The running backs have been the talk of the Combine ever since Darren McFadden blew everyone (other than East Carolina's Chris Johnson) away with his 4.33-second 40-yard dash over the weekend, and for good reason. This year's class of rushers is strong and fast. They weren't the only winners on draft-preview weekend, though.

Stock up

1) Dustin Keller, TE, Purdue
The title of biggest winner at the Combine is up to anyone's interpretation, and many people will come away with different opinions. It's pretty tough to argue against Keller's rise, though. The tight end class had previously been identified by players such as USC's Fred Davis, Notre Dame's John Carlson and Texas A&M's Martellus Bennett, but it was Keller who made the most of the trip to Indianapolis . The Boilermaker topped his position in the 40-yard dash (4.55), vertical jump (38 inches, a mere half-inch less than the leading wide receiver and two inches better than the next tight end), broad jump (10 feet, 11 inches; eight inches farther than the next guy) and 20-yard shuttle (4.14). He also added a second-place finish in the three-cone drill. With Carlson running a slow 4.9 after a disappointing senior season and Fred Davis skipping the 40 and performing only OK in receiving drills, Keller could make a run at the No. 1 tight end ranking come April.

2) Vernon Gholston , DE /LB, Ohio State
Gholston already looked like a candidate for the top 10, but he wind up in the top five or even factoring into the top overall selection. After an excellent junior season that ended with 14 sacks, including one against Michigan's Jake Long, Gholston turned in the fourth-best 40 time among defensive linemen (4.67), tied for the most bench-press reps of any player (37, with Long), led lineman and all but one linebacker in vertical jump (35.5 inches) and led his position in the broad jump (10 feet, 5 inches). Basically, a guy already known for getting off the line quickly showed that he is an all-around dominantly explosive athlete.

3) Rashard Mendenhall, RB, Illinois
Sure, McFadden generated more chatter with his 40-yard dash, but at best he just helped to solidify himself as the top running back, which most people already considered him. Mendenhall, however, ranked sixth with a 4.45-second 40 at 210 pounds and reportedly showed good hands in receiving drills. More important than any particular numbers, though, is the fact that he grabbed scouts' attention and has stirred talk that he could be one of seven to 10 elite prospects in this draft.

4) Jonathan Stewart, RB, Oregon
I don't really feel right using up another spot with a running back, but it also wouldn't be fair to include Mendenhall and not Stewart. The former seems to be getting more pub immediately following the Combine, but Stewart seemed to perform at least as well. He ran an only slightly slower 4.48-second 40 despite weighing in at 235 pounds, turned out the second-most reps on the bench among running backs (28; two players tied for first with 30) and ranked second at the position in the vertical jump (36.5 inches). Like Gholston, Stewart came in as an intriguing on-field performer and proved his explosive ability in multiple ways.

5) Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie, DB, Tennessee State
By the time this draft actually arrives, Antonio's younger cousin might just be the first defensive back off the board. DRC followed up a strong Senior Bowl performance by ranking third among defensive backs in the 40 (4.33) and displaying tremendous footwork in positional drills. Add fabulous size – 6-foot-2, 183 pounds, with room to add weight if he moves to safety – dominating college numbers in pass coverage (albeit in Division I-AA) and positional versatility, and it's just about impossible not to get excited about his prospects. All I watched him do was run on Tuesday, and I couldn't help but tell my wife that he'll be a fast riser. She was extremely interested.


Stock down

1) Ali Highsmith, OLB, LSU
Highsmith is supposed to be a speed player, one who has always been on the light side at his position. After bulking up to 230 pounds, however, he failed to break the top 10 at his position in the 40-yard dash. That is certainly just one measure, and probably a very small one, really, when you're talking about a linebacker. If speed is a guy's calling card, though, you'd like to see it on display.

2) Calais Campbell , DE , Miami
I haven't heard much about him in the wake of Monday's workouts, but that alone is bad news for the once highly-touted pass rusher. Campbell entered the draft despite a disappointing junior season and then ran an unspectacular 40-yard dash after benching 225 pounds just 16 times. Now, a 40 time ultimately means little in actually playing defensive line, and a ridiculously tall guy (6-foot-8) with long arms is already at a disadvantage in the bench press, but Campbell didn't do much to help himself.

