Jeff Owens isn’t sure what got a hold of him two weeks ago at the NFL combine when he tied the second-highest mark in NFL history with 44 reps of 225 pounds on the bench press.

“I was looking to go in and do just 40 but I got the extra adrenaline, and I got to like 43 and started slowing down. I wanted to break the record,” Owens said of the surprise of 44 reps. “It felt like it was an impostor. I don’t think it was me.”

During Georgia’s Pro Day, Jeff Owens posted an unofficial 40-yard dash time of 4.9 seconds. Photo by: Jon-Michael Sullivan.

And Owens wasn’t about to try to find that “imposter” again at Georgia’s Pro Day Tuesday.  Instead, he opted to skip the bench press, vertical jump and 3-cone drill at Pro Day and let his combine numbers stand. But Owens did run the 40-yard dash — posting a unofficial time of 4.9 seconds — and participated in position drills.

Geno Atkins also posted one of the combine’s top performances, and only participated in positions, knowing the numbers he posted at the combine have his stock rising as fast as anyone in the NFL Draft.

“If you’ve done it and you’ve done it really well, there’s no point in using that energy that you can save up to do really well in your position drills,” said Pat Dye Jr., an Atlanta-based agent representing Atkins.

The impressive combine performance has boosted Atkins stock “two rounds” by Dye’s estimation, and the versatility on display at the combine have NFL teams believing he could play the nose tackle or defensive end in the 3-4 or defensive tackle in a 4-3 scheme.

Rennie Curran’s experience at Pro Day was the polar opposite of Atkins and Owens. After a disappointing performance at the combine, Curran was out to perform every drill and strengthen his numbers — even if he thinks those numbers are overblown. He also set out to improve his bench press and 40-yard dash time. No matter what numbers Curran posted, though, a number out of his control continues to be his biggest detractor: his height at only 5-foot-11.

Rennie Curran grabs a pass during pro day on Tuesday. Photo by WES BLANKENSHIP

“You’re not going to see the ball and not see me around it. That’s just my identity, that’s who I am,” Curran said. “So hopefully they see that before they see my height.”

Jessie Tuggle, Curran’s mentor, played for fourteen years for the Atlanta Falcons, despite facing skeptics about being undersized like Curran, and says Curran reminds him a little bit of himself.

“A lot of teams are curious, can he do it in the NFL? Is he tall enough? Is he big enough?” Tuggle said. “And I think he is right now. In the NFL, all the talk about is leverage, being instinctive, making plays, and he has all that. That’s who he is, and I think right now when teams put on the tape, they’ll see a guy who is very instinctive, a guy who knows how to make plays and runs from sidelines to sidelines.”

No official times were recorded Tuesday, but Curran’s unofficial time of 4.6 seconds in the 40-yard dash was faster than his 4.72 at the Combine. He also did two more reps on the bench. Prince Miller is also believed to have helped his stock after posting 22 reps and running an unofficial 40-yard dash time of 4.4 seconds.

BY THE NUMBERS
Unofficial 40-yard dash times posted by former Bulldogs at Georgia’s Pro Day

JEFF OWENS: 4.9 seconds

RENNIE CURRAN: 4.6 seconds

RESHAD JONES: 4.52 seconds

PRINCE MILLER: 4.4 seconds

BRYAN EVANS: 4.5 seconds