Observations on some of what was seen and heard on the NFL Network during Day One of the NFL Scouting Combine in Indianapolis:
THE NEXT TOM BRADY: LSU quarterback Joe Burrow didn't work out for the scouts but still managed to draw rave reviews.
The praise thrown Burrow's way included this from NFL Network analyst Daniel Jeremiah:
"When you watch these guys side by side, Tom Brady, mechanically, watch what you see from Brady and tell me this does not look identically the same from Joe Burrow. It is eerie."
Jeremiah passed along a similar observation from former Patriots running back Kevin Faulk, now the director of player development at LSU: "I'm telling you, this is Tom Brady. This kid reminds me so much of Tom Brady."
EVOLUTION OF THE QB: Saints head coach Sean Payton compared what we're seeing now from the quarterback position with what has always been sought from the quarterback position: "Ultimately, their job is to score points. How does that happen? I think we've always had value on agility and mobility. Listening to (former 49ers head coach) Bill Walsh talk about the West Coast offense, he put a premium on the quarterback's ability to move.
"Now, whether he was going to be someone that could run for a lot of yards, that's a different story. But we play in an imperfect game. The pass rush is difficult. When things become a little murky in the pocket, to have somebody that can work his way out of problems and make good things happen is certainly a plus."
PLENTY TO CHOOSE FROM: The depth at the wide receiver position was a much-discussed subject.
NFL Network analyst Steve Smith: "I think this is a really good class. You have guys that you are questioning, how fast are they gonna run? And they're doing really well."
NFL Network analyst Michael Irvin: "I like the variety out here, you see a little bit of everything. You see some big guys, some guys who do great things with the ball in their hands and some great route runners."
Redskins head coach Ron Rivera: "There's about 27 guys who will probably go in the first three rounds, that's how deep this wide receiver class is. Every time you put the tape on you feel, 'Wait a minute, didn't I just watch this guy?' They all run and play fast."
Jeremiah has five wide receivers ranked in his Top 20 players available.
"It's a ridiculous group," he said. "There's no Calvin Johnson in this group or Julio Jones but it is deep and it is talented."
NEVER QUIT ON A PLAY: Jeremiah raved about Cincinnati tight end Josiah Deguara's competitiveness.
"The best hustle play I've seen from any player in this draft was this kid against UCLA after an interception running about 70 yards downfield to make a tackle," Jeremiah reported.
NICKNAME FAIL: Jeremiah tried to apply a dated reference to Dayton tight end Adam Trautman but it apparently didn't stick.
"I started calling him 'The Colonel' but there apparently aren't as many 'Rambo' fans out there as I had hoped for," he said. "Nobody got it."
WINNING IS EVERYTHING: Titans head coach Mike Vrabel on how to identify a great NFL team: "There's only one great team. There's the team that won the championship and there's everybody else."
