Being invited to the NFL Combine is a golden opportunity for collegiate football players looking to make it to the NFL. After playing American football in high school and college, the final hurdle to showcase skills, talent, and personality for the players is the NFL Combine.
The NFL Combine takes place every year after the Super Bowl comes to an end. This is nearly a week-long event taking place toward the end of February and the beginning of March. The NFL Combine is held at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis, Indiana.
At the Combine, players from all positions that are invited take part in various tests and drills as well as interviews and interactions with scouts, coaches, general managers, and team owners. Each position group has physical drills that they take part in and every individual is graded as per his performance in each drill and ranked accordingly.
NFL Combine Grades
The NFL Combine grades range from 5.50 to 8.0. However, this is the new NFL Draft grades as the grades prior to 2014 were on a different grading system. The below table explains the current NFL Draft grades systems (from 2014 onwards):
| Grade | Description |
| No grade | Grade not yet available |
| 5.50-5.59 | Priority undrafted free agent |
| 5.60-5.69 | Candidate for the bottom of the roster or practice squad |
| 5.80-5.99 | Average backup or special-teamer |
| 6.0-6.09 | Traits or talent to be an above-average backup |
| 6.10-6.19 | Good backup with the potential to develop into a starter |
| 6.20-6.29 | Will eventually be an average starter |
| 6.30-6.39 | Will eventually be a plus starter |
| 6.40-6.49 | Will become a good starter within two years |
| 6.5-6.6 | Boom-or-bust potential |
| 6.7-6.9 | Year 1 starter |
| 7.0-7.1 | Pro Bowl talent |
| 7.3-7.5 | Perennial All-Pro |
| 8.0 | The perfect prospect |
What are the good NFL Combine Grades?
As per the current NFL Draft grades system, a candidate with a score of 8.0 at the NFL Combine is the perfect prospect to have. Needless to say, that score is nearly attainable and no player has ever produced a result to receive it.
Judging talent at the NFL Combine is not an easy task. While it may feel that the top prospects should all be considered as Pro Bowl talent or more in the future, it is very difficult to give even the best-performing players a grade of 7.0 or more at the Combine.
Most of the top prospects therefore fall between the grades of 6.0 and 6.7 which means they range from having ‘Traits or talent to be an above-average backup’ to ‘Year 1 starter’. Getting a grade of 6.7 or higher is also not too common, and thus, players who receive grades of 6.3 or above are generally considered as having received good NFL Combine grades.
FAQs
A. Trent Williams, the offensive tackle is considered to have had the best NFL Combine to date since his performance in 2010.
A. The NFL Combine can never predict the exact success a player will have or won't have. All players go through their own journeys once they enter the professional league, and from there, success is all about their own hard work.
A. The fastest quarterback at the NFL Combine to date is Michael Vick who ran his 40-yard dash in 4.33 seconds.
A. At the end of the NFL Combine, each player receives a final grade and a ceiling grade. The final grade denotes where the player stands before his first game in the NFL. The ceiling grade gives an indication of how much he is likely to develop in the league.
