March 28, 2018

Combine the final prospect confirmation for Lions brass

Jason Halstead/CFL.ca

The helmets were strapped on and the pads were popping day two of the CFL National Combine. And although events like the 40-yard dash, long jump and bench press can be interesting for awhile, it is the one-on-ones that really keep the GM’s and scouts locked in.

As the BC Lions’ brass prepares to return home and kickstart their draft meetings at the Surrey facility this week, there is a sense of growing anticipation in the air. Entering his third season as the club’s Director of Canadian Scouting, Geroy Simon believed the weekend extravaganza in the Manitoba capital was a productive time of preparation and evaluation.

“It’s good to see these guys live and in person. We’ve been watching film on them since, I want to say, August,” the Canadian Football Hall of Famer said.

“It’s been a lot of spreadsheets and film work. It’s pretty rewarding to not only see them in person but see how much certain prospects have improved over their college season.”

Much of the talk will now centre around what they do with the third overall pick and best utilizing their five remaining selections: 12th, 21st, 38th, 46th and 54th overall.


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As is the case in prior years, there is no shortage of talent on both sides of the line of scrimmage. UBC offensive lineman Dakoda Shepley lived up to the hype this weekend, winning Saturday night’s bench press competition with 27 reps at 225 pounds. Canadian depth up front has always been key and the organization has devoted many of its early picks to the offensive line in recent years, current examples including Charles Vaillancourt and Hunter Steward.

Some observers think Shepley has worked his way into the discussion for first overall and his NFL stock has risen following a recent showing at Eastern Michigan’s pro day. Bo Banner out of Central Michigan and the Calgary Dinos’ Brett Wade were among the defensive line standouts on Sunday. Although no one is tipping their hand on where they might lean with the third pick, Simon insists the options aren’t lacking at any position.

“It’s a good group. The offensive line is probably one of the deeper positions in this year’s draft,” he said.

“There is a lot of guys there who have the potential to be players for a long time. That’s the same for some of the other positions. The talent here is plenty and we will just continue to evaluate things right up until the draft and just keep chipping away at these guys.”

The weekend has not been just about on-field evaluation. GM Ed Hervey and the staff spent portions of Friday evening and Saturday afternoon interviewing 24 of the top prospects in attendance. Given the fact these players attend different programs and majored in different areas of academics allows those running each team to cast a wide net when it comes to their questions and information gathering.

 

“You want to see what kind of guys they are, evaluate their mental toughness and get to know a bit about their backstory,” Simon explained.

“A big part of the equation is finding out their personalities and how they are going to fit into your locker room.”

Since the CFL’s all-time leading receiver settled into his current role, the Lions’ Canadian content has gradually improved from year to year.

With Hervey now in charge, the excitement for the May 3rd CFL Draft is increasing by the day.

“Ed is very knowledgeable and doing his job as well so it’s good to have his input, listen to what he sees and have that that as an asset to our organization,” Simon added.

Mark it down. It should be another exciting step in the re-tooling process.