Combine standouts, rising players

Austin among most impressive; Washington leads players moving up

Updated: February 28, 2013, 1:23 PM ET
By Todd McShay and Mel Kiper Jr.

With the 2013 NFL combine in the books, we checked in with draft experts Todd McShay and Mel Kiper to see which prospects stood out in Indy. Here's a look at their five most notable standouts and five players who might soon be climbing up draft boards around the NFL based on outstanding combine performances.

Todd McShay

Tavon Austin, WR, West Virginia

Coming into the combine, the only negative was that Austin lacked prototypical size. He's one of the quickest football players I've ever studied, and with the 4.38 40-yard dash he ran, which was the second-fastest of all WRs, Austin confirmed what we had seen on tape. Tennessee's Cordarrelle Patterson may be the most explosive athlete at receiver, but Austin could push him to be the first WR drafted. Even if he isn't, Austin has locked down a spot in the first round, and possibly the top 25.


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Todd McShay

Scouts Inc.
  • ESPN College Football and NFL Draft Analyst
  • Joined ESPN in 2006
  • Played quarterback in high school and was a backup QB for the University of Richmond.

Mel Kiper Jr.

Football analyst
  • ESPN NFL Draft analyst since 1984
  • Contributes to SportsCenter and ESPN Radio
  • Writes weekly for ESPN Insider

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