INDIANAPOLIS -- Many of this year's top draft prospects faced tough questions and bright lights from the national media on Friday as the NFL Scouting Combine kicked into full gear with a variety of linebackers, defensive linemen and others, including Jameis Winston, on the podium to take questions.
Who passed the test with flying colors thanks to good answers, and who might need some more PR training? Here are Day 3's Winners and Losers.
Winners
Dante Fowler, Jr., DE, Florida: This former Gators stud was the star of the show on Friday as he held court from the podium to discuss everything from his position at the next level to growing up in St. Petersburg. He was captivating, and several media members asked him if he was always this loose in such a setting.
Jameis Winston, QB, Florida State: Many NFL media members said Winston reminded them of Cam Newton, and there's no denying that the most popular player on Friday was also the most captivating. He quickly defused questioning about his shoulder and never faced questions about his off-the-field issues directly after addressing the topic in his opening statement. That's a big win for the embattled Heisman winner.
T.J. Clemmings, OT, Pitt: The big man was honest, acknowledging that he's a bit raw and still learning the tackle position after moving over from defense just two years ago. It's hard to believe he was standing at the podium as a potential first-round pick after admitting he came close to being out of football completely after not working out as a defensive lineman for the Panthers.
Eddie Goldman, DT, Florida State: It appeared that the former Seminoles star had bulked up a bit from his last outing at the Rose Bowl, and he was a lot more outgoing, too. He gave perhaps one of his most engaging interviews ever and was labeled the resident historian by many after bringing up details about current and former NFLers, including Jeremiah Ratliff, Tony Brackett, the Purple People Eaters, Mean Joe Greene and more.
Losers
Benardick McKinney, LB, Mississippi State: McKinney wants to be the first inside linebacker off the board in this draft. He didn't exactly make a strong case for himself in his meeting with reporters, though. He acknowledged that pass coverage is the part of his game he needs to improve the most, but never gave any clear examples on what he's doing to get better in that area.
Frank Clark, LB, Michigan: Off-the-field issues dominated the conversation with Clark at his table, and he didn't exactly put them to bed by addressing them head on. He did say that he's attending counseling, yet he still managed to shift blame to other things. He said he wasn't throwing the woman involved in his domestic violence incident, which resulted in his dismissal from the team, "under the bus," but still managed to do so. Not a great look.
Leon Orr, DT, Florida: Orr, if you don't remember, was dismissed by Will Muschamp after it surfaced that he was upset about not starting against Vanderbilt and left the team. On Friday, he simply blamed the issue on a "communication lapse" with the coaching staff and left it at that. It certainly seemed like he was trying to move on from his biggest negative instead of addressing it head on.
Tony Washington, LB, Oregon, and Trey DePriest, LB, Alabama: The two College Football Playoff participants could be solid NFL players and late risers with good combine performances, but they won the Unfortunate Timing of the Day Award on Friday, meeting with the media right as Jameis Winston took the podium. With most reporters gathering around Winston, Washington and DePriest didn't have many reporters around them during their interview sessions.
You can follow Bryan Fischer on Twitter at @BryanDFischer.
