By Dan Parr
Feb. 23, 2008

INDIANAPOLIS — Felix Jones would like to come out from the shadows. Then again, it wouldn't be so bad to stay, either.

For three seasons, Jones' good friend and Arkansas teammate, Darren McFadden, has loomed large as the Razorbacks' No. 1 running back. While Jones was stuck in the background, McFadden collected awards and accolades like they were pocket change.

Felix Jones

“I look forward to creating a name for myself, but, at the same time, I did kind of like (playing with McFadden) because we were a tremendous tandem,” he said.

The 20-year-old will try to carve his own niche this weekend here at the Combine. Though both he and McFadden, each of whom left school after his junior season, are projected to run a 4.4 40-yard dash, Jones says he's faster. He stood at the podium Friday, surrounded by less than half the media contingent that McFadden had attracted earlier in the day. With a smile that grows wider the further he gets into an answer, he told reporters he could be a featured back in the NFL.

Scouts disagree.

Jones' biggest weakness is his perceived lack of durability. The PFW scouting report says he lacks strength, bounces the ball outside too often and needs to become a better blocker. It may explain why the 5-foot-10, 207-pound back will participate in the running drills at the Combine workout, but not the lifting.

McFadden, Oregon's Jonathan Stewart and Illinois' Rashard Mendenhall are all rated higher than Jones, who is projected to be selected in the late-first or second round of the draft.

One observer, however, disagrees with that evaluation. Someone asked McFadden who the second-best running back in the draft is.

“Everybody might have a different opinion, but mine would be Felix Jones,” McFadden said.

“I know what Felix can do. If he was the featured running back at Arkansas, I think he would have been (in) the same (position that I am). I feel like he could've started anywhere in the country if he wasn't playing behind me.”

Jones said the thought of transferring to another school, where he would have almost automatically become a starter, never entered his mind.

“I don't think back,” he said. “Woulda, shoulda, coulda. I just keep moving forward.

“Once I made my commitment to Arkansas, I was a Razorback for life.”

After getting a sense of their personalities, the way things shook out at Arkansas seems fitting.

“Darren's a more outgoing person,” Jones said. “I'm a more laid-back type of guy. I like to sit around and watch people do what they do. I'm just the guy in the back.”

Arkansas WR Marcus Monk, who also is in Indianapolis for the Combine, agreed with his teammate's description.

“Felix, he's quiet,” Monk said. “He just smiles all the time, where Darren is more outspoken.”

Jones spent much of his time Friday defending McFadden, who is facing questions about his character not just from the media, but from prospective employers who may draft him in April, as well. McFadden was involved in a brawl outside a Little Rock, Ark., nightclub in January and was handcuffed by police, but he eventually was released and did not get charged with any crime.

“(McFadden's) a loving, caring guy,” Jones said. “I know he's a good guy.

“He's always been a good friend of mine, and he'll always be a good friend of mine.”

Playing second fiddle is a role Jones has mastered, on the field and off, as he sometimes takes more questions about McFadden than himself. He was trained to play the part by two older brothers who made sure to keep him on his toes.

“I can tell you a story about my brothers chasing me around the house,” he said. “I would go outside and run around the corner, and they would chase me all the way down the street. That's when I finally realized that if I can run away from them, I can run away from anybody.”

Sprinting beyond the shadow of McFadden may be his toughest challenge yet.

Related Articles:

Summary of NFL Combine content