ATHENS — Brock Bowers can’t wait to just focus on football again.
The star Georgia tight end continues to navigate the NFL draft process. He was on hand to support teammates at Georgia’s pro day on Wednesday.
But unlike Ladd McConkey and Kamari Lassiter, Bowers and offensive tackle Amarius Mims were unable to work out on Wednesday. They are both dealing with hamstring injuries that prevented them from participating in any on-field drills.
The hope is for both to hold a private workout for NFL teams in early April.
“I’d rather just be training for football. But it happens. I’m getting faster,” Bowers said. “I’d rather be working out here with all the guys but stuff happens.”
Bowers estimated that he first tweaked his hamstring about two weeks ago. He did not work out at the NFL combine.
In the mind of head coach Kirby Smart, any inquisitive NFL decision-maker needs to only turn on the tape to see what Bowers is capable of doing.
“Watch the tape. The tape speaks for itself,” Smart said. “Nobody really asks about Brock because everybody’s seen him. They’ve been to our practices. They know what he can do. I don’t think there’s a lot of questions about Brock Bowers’ toughness or ability.”
Bowers and Smart both made it clear that the tight end is 100 percent healed from an ankle injury that forced Bowers to miss four games during this past season. Even with the absence, Bowers still led Georgia in receiving and won the Mackey Award.
Bowers is seen still as a first-round pick, expecting to come off the board at some point in the middle of the first round.
Mims may end up waiting a little bit longer, due to it being a deep tackle class. Mims has only eight starts during his Georgia career, something that both the offensive tackle and Smart see as an overblown narrative.
Mims also missed time due to an ankle injury. He was able to run at the NFL combine, putting down an impressive 5.07 40-yard dash. Mims is confident he could do better, especially as he injured his hamstring while running the 40-yard dash.
“I ain’t going to say super happy because I know I can run faster than that,” Mims said. “My 10-yard split is what got me. On my start, I know exactly what I did wrong.”
Mims hopes he can show off his full talents to scouts at the April workout.
“I’m more than just a big guy, big tackle. I feel that I can move very well, move even better than other guys,” Mims said. “I think I can bend well. Move around, show guys I can pull, get on the edge. Big splash plays.”
Bowers and Mims both expressed their desire to be with their teammates one more time, as McConkey, Lassiter and others went through drills on Wednesday.
Instead, they’ll have to continue to rehab and get healthy for NFL teams.
“I think they want to be healthy,” Smart said. “The number one thing is being 100 percent when you work out. If they were 100 percent, they would probably do it today. This is not an extension of the season. This is throughout their training.”
Landing in the first round will validate the whole process for the two.
They both know that playing and practicing at Georgia will do far more for their NFL career tha a 3-cone drill or bench press.
“It’s all about the mindset coming from here. We work so hard every single day,” Bowers said. “The coaching, the people were are practicing against, we’re practicing against so many gifted guys. So that helps a lot.”
