March 11--The arduous trek to the NFL draft continued Tuesday, with a handful of UCLA players going through workouts at Spaulding Field.
"Guys tell you what it's going to be like, but you don't know until you go through this," defensive back Anthony Jefferson said.
Each player had his own agenda Tuesday.
Jefferson wanted to show a little more speed. Linebacker Eric Kendricks wanted to show his injured hamstring was better. Defensive end Owamagbe Odighizuwa wanted to build on his momentum.
And quarterback Brett Hundley wanted to duplicate past workouts.
Hundley said that the first thing UCLA Coach Jim Mora said to him was, "Don't listen to the noise, because they won't tell you positive stuff about yourself. They are going to strip you down, tell you everything you can't do."
That, Hundley said, "was the biggest thing that prepared me for this."
Hundley was sharp during his workout. Mora said Hundley completed 57 of 60 passes, with one pass being dropped.
"My footwork, first and foremost, was what I wanted to show teams," Hundley said.
Accuracy on deeper passes had been a question. Hundley was put through drills that forced him to throw on the run, and was able to complete a handful of deep passes.
Hundley performed well at the combine, but Tuesday's workout was in his backyard at UCLA. He had worked with the receivers previously and said, "I had timing with them. I showed that I can fling the ball around."
Mora said that the UCLA workout was different than the combine.
"The drills you get at an individual workout are much more applicable to the position you play, so you are more comfortable doing them," Mora said. "The other thing is, in a venue you have better feel for, you are more relaxed. Typically, you'll perform better."
Mora, who spent 28 years in the NFL, said that the draft process goes through three phases: build up, tear down, then build up.
"Right now, everyone is trying to rip them apart, find the flaws," Mora said. "I think the teams that do it right are the teams who look for redeeming qualities in a player and cultivate that."
