In 2015, University of Connecticut defensive back Byron Jones set a new Scouting Combine record for broad jump as part of an excellent workout that helped him cement his status as a first-round pick in the draft.
Jones went 27th overall to the Cowboys that year and now another UConn defensive back has showed off impressive athletic ability in Indianapolis. It’s safety Obi Melifonwu this time around.
Melifonwu had the second-longest broad jump in combine history by leaping 11 feet, 9 inches on Monday to go with 4.4 and 4.46 40-yard-dashes and a 44-inch vertical leap. Those numbers look even better when Melifonwu’s 6’4″, 224-pound frame is taken into account.
Melifonwu isn’t rated as highly as some of the other safeties in this year’s class, but has been talked about as a potential second-round pick. It just takes one team intrigued by his athleticism to have him climb into the first round, though, and Monday’s work carries a whiff of that kind of intrigue.