Guess who’s coming to dinner; Part III … With the pro day schedule winding up, the draft focus such as it is, shifts more to the ongoing private workouts and on-site visits for various prospects. And while there is hardly a one-to-one correlation between a team checking out a player and actually selecting him, the fact that multiple teams picking in the same area of the draft are hosting the same player can give some clues as to where that player is ranked. For example, Ohio State safety Malik Hooker has visits scheduled with Cleveland, San Francisco, Chicago, Jacksonville and the Jets which suggest he’s very much in the top 5 discussion despite not being able to work out because of a shoulder injury. Meanwhile, Alabama TE O.J. Howard has multiple visits with teams with top 10 picks including Tennessee at #5, Carolina at #8 and Cincinnati at #9. Its also interesting that Howard’s Tide teammate OT Cam Robinson has visits with Jacksonville, San Francisco, Cincinnati and Denver. Robinson was once thought of as being a top 5-10 prospect for the upcoming draft and the first three of those teams have top ten picks; however, its also possible that because Robinson’s grade has reportedly slipped significantly of late that those teams are actually looking him as a potential second round pick. On the other hand, you have a player like Alabama’s Reuben Foster who has had visits with Jacksonville, Arizona and Kansas City who are all over the draft board with the Jags picking very early, the Cardinals in the middle of the opening round, while the Chiefs have a later opening round selection. All that reflects that teams just aren’t sure about Foster, a talented player, but who is somewhat smaller than expected and got sent home from the combine after getting into a verbal altercation with some medical personnel. In fact, it appears at times as if Jacksonville has had just about every round prospect in for a visit; indeed, the Jags have had this year’s Top 3 RBs – Leonard Fournette, Dalvin Cook and Joe Mixon – in for visits, along with safeties Hooker and Jamal Adams and LB Foster. For good measure, the Jags have also reportedly worked out QB Deshaun Watson. Meanwhile, Cleveland has also worked out or visited with the top 3 RBs, as well as the top 3 WRs – John Ross, Corey Davis and Mike Williams – presumably not for the #1 pick overall, but the 12th. Also Dallas didn’t probably didn’t mean to give anything away with the players they are having in, but there was a report that 17 of the 18 players the Cowboys had had in for visits were defensive players including 9 corners and 5 DEs.
