NFL Combine
2/27/25
5 min read
2025 NFL Combine: Winners, Losers From Thursday's Workouts
The defensive front seven players got to show off their athletic ability on Thursday at the NFL Scouting Combine, with some prospects turning more heads than others.
Defensive linemen and linebackers started the week of on-field workouts. While top prospects like Abdul Carter and Mason Graham weren't among the players participating, that opened up opportunities for other players to show off their skills.
It was a busy first day of drills, so let's take a step back and break down the biggest winners and losers from Thursday's workouts.
Winners
Shemar Stewart, EDGe, Texas A&M 
There have been many debates about Shemar Stewart as a prospect. While the film showed some impressive flashes, his just 4.5 sacks in three seasons led some to argue that he may not be able to be a full-time EDGE at the next level.
At least on Thursday, Stewart silenced a lot of those critics.
Stewart dropped significant weight ahead of the combine, from a listed 290 pounds at Texas A&M to 267 pounds in Indianapolis. At that size, he put up some alien-like explosiveness testing, posting a 40-inch vertical and an absurd 10-foot-11 broad jump.
Shemar Stewart.... 10'11" broad jump. At his size??? pic.twitter.com/AdBJpoGKqn
— Lance Zierlein (@LanceZierlein) February 27, 2025
For reference, Myles Garrett had a similar size profile coming out of Texas A&M and recorded a 41-inch vertical and 10-foot-8 broad jump.
Stewart also posted an absurd 40-yard dash time of under 4.6 seconds at his size. He checked all of the athletic boxes on Thursday, and has likely established himself as a top-10 pick with his absurd testing numbers.
CJ West, DT, Indiana
Most of the Indiana Hoosiers' bigger draft prospects went back to school for 2025, but CJ West has had a strong pre-draft process to establish himself as a legitimate defensive tackle prospect.
West didn't have the box score production in 2024, but he played a key role in stopping the run and clogging up rushing lanes in the middle of Indiana's defense. At 6-foot-1 and 316 pounds, he has a unique frame for an interior defensive lineman, but he also has legitimate athletic ability.
On top of running the 40-yard dash in under five seconds (4.95), West also posted a very impressive 33-inch vertical for his size. On top of the testing, West also moved well in on-field drills, showing good fluidity and quickness for his size.
It's a loaded defensive line class but for teams wanting to prioritize run-stopping nose tackles, a player like West could climb into Day 2 or early Day 3 after such a solid day.
Jihaad Campbell, LB, Alabama
The flashes on tape from Jihaad Campbell were more than impressive, but scouts were just waiting to see how that athleticism showed up in Indianapolis.
Fortunately, Campbell checked those boxes in the drills that he participated in. Coming in at nearly 6-foot-3 and 235 pounds, he posted an unofficial 40-yard dash time of 4.52 seconds, along with a 10-foot-7 broad jump.
Fans will get a more complete picture of Campbell's athletic ability after his Pro Day, but the initial results from Thursday showed that he should have no problem transferring his athleticism to the NFL.
Losers
Joshua Farmer, DT, Florida State
The Senior Bowl helped Joshua Farmer get on the radar of some media members, who were hoping to see a strong performance from the Florida State prospect.
Unfortunately, that didn't go as planned. The 305-pound prospect ran the 40-yard dash in 5.11 seconds while posting a vertical jump of just 29 inches. It wasn't all bad for Farmer, as he posted a solid 9-foot-4 broad jump.
Still, it's a loaded defensive tackle class, and Farmer needed to test well in order to keep his pre-draft momentum going. Instead, his early Relative Athletic Score came in at just 6.98, which will make it so much harder for him to stand out in this year's class.
Deone Walker, DT, Kentucky
There was a time earlier in the pre-draft process when Deone Walker was considered a first-round pick, but that feels like it was ages ago at this point.
One of the things that was supposed to help Walker stand out was his athletic ability relative to his size. He's a unique prospect coming in at 6-foot-7 and 341 pounds, and his college tape flashed some impressive reps for that build.
Unfortunately, the athletic testing was underwhelming for Walker. He didn't run in the 40-yard dash and finished the day with some of the lowest results in the vertical jump (25 inches) and broad jump (104 inches).
Those limited explosive numbers are a concern for a player who has steadily fallen down draft boards in recent months.
Jay Higgins, LB, Iowa
Jay Higgins earned a reputation as one of the best coverage linebackers on film in this draft class. However, as a smaller linebacker, he was someone who needed to have a good testing day but just wasn't able to put up the numbers needed to impress scouts in attendance.
Higgins weighed in at just 224 pounds at the combine, making him one of the lightest players at the position in Indianapolis. He also tested near the bottom of the group in most drills, including the shortest broad jump by a wide margin, with his 9-foot-2 result being a full five inches shorter than the next lowest.
The other drills weren't much better. Higgins' 33-inch broad jump was the third worst among linebackers, and his 40-yard dash unofficial time of 4.82 seconds was the slowest of the group.
It's not the kind of day Higgins was hoping for as someone who had bigger questions about his size and play strength. With athletic testing like this, there's a chance he could fall into the middle of Day 3 of this year's draft.
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