Every NFL coach, scout and general manager knows about Oregon running back LeGarrette Blount punching a Boise State player last season. But they want to hear his explanation.
“I’ve basically told them that I overreacted,’' Blount said of NFL teams asking him about the punch at the scouting combine in Indianapolis. “It was a heat-of-the moment type of thing. The guy I punched didn’t deserve to be punched. It was just a mistake.’'
The Associated Press reported on several players at this year’s combine for whom the 40-yard dash will be less important than the one-on-one interviews that give them the chance to explain incidents that cast a shadow over their college football careers.
In addition to Blount, players who have some explaining to do include Florida defensive end Carlos Dunlap, who missed the SEC title game after a DUI arrest, Florida linebacker Brandon Spikes, who was suspended for poking an opponent’s eye, and Syracuse receiver Mike Williams, who was suspended from the team in 2008 and then left the team in 2009 under mysterious circumstances.
Giants General Manager Jerry Reese says it’s important to ask pointed questions to such players in one-on-one interviews.
“We try to ask all the tough questions, and we want to make sure it’s an isolated incident,’' Reese said. “If the guy has a long list, we want to make sure we have all of our T’s crossed, so we’re very cautious about it.’'
