DE hopes to avoid draft drop

Merling to hold pro day workout to minimize risk after recovering from groin injury

By PAUL STRELOW - pstrelow@thestate.com

CLEMSON — Phillip Merling is not sure whether his inability to work out for NFL teams the last month has hurt his draft stock.

The 6-foot-4, 276-pound defensive end and his representatives hope to minimize that risk.

Merling, a St. Matthews native who entered next weekend’s NFL Draft after his junior season, will conduct a scaled-down pro day workout on campus Thursday, his agent, Jimmy Sexton said.

The workout comes two days before teams figure to have to make a choice on selecting Merling, projected as a first-round pick by some.

In late February, Merling skipped all but the bench-press portion of the NFL Combine because of a groin injury.

The next week, he underwent surgery for a sports hernia and has been recovering since.

“I’m just going to show them that I’m ready,” Merling said. “I can move and can cut and am still strong and explosive.”

Merling said he sustained the groin injury early last season but played through the pain and discomfort.

He was cleared to begin strength and conditioning training Thursday.

Because of the long layoff, he will not run the 40-yard dash or do the bench-press, but he will conduct position-specific drills to show scouts he is not far from being able to participate in their initial training camps.

“I don’t think it would be fair to me right now to have to run,” Merling said. “But I think it would be fair to let teams see me move.”

Merling has taken visits to Minnesota (No. 17 overall pick), Tampa Bay (No. 20), Washington (No. 21) and San Francisco (No. 29).

However, in a week when many top prospects fly around the country for 11th-hour follow-up interviews, Merling has canceled the rest of his scheduled visits in order to train for his pro day.

“The most important part of the process is my play,” Merling said. “And I can’t play unless I do rehab.”