.60 benchmark that NFL teams covet and the fastest time of all RDGEs). Those numbers confirm the first-step explosiveness that great speed rushers typically possess. He has a plan to get to the quarterback, and he has the explosive burst to do so.
Jalon Walker was another interesting workout from Thursday. The biggest question with Walker is whether he projects as an edge or an off-ball linebacker. To me, the most successful comp for him in the NFL is Haason Reddick. I think Walker has a chance with how the NFL game has changed. Teams are in nickel and dime personnel more than they’re in base, and with the amount of spread formations and versatile options in the passing game that defenses have to match, you need guys on the field that can be multiple.
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Standout Interior Defensive Linemen and Linebackers
None of my top three interior defensive linemen worked out: Mason Graham, Kenneth Grant, and Walter Nolen didn’t participate in any drills. All in all, it was an underwhelming showing from what I consider to be the deepest talent group at DT in the NFL since 1992. In fact, only 19 of the 40 players in attendance ran the 40.
Oregon’s Derrick Harmon, my fourth-ranked IDL, had mixed results. He was one of seven players at his position to run a sub-five-second 40. That alone constitutes a good day. But I don’t think he looked as explosive and twitchy as some other interior defensive linemen during position drills, and he didn’t participate in the vertical.
As with the edge rushers, however, high-level absences created opportunities for other players in this incredibly deep group. Of the players in my top 100, Toledo’s Darius Alexander had the best all-around workout. He listed at 6037 and 305 pounds with 34-inch arms, 10-inch hands, and a 4.95 40. He showed really good dip and flexibility in his workouts and turned corners well in the bag drills.
Players from smaller schools have more to prove in these workout settings. A good example from last season was Alexander’s former college teammate Quinyon Mitchell, who shined in the predraft process. Alexander, like Mitchell, has delivered, dominating the Senior Bowl and testing well at the combine. I truly believe he’ll be a top-50 pick.
Two other players whose workouts stood out:
Tyrion Ingram-Dawkins, Georgia: He had the highest vertical jump at 36 inches and the second-fastest 10-yard split at 16.8 mph.
Jared Harrison-Hunte, SMU: He finished third in the 10-yard split at 16.6 mph, had a 32-inch vertical, and was one of three guys at his position to run a sub-4.9 40.
As for the linebackers, my top two are Alabama’s Jihaad Campbell and UCLA’s Carson Schwesinger. I expected them to do more in terms of testing—Campbell ran the 40 well but didn’t jump the vertical, while Schwesinger participated in only the vertical. To their credit, they each turned in very strong results. I expect them to be the first two linebackers selected.
