Clayton News Daily

Special Photo Jamaal Johnson-Webb

JONESBORO — By Saturday afternoon, thanks to Twitter, word was getting around about Jamaal Johnson-Webb’s arms.

The former Mundy’s Mill High offensive lineman and Alabama A&M offensive tackle had the third longest arms — 35.75 inches — of the 61 offensive linemen present at last week’s National Football League Scouting Combine in Indianapolis, IN.

“They like to see those long arms in a lineman,” Johnson-Webb said. “As long as your arms are, that’s as far as you can keep a pass rusher off of you. With my arms extended, he can’t get his hands on me.”

That was one of the highlights for Johnson-Webb as he went through countless drills, tests and interviews with steel-faced NFL scouts looking on.

Johnson-Webb posted “pretty average” results in several common Combine drills. He was clocked in the 40-yard dash at 5.3 seconds. He recorded a 23-inch vertical and hoisted up 17 reps at 225 pounds on the bench press.

He called the results “average,” but said he did not consider average to be a bad thing.

“I think my time at the combine went smooth,” Johnson-Webb said. “I improved on everything that I set out to improve upon in training. Being average in comparison with the other guys is a win for me, being from a smaller school and all. I definitely don’t think I hurt myself or anything.”

Especially not in the 20-yard shuttle drill. His 4.74 second time put him in the top 10 among offensive linemen.

While in Indy, the 6-foot-6 320-pound tackle/guard said he talked with perhaps 15 teams, including the Dallas Cowboys, Philadelphia Eagles and the Super Bowl champion Baltimore Ravens.

If nothing else, Johnson-Webb said his combine experience gave him a glimpse at how life in the NFL will be vastly different than anything he’s experienced in his career.

“You can just see how the NFL is like a business,” he said. “When you get there you’ve got to go to the hospital for a physical, getting your blood drawn. They strip you down pretty much to your underwear. It’s like a meat market. They want to know everything about me.”

Webb-Johnson will soon have another day in front of pro scouts — this time closer to home. Alabama A&M will host its Pro Day on Wednesday March 6.

Now armed with the familiarity of the combine experience, Johnson-Webb said he just wants to focus on becoming a little bit better than average.

“I know I can improve on my bench, my 40 and my vertical,” he said. “Pro day is just like the combine. I’ll go in already knowing what to expect.”