Sean Bunting shines, Xavier Crawford remains consistent at NFL Scouting Combine


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Junior defensive back Sean Bunting (left) celebrates after intercepting the ball in the opponents end zone on Sept. 29 at Spartan Stadium

Two Chippewas traveled to Indianapolis with hopes of improving their NFL draft stock at the 2019 NFL Scouting Combine. It's safe to say cornerback Sean Bunting did just that.

Bunting and fellow Central Michigan cornerback Xavier Crawford are expected to be the third and fourth Chippewa defensive backs ever selected in the NFL draft. The others were Kavon Frazier in 2016 and Jim Bowman in 1985.

Right now, Bleacher Report's Matt Miller has Bunting as a second-round draft pick.

At 6-feet, 195 pounds, Bunting quickly surprised with a 4.42-second 40-yard dash to open his activities at the combine. Crawford followed it up with a run of 4.48 seconds. Bunting finished with the fifth-best 40-yard time of all cornerbacks.

On the bench press, Bunting proved his physicality. While numbers don't always translate to on-field strength, he put up 14 reps. Crawford finished with 11.

Bunting's punch at the line of scrimmage is typically on-point. When he's overly aggressive, he does a nice job of giving himself enough time to recover and make a play on the ball. The reason he's able to recover so well is due to his speed.

Clean lower body movements and physicality until end of the whistle have helped Bunting remain glued to receivers, even if the opposition was quicker off the snap.

The Athletic's Dane Brugler is an NFL Draft Analyst and was at the combine to watch Bunting perform. He described Bunting as a press-man cornerback with "starting potential" in the NFL due to his ability to play loose and suffocate the catch point.

However, Brugler said Bunting must get stronger and develop his techniques.

"Bunting has the athleticism to run better routes than the receiver, something that frequently showed on his film," Brugler said. "His undisciplined mechanics led to mistakes, but he is usually in a position to recover with his cover-and-clobber mentality."

Bunting registered a 41.5-inch vertical jump and 126-inch broad jump. His vertical was second-best of all cornerbacks at the combine.

Crawford's top skill is his ability to turn and run, which directly comes from being able to flip his hips at any moment. Loose hips are a key quality for NFL teams, and Crawford has that attribute.

FootballPost's Dion Caputi was at the NFL combine and provided some insight on where Crawford projects at the next level. Caputi believes Crawford will be drafted somewhere between the fourth and seventh rounds, which takes place on April 27.

"He breaks up passes in volume – a lot of PBUs, though some I've spoken with claim he'll never record many takeaways," Caputi said of Crawford. "At the absolute worst, he'll be a quality special teams profile early on, which will, of course, afford him more opportunity than someone who can't. 

"I also think he's got some long-term safety potential if things don't pan out at corner. A day-three prospect with upside."

As a graduate of Oregon State in June 2018, Crawford transferred to CMU for the 2018 season with two years of eligibility. However, he left a year early following 24 tackles, three tackles for a loss, 12 passes defended, one interception and two fumble recoveries.

Playing football in the Pac-12 and Mid-American Conference since 2015, Crawford has some of the most consistent coverage techniques of cornerbacks in the upcoming draft class.

Bunting made 37 tackles, three tackles for a loss, two interceptions, five passes defended and two forced fumbles. He logged nine interceptions in three seasons for the Chippewas.

Both Bunting and Crawford earned First Team All-MAC honors in 2018. They will attend CMU's Pro Day on March 14 and are expected to participate in agility drills – an event the pair didn't compete in at the combine.

Below are the measurements and NFL combine results for Bunting and Crawford.

Measurements

Sean Bunting, CB: Height: 6'0" 3/8 | Weight: 195 pounds | Hand: 9" 5/8 | Arm: 31" 6/8 | Wingspan: 76" 6/8

Xavier Crawford, CB: Height: 5'10" 7/8 | Weight: 187 pounds | Right Hand: 8" 6/8 | Left Hand: 9" | Arm: 29" 1/8 | Wingspan: 71" 7/8

40-Yard Dash

Sean Bunting, CB: 4.42 seconds

Xavier Crawford, CB: 4.48 seconds

Bench Press

Sean Bunting, CB: 14 reps

Xavier Crawford, CB: 11 reps

Vertical Jump

Sean Bunting, CB: 41.5 inches

Xavier Crawford, CB: 37.5 inches

Broad Jump

Sean Bunting, CB: 126.0 inches

Xavier Crawford, CB: Did not compete

20-Yard Shuttle

Sean Bunting, CB: Did not compete

Xavier Crawford, CB: Did not compete

60-Yard Shuttle

Sean Bunting, CB: Did not compete

Xavier Crawford, CB: Did not compete

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