James Daniels
Center | Iowa | Junior
Height: 6-foot-3 | Weight: 306 pounds
College Stats
2017: started 12 games at center; All-Big Ten Honorable Mention; Academic All-Big Ten
Career: started 25 of 37 games played (two at left guard in 2015, 23 at center from 2016-17); Third-Team All-Big Ten selection by coaches and media in 2016
Combine Results
40-yard dash: did not participate because of a hamstring injury
Bench press: 21 reps of 225 pounds
Broad jump: 9 feet (tied for 10th among offensive linemen)
Vertical jump: 30.5 inches (tied for sixth among offensive linemen)
3-cone drill: 7.29 seconds (second among offensive linemen)
20-yard shuttle: 4.40 seconds (first among offensive linemen)
View images of Iowa center James Daniels.
Profile
Summary: Daniels earned three letters as an offensive and defensive lineman at Harding High School, the same alma mater as Vikings Legend Korey Stringer, in Warren, Ohio. He earned All-State Honorable Mention honors after his junior and senior campaigns before opting to go from the Buckeye State to the Hawkeye State for college.
Daniels teamed with his older brother, LeShun Daniels, Jr., at Iowa from 2015-16. LeShun played in four games for Washington in 2017.
Their father played at Ohio State and in one game at guard for the Vikings in 1997.
Stacking up: NFL Media analyst **Mike Mayock** ranked Daniels as the third-best interior offensive lineman in this year's field. **Bucky Brooks** listed Daniels as the fourth-best among offensive guards/centers, calling Daniels "a high-IQ pivot with enough athleticism to control the interior triangle in the running game."
NFL Media's Daniel Jeremiah ranked Daniels as the No. 22 overall prospect after the combine, nudging him up from No. 25 in Jeremiah's initial Top 50.
Jeremiah views Daniels as "**very athletic and technically proficient**," quick and effective in run blocking and able to use great balance to anchor himself in pass protection.
"Daniels is one of the best center prospects I've evaluated in the last five years," Jeremiah added.
Going for pro: Daniels was asked at the 2018 NFL Scouting Combine about his decision to enter the draft with a year of college eligibility remaining and said that Iowa Head Coach Kirk Ferentz was the one to tell him he'd garner significant interest from NFL teams.
"Right after the Nebraska game, Coach Ferentz brought me in and talked to me and said I'd have the opportunity to be able to leave early," Daniels explained. "So, he asked around and then we filled out the paperwork for the NFL draft advisory committee. With all of the feedback he got, we thought it'd be best if I declared early."
