It was a pivotal day for Clemson star defensive end Da'Quan Bowers at his much awaited Pro Day workout. By most accounts, he passed the test with a solid showing
The 6-foot-3 1/2, 276-pounder turned in 40-yard dashes of 4.85 and 4.92 seconds, according to Sports Illustrated.
He also posted a 4.34 to 4.4 short shuttle and a 6.95 three-cone drill.
Bowers underwent surgery to repair a partially torn lateral meniscus and didn't work out at the NFL scouting combine or the Clemson Pro Day.
According to Draft Breakdown, there were some signs of rust in drills and he didn't excel in linebacker drills with Miami Dolphins defensive line coach Bryan Cox telling Bowers, "I'm stiff and I can do it. If you can't then you must be real stiff."
Per the report, though, Bowers jumped on one leg without issues.
He timed him in the 40-yard dash in 4.91 seconds with as high a time as 4.99 from NFL scouts.
Among the NFL teams attending the workout: the Denver Broncos, Philadelphia Eagles, New England Patriots, Atlanta Falcons, Buffalo Bills, Arizona Cardinals, Indianapolis Colts, Jacksonville Jaguars, Seattle Seahawks, Chicago Bears, Houston Texans, Detroit Lions, New Orleans Saints, St. Louis Rams, San Diego Chargers, Miami Dolphins, Dallas Cowboys, Carolina Panthers and Minnesota Vikings.
Cardinals coach Ken Whisenhunt is at the workout as well as Bills general manager Buddy Nix and Falcons general manager Thomas Dimitroff, who meets later today with Clemson defensive back Marcus Gilchrist..
Bowers has official visits scheduled with eight of the top 10 teams.
That includes the Panthers, Broncos, Bills, Bengals, Cardinals, Browns and the Titans, according to a league source with knowledge of the situation.
He led the nation with 16 sacks last season.
One of the most coveted draft prospects, Bowers won the Bronko Nagurski award as the top defensive player in the nation last season.
He was also named Atlantic Coast Conference Defensive Player of the Year, recording 63 tackles, 24 for losses and 17 quarterback pressures.
Bowers had three sacks in one game against Maryland and was named National Defensive Player of the Week.
He intercepted one pass and forced a fumble last season.
At the combine, Bowers said his knee is fine.
"I am 100 percent," Bowers said. It was a small meniscus tear. It hampered me from my first three weeks of training, which is why I am not doing anything at the combine because I feel that I want the same amount of time that everybody else had to train and fully prepare for the combine."
Bowers said he was heavily influenced by the late Chicago Bears defensive end Gaines Adams(notes), who also went to Clemson.
"It was a big impact," Bowers said. "Gaines was like a big brother to me. We were very close. He’s one of the reasons I chose Clemson. I was hit real hard by his death, but I had to go on."
Bowers said he patterns his game after Julius Peppers. He has drawn comparisons to Reggie White and Bruce Smith.
"It’s amazing," Bowers said. "Just to be in the same sentence as those guys is amazing. Anytime anybody can put you in a sentence with Reggie White and Bruce Smith, you must be doing something right. Peppers is one of the premier defensive ends in the NFL, and I am just a scrawny little defensive end coming out of college attempting to play like him and be half as good as him."
Bowers addressed the notion that he's a one-hit wonder.
"My first year I didn’t have a great year, but I wasn’t playing a whole lot," Bowers said. "My sophomore year, I had a pretty decent year. I had pretty decent numbers and injury hampered a couple of my games. This year, I turned it up. I was starting full time. I knew the defense. I had been in the system two years. I felt comfortable. I had one good year and the rest were considered busts."
Bowers is heavily involved in music, playing the guitar in a gospel group.
"My faith is everything," Bowers said. "I rely on my faith for everything and all things. Music is important to me and I love it to death, but football comes first. Music comes second. Music is very important to me. It’s been in my family a long while, it’s the cause of me having most of the things I have in my life right now. I play guitar and I play drums and I sing background with the group also."
Bowers was asked why he should be the top pick over Cam Newton or Nick Fairley.
"Either pick you couldn’t go wrong with Cam Newton or Nick Fairley, both of those guys are tremendous players, great guys," Bowers said. "I think I can bring a lot of good things to the team. You can get a pass rushing defensive end, a humble guy, a guy with great character, a guy who is going to work hard, a guy that is going to go about things the right way and a guy who is willing to compete with anyone anywhere."
