Lance Zierlein's eval of Oregon tight end Kenyon Sadiq — Zierlein compared him to Cardinals 2022 second-round TE and 2025 First-Team All-Pro Trey McBride — is cram-full with awesome one-liners.
Here are a few of our favorites from Zierlein's writeup on NFL.com: Sadiq's route tree will be full of branches … Built like a bodyguard … Vandalizes defensive seams with impunity against man coverage.
NFL Network draft analyst Daniel Jeremiah recently posted on X that Sadiq is the "player most built to dominate the combine." College football media personality George Wrighster III declared Sadiq is "one of the best combinations of blocking, route running, speed, and catching we have seen in a tight end, ever."
Go ahead, take two seconds to digest all the hype.
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OK, so it seems the consensus on Sadiq, who scored eight TDs for the Ducks in 2025, is he's an elite prospect, and he may cement himself in the first-round conversation for April's annual event if he's not there yet. (Note: We've noticed Sadiq pop up in some mock drafts as a target for the Vikings at No. 18.)
Sadiq and his fellow TEs won't touch the turf for athletic testing and position drills until Friday, but he was the first player mentioned by Albert Breer of Sports Illustrated in a preview of top prospects at the NFL Scouting Combine in Indianapolis and is thus a good primer for Thursday's start of on-field workouts.
Breer wrote the following about Sadiq in his notebook style story:
Sadiq has a chance, if he goes through the physical testing, to be what Nick Emmanwori was a year ago — the prospect who proves too much of a physical outlier for anyone to ignore. Some expect that Sadiq, at about 6' 3" and 240 pounds, will run in the 4.3s and jump 40 inches, which would be outstanding numbers for a receiver half his size. And the bonus with Sadiq (who did have a little issue with drops) is that, within his Shannon Sharpe-type skill set, there is a real willingness to block as well.
Breer assessed a handful of other participants and position groups to watch closely in Indy. It's worth acknowledging standouts at the combine don't always pan out as professionals — but stealing the show this week can raise the stock of a prospect whose potential may be greater than his college production.
Anyhoo, Breer showed love to the likes of Ohio State linebackers Arvell Reese and Sonny Styles, and Notre Dame running back Jeremiyah Love — all three are projected Top 10 selections; and Breer also noted some less heralded college stars, including a potential record-breaker in the 40-yard dash, Mississippi State wide receiver Brenen Thompson, and a couple Day 2 or Day 3 options at running back, one being Minnesota native and Nebraska product Emmett Johnson. As far as the quarterbacks Breer is stoked to see, the only one he mentioned as having a chance to merit attention is North Dakota State's Cole Payton, who is "rugged as a runner" and could help himself by displaying a translatable set of skills.
More nuggets from Breer can be found here.
Combine drills for specialists, linebackers and defensive linemen begin Thursday at 2 p.m. CT.
Scouting Combine survey
Beyond witnessing prospects perform specific drills in an abnormally quiet stadium full of NFL front offices and coaches interested in their talents, the week of the NFL Scouting Combine is a fun time to find out what the league's future thinks of many facets of the league's present (and some other topics).
Cue Greg Auman's NFL Combine Survey for FOX Sports, which details 42 prospects weighing in on top players, coaches and more. The survey — 11 quick questions — was anonymous and elicited responses from players on both sides of the ball, and players from big college programs and small college programs.
You can read the entire article here, but to satiate your curiosity, we'll share the Minnesota-centric stuff.
Naturally, Justin Jefferson entered the chat.
The Vikings All-Everything receiver was one of seven players who garnered multiple votes in response to this question, which non-QB would you build a franchise around? Jefferson, along with Falcons RB Bijan Robinson, Packers edge Micah Parsons, 49ers RB Christian McCaffrey and Raiders edge Maxx Crosby each received two votes, while Lions RB Jahmyr Gibbs collected three and Browns edge Myles Garrett, the new single-season sack king, ran away with 10 votes. Eighteen more NFL stars notched a single vote; Auman pointed out one prospect said they weren't sure who to pick, so only 41 answered this question.
Even after a down year by his historic standards, Jefferson's inclusion in the exercise is a no-brainer. He reached 1,000 receiving yards for the sixth consecutive year despite uneven play from three starting QBs, and he has exhibited a kind of servant leadership that separates him from many other sports superstars.
The other question with responses tied to Minnesota — not the Vikings, though — asked prospects to name their favorite current pro athlete in any sport other than football. More than half the votes went to the NBA, while 13 — 10 more than the next athlete — favored the oft-debated G.O.A.T, LeBron James.
If you guessed Timberwolves dynamo Anthony Edwards as the runner-up, well, congratulations are due.
Edwards, who recently won MVP honors in the 2026 NBA All-Star Game and is averaging 29.6 points per game this season, was voted for thrice, squeaking past iconic hoopers Steph Curry and Kevin Durant, as well as international soccer star Cristiano Ronaldo and world No. 1 golfer Scottie Scheffler (two for each).
Former Timberwolf Jimmy Butler, now with Golden State, was one of 17 other athletes voted for once.
Edwards, akin to Jefferson, has attained a global following over the past six years and is about as well-liked for his candidness with the media and his passion for competition, as his breathtaking abilities.
Shockingly, Vikings Head Coach Kevin O'Connell did not receive any love when prospects were asked, which current NFL head coach would you most like to play for? O'Connell received a vote one year ago, and it's very likely he'll gain favor from 2027 draft prospects with a rebound performance next season.
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