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Arguably the biggest criticism of Boston College MIKE LB Luke Kuechly has been his lack of "elite" athleticism. Today at the combine his performance may have gone a long way in answering those questions.
Kuechly ran a 4.5 40 (3rd best of all LBs), did 27 reps on the bench press (6th best) and a 38 inch vertical jump (3rd best). He also turned in the third longest broad jump.
May scouts saw the 40 time as a big test for him because they really wanted to see the athletics match the production. Today, it did.
There's not much to dislike about this kid. Off the charts production, recognized as the nation's top LB and now has put on a fantastic combine performance. We still don't know whether the Eagles will address their MIKE position in free agency or not, but if they don't (and maybe even if they do) Kuechly certainly looks a slam dunk pick if in fact he's still there at #15.
Todd McShay had high praise for LK after his workout today.
Luke Kuechly even faster than expected. 2 scouts just clocked him in low 4.5 range. Kuechly=Sean Lee without durability issues coming out
— Todd McShay (@McShay13) February 27, 2012