Oregon pass rusher Kayvon Thibodeaux has, by all appearances, helped himself during his time in Indianapolis.
The NFL’s Next Gen Stats service has given Thibodeaux a draft score of 92, fueled by his ability to bench press 225 pounds 27 times (the longer the arms, the more strength that takes) and running the 40-yard dash in 4.59 seconds.
Thibodeaux’s top competition at the top of the draft is Michigan edge rusher Aidan Hutchinson, who has a 95 from Next Gen Stats. Hutchinson ran the 40 in 4.74 seconds, opted not to bench press, and generated an incredibly nimble 4.15-second short shuttle.
Both could end up being great NFL players. For now, the competition is to be drafted as high as possible, even if Thibodeaux demonstrated in a Super Bowl-week appearance on PFT Live a sensitivity to the impact of state income taxes on his take-home pay.