The Opening Drive 2/27: Day 1 of the NFL Combine is in the Books and Sonny Styles is a Certified Freak.
Styles has a historic day, Reese is fast, and McDonald doesn't run
Thursday was the first day of on-field testing and drills at the 2026 NFL combine. Thursday saw three former Buckeyes partake in at least one drill, as Caden Curry will wait until Ohio State’s Pro Day to showcase his aptitude for the drills. Kayden McDonald did not partake in any of the testing, but did do positional drills. Arvell Reese ran the 40 and did positional drills, and to the surprise of absolutely nobody he’s fast. But, the day belonged to Sonny Styles.
Sonny Styles shines.
Sonny Styles was the talk of Indianapolis, and most of the online chatter regarding the NFL Combine. Styles measured in at 6ft5 and 244 pounds. Sonny did not do every exercise, but when he partook he made sure to show out. He ran the 40, along with broad jump and vertical jump. Styles slayed the vertical portion of the day with a 43.5” jump. This was the highest vertical by a player standing at least 6ft4 and weighing 240 or more pounds since at least 2003. His 11ft2 broad jump is the 4th best by a linebacker. Then came the 40 yard dash where Styles was clocked at a blistering 4.46 seconds. According to NFL Research, Styles is the only player since 2003 who weighed over 230 pounds to have a vertical over 40, a broad jump over 11 feet, and a sub 4.5 forty.
Sonny was assumed to be a top 15 or 20 pick, but I’m going to guess that he cemented him a slot in the top 10 at the worst on Thursday. If you want to see just how freaky Styles is head over to YouTube and check out his high school basketball highlights.
Arvell Reese shows off.
The day might have belonged to Sonny Styles, but Arvell Reese showed why has been slotted in the top 5 of most mock drafts. Reese shared the title of fastest linebacker with Styles, by also running a 4.46 40. Reese did not perform in any of the other measured drills. He did however do positional drills. He also impressed there, to the surprise of nobody. Reese showed off his speed, acceleration, and smooth motion in the position drills. Long thought to be the first defender off the board, Reese did not do anything to hurt that assumption. Truth be told, he probably helped it.
Kayden McDonald shows off his moves.
Kayden McDonald did not do any of the measured drills on Thursday, but he did do positional drills. I wouldn’t say McDonald wowed anyone on Thursday. But, let’s be honest the combine isn’t set up for guys like him to shine. McDonald is one of, if not the best, run stopping defensive tackles in the draft and that doesn’t show up at the combine. He showed flashes of the athleticism we came to know as Buckeye fans, but something just looked a little off at times, to the point that Chad Reuter of NFL.COM had McDonald as one of his “Stock Down” prospects. The positive thing is that McDonald still has pro day to show scouts what he’s capable of.
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The Remaining Combine Schedule
There are still plenty of other former Buckeyes to partake in the combine, in some way. The following is the schedule of the forthcoming position groups and former Buckeyes.
Friday On-Field:
S Caleb Downs
CB Davison Igbinosun
CB Lorenzo Styles Jr.
TE Max Klare
TE Will Kacmareck
Friday media and Saturday on-field:
WR Carnell Tate
RB CJ Donaldson
Jeremy’s Memorabilia Item of the Day.
Today, we go to Ebay for our item of the day. Given that it’s combine week, we give you a full size helmet signed by Mr. Caleb Downs. Check It Out Here
Buckeye Film Breakdown will return soon with some fresh content.
