The NFL knows how to maximize viewership on every day of the football calendar. As such, it's no surprise that it saved the quarterbacks, running backs, and wide receivers for Saturday's NFL Scouting Combine festivities.
Fernando Mendoza, Jeremiyah Love, and a stacked class of wide receivers will headline the event, but it's the depth behind them that makes this crop so exciting. There's an open race for RB2, plenty of room for movement under center, and dozens of receivers vying for draft capital.
Their performance, both during athletic testing and position drills, will matter to NFL evaluators, giving us a glimpse into how stocks can change in an instant.
We'll keep track of the best and worst performances from Day 3 of Combine drills as we race our way to the 2026 NFL Draft.
Live winners and losers from the NFL Combine
--------------------------------------------
**Winner: Jeremiyah Love, RB, Notre Dame**
That didn't take long. Love's run was highly anticipated, particularly regarding the 4.40 threshold. He cleared it with relative ease, posting a 4.36 40-yard dash. There was little debate about Love's ability to hit the home run, but confirming that he has Jahmyr Gibbs-level explosiveness is helping make the case that he's more than just RB1.
**MORE:** [Why isn't Jeremiyah Love running the three-cone drill?](https://www.sportingnews.com/us/nfl/news/why-isnt-jeremiyah-love-running-3-cone-drill-nfl-combine/3b20c2945135902680e406d0)
He's firmly in the discussion to be a better prospect than last year's No. 6 pick, Ashton Jeanty, and comparable to Saquon Barkley and Bijan Robinson from recent years. This is a special prospect, and while his 40-yard dash couldn't do much to improve his stock, it was an exciting moment of confirmation bias.
**Loser: Emmett Johnson, RB, Nebraska**
Johnson's game is built around explosiveness within structure and an ability to match his footwork and vision to win between the tackles. That left the door open for some minor concerns about his ability to hit home runs at the next level.
He didn't help himself out during the 40-yard dash.
Johnson's 4.56-second 40-yard dash wasn't disastrous by any means. But it was the slowest of the group (partly a selection bias issue), and certainly wasn't ideal when matched with a 202-pound frame. It's reminiscent of Kaleb Johnson from last year, whose disappointing Combine performance reignited concerns about his big-play proclivity.
**Winner: Mike Washington Jr., RB, Arkansas**
Nobody helped their stock more during the 40-yard dash portion of the RB workout than Washington, who let the tears flow after a potentially life-changing run.
At 6'1", 223 pounds, Washington was the fourth-biggest back at the Combine. He was also the fastest. His 4.33-second 40-yard dash was elite, and adjusting for size makes it one of the most impressive marks of the weekend. That alone is enough to be a draft pick, and there's no doubt he's moving up boards as we speak. It was the definition of a "call the family" moment, and he took full advantage.
More NFL Draft news
-------------------