Pro Football Weekly and Riddell present ...
2002 NFL draft

Scout talk

Peppers, Stallworth impress NFL personnel at workouts

By Nolan Nawrocki, Associate editor of special projects
Posted March 26, 2002 and updated March 27, 2002

• North Carolina DE Julius Peppers was timed between 4.69 and 4.77 seconds in the 40-yard dash in his two sprints on the Tar Heels’ campus — excellent times for a 285-pound defensive lineman. The workout was attended by a large contingent of Carolina Panthers officials, who are believed to be eyeing Peppers with their second overall selection in the draft.

• Scouts continue to rave about WR Donté Stallworth after he posted a blurring 4.25 40. He jumped and caught the ball very well at his individual workout. Tennessee DL Albert Haynesworth remains high on the list of scouts for his potential upside despite benching 225 pounds only 17 times, the same number as Stallworth. Haynesworth appeared pudgy and out of shape at the NFL Scouting Combine, where neither he nor teammate DT John Henderson worked out, but both prospects ran well at their individual workouts. Haynesworth was clocked in the 40 in the low 4.9s while Henderson, who is a much more developed physical specimen, ran around 5-flat. Tennessee OG Fred Weary had a strong individual workout as well, withstanding the pulling and tugging of pro OL coaches and demonstrating great balance.

• Mississippi State S Edward "Pig" Prather did not run as fast as scouts had expected at MSU’s individual workouts, showing that he may have a lost of step after suffering an anterior cruciate ligament injury his junior season. There is some concern that the unorthodox defense employed by MSU has not allowed Prather to develop solid coverage skills. The defense is believed to lack discipline and could also hurt the status of DT Dorsett Davis, who had some of his best performances as a junior. Davis has shown flashes of dominance and is very, very athletic for a big man, but he tends to underachieve if a coach is not in his face, pushing him to excel.

• Expect Alabama-Birmingham to have a lot of visitors on Friday at the school’s pro timing day, which was postponed a week. DE Bryan Thomas has been on the upswing since he posted 4.51 and 4.54 40-times at the NFL Scouting Combine at 266 pounds. Some scouts question Thomas’ ability to play defensive end and think he might be more suited to play linebacker, where he would be ideal for the 3-4 defense employed by the Steelers. With the Falcons and Texans expected to change to a 3-4 front, don’t be surprised if Thomas lands in Atlanta or Houston. Thomas’ counterpart, DT Eddie Freeman, is also creating quite a buzz. He played around 285 pounds during the season but bulked up to 310 at the Scouting Combine. While he put on 25 pounds, he still ran the best time of any tackle at the Combine, being timed as low as the mid-4.8s by some scouts. He also held his ground against strong competition at the Senior Bowl.

To March 15 "Scout talk"

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