The 6-foot-3 1/2, 276-pounder turned in 40-yard dashes of 4.85 and 4.92 seconds, according to Sports Illustrated.
He also posted a 4.34 to 4.4 short shuttle and a 6.95 three-cone drill.
Bowers underwent surgery to repair a partially torn lateral meniscus and didn't work out at the NFL scouting combine or the Clemson Pro Day.
According to Draft Breakdown, there were some signs of rust in drills and he didn't excel in linebacker drills with Miami Dolphins defensive line coach Bryan Cox telling Bowers, "I'm stiff and I can do it. If you can't then you must be real stiff."
Per the report, though, Bowers jumped on one leg without issues.
He timed him in the 40-yard dash in 4.91 seconds with as high a time as 4.99 from NFL scouts.
Among the NFL teams attending the workout: the Denver Broncos, Philadelphia Eagles, New England Patriots, Atlanta Falcons, Buffalo Bills, Arizona Cardinals, Indianapolis Colts, Jacksonville Jaguars, Seattle Seahawks, Chicago Bears, Houston Texans, Detroit Lions, New Orleans Saints, St. Louis Rams, San Diego Chargers, Miami Dolphins, Dallas Cowboys, Carolina Panthers and Minnesota Vikings.
Cardinals coach Ken Whisenhunt is at the workout as well as Bills general manager Buddy Nix and Falcons general manager Thomas Dimitroff, who meets later today with Clemson defensive back Marcus Gilchrist..
Bowers has official visits scheduled with eight of the top 10 teams.
That includes the Panthers, Broncos, Bills, Bengals, Cardinals, Browns and the Titans, according to a league source with knowledge of the situation.
He led the nation with 16 sacks last season.
One of the most coveted draft prospects, Bowers won the Bronko Nagurski award as the top defensive player in the nation last season.
He was also named Atlantic Coast Conference Defensive Player of the Year, recording 63 tackles, 24 for losses and 17 quarterback pressures.
Bowers had three sacks in one game against Maryland and was named National Defensive Player of the Week.
He intercepted one pass and forced a fumble last season.
At the combine, Bowers said his knee is fine.
"I am 100 percent," Bowers said. It was a small meniscus tear. It hampered me from my first three weeks of training, which is why I am not doing anything at the combine because I feel that I want the same amount of time that everybody else had to train and fully prepare for the combine."
Bowers said he was heavily influenced by the late Chicago Bears defensive end Gaines Adams(notes), who also went to Clemson.
"It was a big impact," Bowers said. "Gaines was like a big brother to me. We were very close. He’s one of the reasons I chose Clemson. I was hit real hard by his death, but I had to go on."
Bowers said he patterns his game after Julius Peppers. He has drawn comparisons to Reggie White and Bruce Smith.
"It’s amazing," Bowers said. "Just to be in the same sentence as those guys is amazing. Anytime anybody can put you in a sentence with Reggie White and Bruce Smith, you must be doing something right. Peppers is one of the premier defensive ends in the NFL, and I am just a scrawny little defensive end coming out of college attempting to play like him and be half as good as him."
Bowers addressed the notion that he's a one-hit wonder.
"My first year I didn’t have a great year, but I wasn’t playing a whole lot," Bowers said. "My sophomore year, I had a pretty decent year. I had pretty decent numbers and injury hampered a couple of my games. This year, I turned it up. I was starting full time. I knew the defense. I had been in the system two years. I felt comfortable. I had one good year and the rest were considered busts."
Bowers is heavily involved in music, playing the guitar in a gospel group.
"My faith is everything," Bowers said. "I rely on my faith for everything and all things. Music is important to me and I love it to death, but football comes first. Music comes second. Music is very important to me. It’s been in my family a long while, it’s the cause of me having most of the things I have in my life right now. I play guitar and I play drums and I sing background with the group also."
Bowers was asked why he should be the top pick over Cam Newton or Nick Fairley.
"Either pick you couldn’t go wrong with Cam Newton or Nick Fairley, both of those guys are tremendous players, great guys," Bowers said. "I think I can bring a lot of good things to the team. You can get a pass rushing defensive end, a humble guy, a guy with great character, a guy who is going to work hard, a guy that is going to go about things the right way and a guy who is willing to compete with anyone anywhere."
