Michigan Football: Stock watch for Wolverines after NFL combine

Winovich runs well and shows the versatility

Rashan Gary and Devin Bush are the two Michigan football players most likely to get picked in the first round of the NFL draft, however, Winovich could push himself into that conversation after a really good showing at the combine.

Winovich wasn’t a highly regarded prospect when he came to Michigan and even played tight end for a while before he moved over to defense and eventually found a home at defensive end for the Wolverines.

Winovich burst on the scene as a sophomore in 2016 and started showing his prowess for making plays in the backfield with 8.5 tackles for loss and five sacks. He followed that up with 34.5 tackles for loss and 13.5 the past two seasons starting for the Wolverines.

At 6-foot-2 and 256 pounds, Winovich may be a little small to play defensive end in a 4-3, at least full time, but he should fit nicely as an edge rusher. His run defense is stout and he took part in coverage drills and looked pretty smooth after running a 4.59 in the 40.

Certainly, it would be a transition moving him to outside linebacker, but Winovich is a football player and with his explosiveness off the edge, plus his speed, it wouldn’t be shocking if he found his way into the bottom of the first round. Worst case scenario: Winovich goes early round two but right now, he feels like a top-50 pick.