NFLN's Daniel Jeremiah identifies players with most to gain at 2020 NFL Combine

[Miles]

As hundreds of NFL prospects prepare to head to Indianapolis for the 2020 NFL Combine, offensive lineman Tristan Wirfs may have the most to gain.


Daniel Jeremiah, an NFL Draft analyst for NFL Network, identified Wirfs on Friday as the non-quarterback first-round prospect who could do the most for his draft stock.


"He's somebody that I think [has] got a chance to be an All-Pro guard," Jeremiah said. "I know he's played tackle — he's played on the right, he's played on the left, and he's a good tackle. I think he can play tackle in the NFL. I just think he's got a chance to be an elite guard. He's got some issues oversetting — that can be cleaned up a little bit. I just thought he'd be better if he had neighbors on each side. But in terms of having something to gain, if he goes out there and puts on an athletic show, which I've heard there's a chance he does, then he could kind of put that to bed and say, 'Look, I am a tackle. I'm not sliding inside. That's what I am.' So I think he's got a chance to help himself there."


Wirfs, a 6-foot-5, 322-pound junior from Iowa, was a first-team All-American in 2019 and was named the best offensive lineman in the Big Ten.


He appeared in 35 of the Hawkeyes' 39 games over the last three seasons and played in every game in 2019.


Jeremiah currently lists Wirfs as the 13th-best prospect in the draft and projected the Cardinals would select him with the eighth-overall pick.


LSU's K'Lavon Chaisson, Jeremiah's second-rated edge player, could also improve his stock in Indianapolis. Jeremiah sent Chaisson to the Jets at No. 11 in a late-January mock draft.


"He is an explosive edge rusher for them and got better as the season went along," Jeremiah said. "He tore his ACL in '18 and then as you watched him through the season, you started to see really him pick it up and get better. I've heard he played in the high 230[-pound range], I've heard he could be in the low 250s now. So how big he is could go a long way in helping him."


And while size could help Chaisson, speed will be a bigger benefit to a number of cornerbacks.


"When you get some guys that maybe have a little bit of a question mark there — how fast are they going to run? — I think you've got a chance to really help yourself," Jeremiah said. "Kristian Fulton from LSU would be the prime example. Really solid, really good football player. [There are] just concerns about his deep speed, so what does he run?"


Fulton is Jeremiah's 38th-ranked prospect in the class and the fifth-ranked cornerback.


Jeremiah also noted that "a long list" of players could improve their stock based on medical evaluations at the Combine.