USC offensive tackle Tyron Smith said he will attend the NFL Draft in New York on April 28 and nothing he did during Wednesday's pro day should lessen his chances of being a first-round pick next month.
Smith, who gained 30 pounds since December and weighed 310 before the workout, ran the 40-yard dash in an electronically timed 5.0 seconds and bench-pressed 225 pounds 31 times.
"It might be a little hard sitting there in New York but I wouldn't want to miss it," Smith said. "I'm hearing first round, I'm just waiting for the day. I want to be surprised."
Next week Smith, NFLDraftScout.com's No. 16 overall prospect and second-ranked offensive tackle, flies to Dallas for a workout with the Cowboys, who own the ninth pick. That might explain why Cowboys coach Jason Garrett and director of scouting Tom Ciskowski attended the workout for all USC draft-eligible players.
"He's going to make a lot of money," said Raiders coach Hue Jackson, who also attended the workout.
Smith was unable to work out at the scouting combine in February because of a minor knee injury. He moved easily on Wednesday, and most in attendance came away impressed with his athleticism.
However, he's never played left tackle, serving as the starter on the right side for the Trojans. That projection to left tackle isn't a no-brainer, but Smith's added weight and continued free-and-easy movement were recorded as positives. It might also help that NFLDraftScout.com said there is no top-10 ranked offensive tackle in this class. With that, teams will rank the offensive tackles in the order that best fits their system.
Defensive tackle Jurrell Casey, projected as high as a second-round draft choice and the 10th-ranked defensive tackle by NFLDraftScout.com, pulled his hamstring during the 40-yard dash and finished in 5.04 seconds. Despite tweaking his hamstring, Casey finished the drills.
"I've never been injured by whole career and I wanted to show teams I could finish," Casey said. "A lot of people think I look sloppy [because of my body type] but I have a helluva game."
Teams that play a 4-3 defense prefer Casey, who is projected to play the three-technique spot. Casey said the Bears, Falcons and Browns showed the most interest in him leading up to Wednesday's workout.
Quarterback Mitch Mustain also worked out and made his first public comments since being arrested in February for selling prescription drugs online. His draft stock obviously plummeted -- he's ranked 24th at quarterback by NFLDraftScout.com -- and he's expected to have to enter the league as a free agent. No charges were filed because the drug "lisdexamfetamine dimesylate," was not officially considered a controlled substance by the Los Angeles County district attorney's office.
"I'm not a problem child," Mustain said. "It sucks. I wish I hadn't done it. But I did.
"I don't feel my character is an issue. It was an isolated incident."
Linebacker Michael Morgan has not received much buzz but ran the fastest 40 time (4.47) of all USC prospects, which even bested wide receiver Ronald Johnson (4.49). Another unexpected effort came in the bench press, where reserve offensive lineman Zack Heberer threw up 225 pounds a team-high 38 times.
Tight end Jordan Cameron, who could go as high as the third round despite barely playing the position, performed pass-catching drills but did not run the 40 or bench press, opting to stand on the totals he posted at the NFL combine. Cameron has gained attention recently because he made a video with Clippers forward Blake Griffin promoting his draft chances.
"Everyone wants to talk about that," Cameron said. "For a guy like me, it's valuable because I didn't do anything in college. I believed I could have played but I was surrounded by great players."
Tailback Allen Bradford is also trying to draw attention. He weighs 240 pounds and might be the biggest back in the draft. Bradford's 40 time was 4.65.
"I concentrated on showing teams I could catch the ball out of the backfield," Bradford said. "I'm willing to play special teams too."
Colorado wide receiver Travon Patterson, who transferred from USC following NCAA sanctions, injured his hamstring during the 40-yard dash and was unable to participate in further drills. Linebacker Malcolm Smith ran the 40 in 4.51 seconds and performed 28 reps on the bench press. Defensive tackle Derek Simmons did the bench press 20 times and ran a 5.17-second 40.
In addition to Garrett and Jackson, three NFL general managers attended. There were scouts from 31 of the 32 NFL teams.