The University of Cincinnati held their Pro Day on Wednesday with guys like Mardy Gilyard and Tony Pike trying to improve upon their so-so numbers during the NFL Combine late last month. There were 13 players on display for 26 teams, including 49ers head coach Mike Singletary. In attendance for the Bengals were wide receivers coach Mike Sheppard, special teams coach Darrin Simmons and director of football operations Jim Lippencott.
Gilyard, Joe Reedy writes, improved his 40-time from 4.56 to 4.47 and made a few nice grabs. Tony Pike, on the other hand, "struggled early with a couple of his passes sailing high" and there "were also a couple times when he wasn’t on the same page as his receivers". He would eventually settle down.
Other Bearcats working out include defensive lineman Alex Daniels, who "bench-pressed 225 pounds 31 times" and had a "36.5-inch vertical leap and 10-foot, nine-inch broad jump.'" Defensive back Brad Jones "ran the 40 in 4.56 seconds, second-fastest behind Gilyard. Jones also had a 39-inch vertical. Safety Aaron Webster ran a 4.66 in the 40."
It's a good bet that the Bengals are scouting Gilyard, who would be the reason for the team's wide receiver coach and the special teams coach, considering the wide receiver is also really, really, really, really, really, really good at the return game. With that said, I still have a hard time believing that the Bengals would use their first round pick on Gilyard. Now if Gilyard does a Rey Maualuga and unexpectedly falls in the second round, which many project he will, then it would seem that Gilyard's chances of being selected by the team he really wants to play for go astronomically through the roof.