3) Mario Manningham, WR, Michigan
This looks like a muddled class of wide receivers, one in which Manningham initially seemed like at least a top three prospect. He was a decent-sized receiver with down-field potential, at least until he disappointed with his 40 time. Of course, two dashes in tights in Indianapolis in February won’t undo three years of production with the Wolverines, but with his position so tightly packed, every detail becomes magnified. Players such as Florida ’s Andre Caldwell, whose college career was impeded by injuries, and Michigan State ’s Devin Thomas, who is likely the fastest-rising receiver, might have already run by Manningham.

4) Andre’ Woodson, QB, Kentucky
He didn’t work out at all in Indy, so you can’t really say that the Wildcat passer had a bad Combine, but he needed to do something to stop his fall. There were already questions about his mechanics and accuracy, issues that were only exacerbated by an unspectacular Senior Bowl week. With Matt Ryan skipping workouts, Brian Brohm failing to wow anyone and seemingly no passer other than Joe Flacco doing anything to impress, this would have been the perfect stage for him to put on his one-man show I’m Really an Early Second-Rounder. I know it’s mere misfortune that he happened to be hurt and that it likely wouldn’t help his stock to work out at less than 100 percent, but he needs to reverse his momentum as soon as possible.

5) De’Cody Fagg, WR, Florida State
Talk about unfair. The Seminole wideout already looked like a second-day pick. Now a serious-looking knee injury suffered during his workout seems likely to keep him out of the draft. Some reports say that it might mark the end of his playing career. I don’t mention him here to make light of the injury at all. His plight at the same event where so many quibble over hundredths of a second in 40-yard dashes just shows how much a player can really lose in an instant. Let’s hope he can recover and return to the field.


Covering the field

-- I think that far too much has been made of Glenn Dorsey’s situation, especially anyone ridiculously comparing it to Wolverine Alan Branch’s supposed fall from top 10 pick to second-rounder. Branch was a big dude who always roused questions about his work ethic and desire. It was only the “experts” who started him in the draft’s top five. Dorsey was a dominant force at LSU, and, as he says, how can you consider him an injury risk when he didn’t miss a college game? Sedrick Ellis might well get drafted ahead of Dorsey, but any team that passes on the Tiger because of worries about his leg (unless they are confirmed by a doctor) will be making a big mistake.

-- Two workout numbers that I haven’t heard or seen anyone mention but that caught my eye were these: 4.88 and 4.98. Those were the 40 times of Maryland DT Dre Moore and Texas A&M DT Joseph “Red” Bryant, respectively. Bryant was one of the most dominating run stoppers in all of college football throughout his career, and I’m surprised he has yet to garner any public first-round consideration. Moore is a player whose production hasn’t seemed to match his ample talent but who could rise by draft weekend. I think offensive line is the only spot where sprint speed means less than defensive tackle, but those times give a little glimpse of what kinds of athletes these mammoths are.

-- I think that you have to be some kind of hard-core scout or confused to find much on which to alter your offensive-line grades at the Combine. I do know, however, that NFL Network’s Mike Mayock apparently thinks that Arizona State C Mike Pollak might have positioned himself as a first-round candidate.

-- San Diego QB Josh Johnson has been building a little diamond-in-the-rough buzz, but it doesn’t sound like he impressed too much with his passing over the weekend. His 4.4 time in the 40, on the other hand, didn’t hurt anything.

-- Tom Zbikowski looked good in the sense that his 40 time was a solid 4.52, he finished near the top of the defensive backs in the bench press and he appeared fluid in drills. He looked terrible if you’re a hair scout, though. That was even bad for a Mohawk.

-- Agent Drew Rosenhaus told reporters that his injured client, Wisconsin CB Jack Ikegwuonu, is progressing tremendously and might be back in time for camp. Ikegwuonu later told the same crew that although his recovery from two ligament tears in his right knee is going well, he hopes to be back by September or October. Count on him missing his rookie season, like Willis McGahee did a few years ago.

-- Appalachian State WR Dexter Jackson has been climbing draft boards throughout the post-season, and his 4.37 over the weekend only helped his cause. Others I haven’t already mentioned who got a boost from their dashes were Cal WR DeSean Jackson, UConn CB Tyvon Branch, Colorado CB Terence Wheatley, Tulane RB Matt Forte and Rutgers RB Ray Rice. Those last three players could become mid-round steals.


Matt Schauf is an associate editor and senior NFL writer for the Sports Buff Fantasy Network and a contributing writer for Draft Stock