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Defensive prospects can do everything ... but catch

INDIANAPOLIS -- When you're a schlub sportswriter like myself, being on the field at the NFL Scouting Combine is akin to a space explorer stepping onto a planet populated by an advanced species.

The draft prospects at Lucas Oil Stadium are almost impossibly gifted from a physical standpoint. Watching this event on television doesn't do it justice. Which makes the fact that I have better hands than half of them downright remarkable.

Case in point: In the video above, you'll watch defensive linemen and linebackers participate in drills that conclude with a football being thrown directly at them. In many cases, the oblong sphere ricochets away like they're working with two Chubbs Peterson specials.

It's not like the quarterback prospects are firing Stafford-esque lasers, either. It's practically soft toss, but it's hopeless.

"They all have hands like feet," NFL Media's Mike Mayock said. "And that's why we're playing defense here."

That pretty much sums it up. Consider it an act of checks and balances by the football gods. J.J. Watt obviously slipped through processing.

The latest Around The NFL Podcast breaks down all the latest from the combine and gives updates on Peyton Manning and Adrian Peterson. Find more Around The NFL content on NFL NOW.

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