INDIANAPOLIS — Brandon Coleman arrived at the NFL Scouting Combine Thursday with his work cut out for him and a giant question mark on his back.
One of the most prolific wide receivers in Rutgers history, the 6-foot-6, 220-pound Coleman intrigues NFL scouts with his size and the knack he had in college of finding the end zone.
But Coleman also is an early entry coming off knee surgery followed by a year in which his production dropped off precipitously, which isn’t a good combination in a draft that’s considered the deepest in years at his position.
So it’s safe to say a lot of eyes will be focused on Coleman when he goes through medical exams Friday then works out and runs Saturday at Lucas Oil Stadium.
“He’s an interesting kid, because obviously 2012 was obviously a much better year for him,” NFL Network draft analyst Mike Mayock said.
That would be an understatement. Coleman had 43 catches for 718 yards and 10 touchdowns as a redshirt sophomore in 2012, landing him on all the preseason award-watch lists, then fell off last year with 34 receptions for just 538 yards and four TDs in the wake of offseason knee surgery.
“He’s going to go through a medical barrage,” Mayock said. “Can he separate [from defenders]? On tape, he looks like he has very average speed, but because of his size, you can create separation just by your sheer bulk, so I think what you want to see at the combine is what kind of speed does he really have.”
NFL teams will also want to see some hint of dependability out of Coleman, for a change.
“He also has some inconsistent hands,” Mayock said. “I know he makes great catches but he also makes some pretty easy drops. I want to see him catch everything, and I want to find out how fast he really is.”
The Giants were among the teams that got some welcome news Thursday with a report the 2014 salary cap will be $130 million per team — a significant jump from the projected figure of $126.3 million.
League officials would not confirm the ESPN report, saying the cap figure still is being calculated, but an industry source said the $130 million number is what clubs are now expecting when the new league year (and veteran free agency) starts March 11. The cap was $123 million last season.
The Giants were among the teams that would have had precious little cap room under the previously projected figure. If the number does indeed reach $130 million, that would put every team under the cap except for the Cowboys ($20.9 million over) and Steelers ($8.9 million over).
Washington’s Austin Seferian-Jenkins is considered one of the elite tight ends in this year’s draft but is a character concern after a DUI arrest last offseason resulted in a one-game suspension.
Seferian-Jenkins didn’t shy away from the issue Thursday, insisting teams will have nothing to worry about if they take the 6-foot-6, 262-pound target despite the fact his blood-alcohol level was 0.18 — twice the legal limit in Washington.
“I think it’s pretty well-documented that I had a DUI,” Seferian-Jenkins said. “People might say I have character issues. It was one incident, you can look through my history. Last time I checked, no one is perfect.
“It was a learning lesson, and I learned it,” he added. “But it was one incident, and that doesn’t change who I am. People in Seattle and Tacoma know who I am as a person, and I don’t think I am a character risk or have a character issue at all.”
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Michael Sam is scheduled to arrive here Friday, but the Missouri linebacker was a hot topic at the combine Thursday in the wake of his announcement this month he is gay.
“[As for] the locker rooms, I can’t speak for every guy, or every single locker room, but I truly believe that, as many players have already commented on it, it will be welcoming for Sam,” 49ers coach Jim Harbaugh said Thursday. “I truly believe that.”