The 2017 NFL Draft Combine kicks off tomorrow as the first players arrive, and will run through Monday, March 6. While on-field workouts don't start until Friday, there are plenty of news and rumors circulating ahead of the start of the combine. Here is all the latest you need to know:
Adidas offering island for 40-yard dash record
Yes, you read that correctly. Adidas has offered various prizes over the last few years for players who posted the fastest 40-yard dash time at the combine. Now, they are promising give a private island to anyone who breaks the 40-yard dash record of 4.24 seconds, which was set by former ECU running back Chris Johnson.
Paradise awaits.
— adidas Football US (@adidasFballUS) February 27, 2017
Break the 40-yard dash record, win your own island.#teamadidas https://t.co/4y4JdHNTY3 pic.twitter.com/jEETRVA2bN
Part of the deal stipulates that they have to sign an endorsement deal with Adidas before the start of the NFL season, and that the company will choose "an island...that has a maximum value of One Million Dollars." Still, though. A private island is a pretty good prize.
Foster in play for No. 2 overall pick
The San Francisco 49ers currently own the No. 2 pick in the draft, and while many are projecting them to draft either a quarterback or Alabama defensive lineman Jonathan Allen, Vic Carucci of the Buffalo News reports that there is significant buzz about the 49ers drafting Alabama linebacker Reuben Foster with the pick:
I doubt the former Alabama star would be available at that point. There's a lot of buzz he could end up going to the San Francisco 49ers with the second overall pick. Multiple draft prognosticators see him as a top-five choice.
Foster is recovering from shoulder surgery, so that's going to prevent him from taking part in drills at next week's NFL Scouting Combine in Indianapolis.
Foster recorded 115 tackles, 13 tackles for loss and five sacks last season.
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49ers willing to trade No. 2 pick
However, the 49ers are also open to trading the No. 2 overall pick in the upcoming NFL Draft, according to Eric Branch and Vic Tafur of the San Francisco Chronicle.
The 49ers presumably would be thrilled if the QB-needy Browns bypassed Texas A&M defensive lineman Myles Garrett at No. 1. There is no consensus on the second-best player in the draft, which could explain why Lynch has made it clear that the 49ers are open for business.
“We could stay pat right there and find a fabulous player, a game-changing player,” [GM John] Lynch said. “It gives us a lot of flexibility to do some other things if we chose to be bold. There are going to be people that covet the pick we have, so there’s going to be some people that want to move up.”
A trade down would help the 49ers address their host of needs, a list that includes wide receiver and inside linebacker.
San Francisco currently owns 10 picks in the 2017 draft, possessing two picks in each of the fourth, fifth and sixth rounds.
New general manager John Lynch has admitted that the 49ers have many positions of need, and are looking to get a multitude of other draft picks in return for that No. 2 selection.
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