Kansas football’s Lonnie Phelps raising draft stock with strong showing at NFL Combine
Former Kansas defensive end Lonnie Phelps is making quite an impression at the 2023 NFL Scouting Combine.
Phelps plans to transition from defensive end to linebacker and, so far, it looks like the right choice.
On the first day of the event, Phelps led all linebackers with 31 bench press reps.
Phelps also had an impressive showing in the 10-yard splits for the edge position, finishing 0.01 behind Alabama star Will Anderson Jr.
Not to mention, the 6-foot-2, 244-pound Phelps ran the 40-yard dash in 4.55 seconds — an excellent time for a player his size.
When Phelps declared for the NFL Draft in January, there wasn’t much draft buzz around him.
Despite a stellar redshirt-junior season at KU and overall college career, Phelps was projected to be picked late or undrafted by most draft experts. The biggest weaknesses for Phelps? Many experts believed he’s undersized to average-sized at best.
Phelps originally played at Miami (OH), where he had 9.5 sacks and was named second-team All-MAC in 2021, but then transferred to Kansas before last season. He played in all 13 games with the Jayhawks in 2022 and made 12 starts despite playing banged up during the season. Phelps had a team-leading seven sacks.
He finished with 57 total tackles, 11.5 tackles for loss (4.5 in Big 12 play), six QB hurries, one forced fumble and one pass breakup last season. Phelps was named to the All-Big 12 second team at defensive end by both the coaches and AP.
After getting a late invite to the Senior Bowl, Phelps made the most of the opportunity.
Playing linebacker, he forced a fumble and put constant pressure on the quarterback. Pro Football Focus gave him the highest score of any player at the Senior Bowl with a 91.2.
After a strong showing at the Senior Bowl and the first day of the NFL Combine, Phelps’ draft stock looks to be rising.
NFL Draft analyst Lance Zierlein believes Phelps will be “a good backup with the potential to develop into a starter.”
According to Zierlein, an AFC regional scout described Phelps as a “super tough player. He carries himself with a lot of confidence and aggression on the field.”
Phelps has met with several teams, including the Kansas City Chiefs.
It’s been quite a journey for Phelps, who didn’t even have Senior Bowl invite when he declared for the NFL Draft.
“I’ve always dreamed about it, watching it on TV and stuff,” Phelps said on Wednesday, per The Star’s Herbie Teope. “Look at me now — I’m here. It took a long time.”
Phelps believes he can be a key piece for any NFL defense.
“I could fit with any defense, but my skill set, I would say specifically I would bring more dominance to the defense, more sacks to the defense, more turnovers to the defense,” Phelps said. “Just being another leader, another dominant player, a piece to the puzzle.”
This story was originally published March 3, 2023 at 2:05 PM with the headline "Kansas football’s Lonnie Phelps raising draft stock with strong showing at NFL Combine."
