Now that the NFL season is over, we will now be inundated with reports from the NFL Combine in Indianapolis as well as the rumors that circulate over the workouts that draft prospects have at their pro days at their respective schools.  As such, we will now be faced with the typical 5-10 players who will soar up draft boards based on these workouts alone, no matter how marginal their play was as in college.  In the history of the NFL, their have been some fairly significant workout warriors who have lifted and run themselves into higher draft positions than they would have had otherwise.  Here is a list of the top-5 workout warriors from the last 20 years as well as a few players that could be part of this phenomenon this season.

1. Tony Mandarich: next to Ryan Leaf, the biggest bust in NFL draft history and also the greatest workout warrior ever.  Mandarich received so much hype, that he was named to the All-Madden Team while still in college at Michigan State.  Coming in at 6'6" and 315 lbs, Mandarich had no fat on him, but rather had the scuplted physique of a bodybuilder while playing LT.  At the NFL Combine in 1989, Mandarich ran a 4.65 40, long jumped 10 feet 3 inches, had a 30 inch vertical jump, and had 39 reps in the bench at 225 lbs.  All of this as well as his above average play in college sent him to the Green Bay Packers where he fizzled out after 4 seasons then did the same after 3 seasons in Indy.  Oh yeah, he later admitted to rampant steroid use.

2. Mike Mamula: The Boston College DE was viewed as a decent college player who might be a 3rd-5th round pick, but his amazing workouts translated into him being propelled into the first round, going to the Eagles with the 7th pick in the draft in 1995.  What followed was a disappointing 6 year career, in which he never registered more than 5 sacks in a season.  He retired in 2000.

3. Kyle Boller: Boller was one of Jeff Tedford's pet projects at Cal who enjoyed some success as a Bear, but questions abounded about his lack of accuracy, as he never completed more than 59% of his passes in a season in college, and only had a 51% completion percentage for his college career.  Nevertheless, scouts drooled over his workouts in which he ran a 4.6 40, showed amazing fluidity in his movements, and then threw a football through the uprights from the 50 yard line while on his knees.  That last performance especially propelled Boller from a probable second round pick to a mid first rounder to the Ravens.  So far, we have gotten mixed results from Boller's play, though he did seem to pull it together at the end of the 2005 season.

4. Boss Bailey: the Georgia LB turned in an amazing performance during his NFL Combine and Pro Day.  At 6'4" 230lbs, Bailey ripped off a 4.45 40 and had a 46'-48' vertical jump depending on your source.  Scouts also saw the genetics (brother Champ) and fell in love with the marginal prospect, propelling him to the Lions in the early second round.  His NFL career has been marred by injuries, though there have been some flashes of true talent.  The jury is still out.

5. Donte Stallworth and Ashley Lelie: the WRs were both viewed as probable second round picks, as Stallworth did not have the production and health that scouts desired and Lelie was deemed too skinny and played in an offense that made his production exceed his actual skill.  Then they ran their 40s.  Lelie ran a 4.35 at 6'3" 190 lbs.  Immediately, scouts started following his every move, and ESPN devoted an entire player diary to him.  Then Stallworth ran anywhere between 4.19 and 4.27 and it made his decision to leave early and the NCAA's decision to not allow him to be reinstated after leaving school for the draft and changing his mind a smart one.  Both performances propelled each into the first round and in fact left them jockeying for position as the first WR off the board.  Both players have had moderate success in the NFL, but not the success and production that was expected of each after the 2002 draft.  Both have been incredibly inconsistent and injury prone.

As for future workout warriors, here is a list of 3 which could have a "underwear performance" that could translate into millions of dollars.

1. Antonio Cromartie: like Willis McGahee before him, Cromartie is gambling on entering the draft early after a devastating knee injury.  Cromartie tore his ACL in the summer of 2005 and missed the entire season, yet still opted to leave Florida State early for the 2006 draft.  Now that he is nearly healed and participated in some workouts with the team, Cromartie should impress with his workouts, since he has the size and speed scouts dream of in CBs.  However, one needs to remember he only has one season of starting experience under his belt, is coming off an injury that can take up to a year to heal, and has lived off the hype of the end of the 2004 season in which Cromartie played well. 

2. Devin Hester: Here is betting that Hester rips off the best 40 time of any player in this year's draft.  The 6'0" speedster from Miami has experience at WR, CB, RB, and KR and PR.  However, Hester has never been able to settle into a true position and has not been able to unseat any other player on Miami's roster for a starting spot.  While it is true that he is an electric player and a dynamic kick and punt returner, Hester is still without a true position.  Any team drafting him will have to endure 2-3 seasons of grooming, but his potential alone will make him a viable first day pick.  His workouts will have scouts buzzing similar to that of Matt Jones last year.

3. Marcus Vick: Like Adrian McPherson in the 2005 draft, Vick has a chance to impress scouts with his athletic ability in hopes that it will overshadow his off the field and now on the field transgressions.  Scouts expecting to see shades of Michael will be impressed by Marcus' touch on his throws, better drop back skills, above average arm strength, good speed, and well developed knowledge of the game.  However, his off the field troubles exceed even those of McPherson and spell trouble for any team thinking about drafting him.  He will improve his stock significantly with his workouts, going from a 4th-5th round pick to a late 2nd or 3rd rounder. 

This workout warrior phenomenon will be one that will live forever, because no matter the production or lack thereof, off the field history, injury history, or lack of passion for the game, scouts will still put too much stock in the measurables that come from the combine and pro-days.  It now becomes interesting to see who teams will gamble on based on those numbers alone.