Illinois defensive lineman Johnny Newton, the reigning Big Ten defensive player of the year, will not run this week at the Scouting Combine. But he expects to work out for NFL teams before the draft.
Newton said on PFT Live today that he is not working out at the Combine because he played through a Jones fracture (a break in a small bone near the pinky toe) late in the season and is recovering from post-season surgery, but he expects to work out at the Illinois pro day.
Newton said the player he wants to emulate in the NFL is Warren Sapp, and that he wants to terrorize quarterbacks the way Sapp did.
“I grew up on Warren Sapp. That’s my favorite defensive tackle ever,” Newton said. “I want to hit all of them. I want to kill all of them.”