March 5, 2026, 7:19 p.m. CT

The NFL Scouting Combine is one of, if not the most important, events in the pre-draft process.

This is the time of year when players can earn money, but some will also lose money, based on drills and interviews. We have already hit the winners, and in this one, we will look at the five players whose stock dropped the most following the combine in Indianapolis.

Denzel Boston, WR, Washington

Washington’s Denzel Boston was not going to be very high in my positional rankings before the combine, but following an exceptionally poor performance in the drills, he fell even lower. Slow footwork, multiple drops, and sloppy route running at times surely soured NFL teams from taking him in the range some media members are mocking him to.

Makai Lemon, WR, USC

When you start the drills by deliberately ignoring the coach’s telling you to throttle it back, and you not only run almost at full speed but never even turn your head around for an over-the-shoulder drill, you’re in trouble. Not running the 40-yard dash as a slot receiver is a bad look, as well, as it makes you wonder if his testing prior was not where he wanted it to be. You can tell a lot by a receiver choosing not to run. Routes were not as clean as you’d like, and dropping multiple passes is a brutal look.

Expert NFL picks: Exclusive betting insights only at USA TODAY.Jermod McCoy, CB, Tennessee

Is anyone else terrified that Jermod McCoy still hasn’t fully recovered from his torn ACL from January of 25′? McCoy did not test or do any drills at the combine, only doing interviews while in Indy. We may never fully know what the medicals look like, but with McCoy being considered one of the top cornerback prospects in the class and opting out of all on-field events certainly raises some eyebrows.

Emmett Johnson, RB, Nebraska

Emmett Johnson leading into the combine was in the conversation of the top-three running back prospects in the 2026 NFL Draft, which felt egregious at the time. Certainly, after his workout, he can’t be in that range anymore. Johnson was touted as having explosive moments, but a 4.56 40 time, paired with slow footwork going through drills, silences that crowd. The former Cornhusker’s stock took a massive hit and will likely fall out of my top-ten rankings.

Lee Hunter, DT, Texas Tech

Lee Hunter was a pre-draft darling heading into the combine, but left Indy as one of the biggest fallers. Hunter’s knock was that he was lacking explosiveness in his game, and did himself zero favors during the on-field workout. A 21.5″ vertical paired with an 8’4″ broad jump validates any and all concerns about his weaknesses. He possesses great power in his game, but his lack of agility and overwhelming motor were on full display.