COLUMBUS, Ohio- Immediately after his Pro Day, Chris Worley was asked, not only about his performance, not only about his future in the NFL, but about the status of the starting linebacker position at Ohio State. However, when describing what the mentality of players like Tuf Borland and Dante Booker should be, he kind of summarized his collegiate experience in two sentences.
“If you don’t bring your s*** here, you are going to get passed up,” Worley said. “If you get passed up, nine times out of 10 you aren’t going to get it back.”
Worley did not get passed up. Moving through all three-linebacker positions in his time at Ohio State, the 6’2”. 230-pound Cleveland, Ohio native has developed the versatility that NFL teams are very fond of.
However, Worley did feel he had to catch up a bit during his first few weeks after his final collegiate game. Missing three games this season due to a foot injury, the linebacker felt as though he was further behind heading into the East-West Shrine Bowl in January 2018.
However, that did not stop him from proving something to those in attendance that week in St. Petersburg, Florida.
“The All Star Game I played in, you know, killing that… leading the game in tackles, all that stuff, kind of put me back to, not where I was before the injury, but put me back up there in the names of, ‘alright, this guys is who we though he was,’” Worley said.
The former Ohio State linebacker led the East team with eight tackles, recording one tackle for loss. Along with that, he showed coaches versatility, playing all three-linebacker positions during the course of the East’s 14-10 loss to the West.
These intangible qualities continued Worley through the NFL Combine. Despite not putting up the numbers he wanted, Worley said that everything else, from the fieldwork to the meetings with teams in Indianapolis, went great.
For Worley, the numbers are not what set him apart.
“I know my intangibles outweigh anybody’s for the most part,” Worley said. “If there are two guys that they think is close in intangibles then that’s when they really revert to the numbers. I know my intangibles are going to outweigh just about any linebacker they put me up against.”
With the ability to play every linebacker position, Worley said he can do whatever teams ask of him from those spots, from stopping the run to helping in pass coverage.
With those qualities, Worley said he already has meeting scheduled prior to the NFL Draft with the Houston Texans, the Tennessee Titans, the Pittsburgh Steelers, who already have former Ohio State linebacker Ryan Shazier, and the Cincinnati Bengals.
Even with meetings set up, Worley does not compare that to where other players at his position are. He said he is done with comparing himself to other players.
“For the most part, I would be looking at guys and just be looking like they can’t be serious with this guy. They think he is that good and, you know, better,” Worley said. “After a while, you kind of get away from it because if you think about that too much, your mind is going to be not where it needs to be. The only thing you should be worrying about is yourself and getting better.”
Currently projected as a late-round draft pick or an undrafted free agent, Worley is confident, saying that all the teams love him right now. However, he knows the reality of his draft situation. For the former Ohio State linebacker, one phone call will do the trick.
“All you need is one,” Worley said.
