Quinnen Williams thought he was on a train. But it was just a dream, and a troubling one at that.
It was the night before the 2019 NFL combine in Indianapolis, and Williams, a 6-foot-3, 303-pound defensive lineman out of Alabama, was trying to get some sleep.
But there was one problem.
"The train station hotel," Williams said, referring to the downtown Indianapolis hotel where the players stay. The hotel is connected to the Indianapolis Convention Center, which hosts the combine, and it's also adjacent to Union Station. "Throughout the night, trains would come through and they'd wake you up in the middle of the night.
"One night I heard a train going by, and I actually thought that the bed I was sleeping in was on a train. I woke up freaking out, the night before the combine, and that's just crazy. It kept me up all night."
.@QuinnenWilliams is MOVIN' 👀
— New York Jets (@nyjets) March 3, 2019
📺 #NFLCombine on @nflnetwork pic.twitter.com/srraMgeaDf
This year's prospects will try to block out the distractions as they try to focus on a variety of physical tests, interviews and other aspects of the combine, which is now underway. Those who excel could climb draft boards -- as Williams did when the New York Jets drafted him No. 3 overall after he ran a 4.83 in the 40-yard dash, the fourth-fasted time for someone over 300 pounds since 2003 -- while others may be left wondering what went wrong.
"I didn't have a combine because of COVID [in 2021]," Denver Broncos All-Pro cornerback Pat Surtain II said. "I would have definitely liked to go for the experience. I know a lot of guys had memorable experiences there."
It's true players have had memorable experiences, but not all of them were good. Here are some stories from combine week, one of the most important parts of a prospect's pre-draft process.
Kyle Van Noy, Baltimore Ravens, linebacker
Combine: 2014
The Detroit Lions drafted Van Noy No. 40 overall. The Pro Bowler and two-time Super Bowl winner just concluded his seventh season.
Van Noy's most vivid combine memory is one that could have derailed his draft process.
"I almost broke my [left] arm on a camera," he said. "I was doing linebacker drills, and I was in the catching segment and was coming across, and the ball was thrown a little out of reach.
"I went for it, missed it, and then slid on the turf into the camera and jammed my arm. The camera was moved after, of course.
"I kept going. I probably should have stopped, but kept going."
Rome Odunze, Chicago Bears, wide receiver
Combine: 2024
While standout receivers Marvin Harrison Jr. and Malik Nabers opted not to participate in the testing portion of the combine last year, Odunze made a point of embracing every drill. In fact, despite being projected as a top-10 pick, Odunze did the three-cone drill five times because he wasn't satisfied with his first four. That dedication resulted in him being the last player on the field that day.
"My goal was just to get the correct time that I wanted," Odunze said. "They said I had cheated in a way or done the drill wrong a couple of times, so I didn't agree with that. But my goal was to go out there and do everything in the combine, compete in every single event.
.@RomeOdunze won't leave the field until he hits his target of 6.6 on the 3 cone drill.
— NFL (@NFL) March 3, 2024
Total dedication. #NFLCombine pic.twitter.com/vIxbd3V52k
"I trained for it, so I wanted to go see what I can put out there. When they kept not giving me a time, and I got a time that I was like, that's not even close to what I can do, I had to continue to keep going."
The Bears selected Odunze No. 9 overall, and he turned in a strong rookie season with 54 receptions for 734 yards and three touchdowns.
"[The combine is] a high-pressure situation," Odunze said. "A lot of different parts, a lot of different things going on.
"It's fun to be able to go out there and compete against generations of football players that have gone through the combine, but I also don't agree with it being the biggest measure of what a player's potential is. The [idea] that if you have a good combine performance, that you're the best player ever, I don't agree with that."
Joel Bitonio, Cleveland Browns, guard
Combine: 2014
The Browns drafted the seven-time Pro Bowler and two-time first-team All-Pro with the 35th pick.
Bitonio has a theory as to why some prospects find it hard to get their rest at the combine.
"My memory of it was just how busy it was," he said. "You're interviewing somebody, drug tests, all types of -- to me -- crazy things that don't really relate to football that much, but they had you doing so many interviews. After those four days, I was exhausted.
"I remember going to bed at 10 or 11 at night and being woken up at 5 or 6 in the morning. And the funny thing is you would think that they would want guys to be at their best when they're performing, but it's almost like they want you a little bit down to see how you're going to perform when you're not quite at your peak."
Ryan Hoag, retired, wide receiver
Combine: 2003
Hoag played at Division III Gustavus Adolphus College in St. Peter, Minnesota. What he remembers the most about the combine was being the "most stressed out I've ever felt in my entire life."
"I was the first ever Division III player to be invited to the combine," he said, "so I feel like whether I was cognizant of it at the time, I felt like all of Division III was kind of counting on me.
"I knew that speed was the reason that I was noticed from a small school, and I ran 4.33 prior to the combine, so I had an expectation that I was going to do better. I moved to New Orleans and trained with Tom Shaw, the world renowned speed guy, and I was like, alright, I'm going to run 4.2 and I'm going to turn everybody's heads."
But there was a big problem.
"[I had] Asics marathon shoes," he said. "Back then it was on the hard AstroTurf in Indy. I should have had little nubs almost that you wear on an indoor surface, but I didn't know if they were allowed. I got these light shoes, and I was like, oh, that's what's going to separate me and I'm going to run the fastest, and then I realize they have no lateral support and there's no grip because they're meant for a marathon, not sprinter shoes. And I didn't even take them out of the box until I got to Indy.
"So I ran the first 40 and I slipped and realized really quickly that I can't sprint with these. So I went to my buddy who was also at the combine and I borrowed his high-top Jordans and did the rest of my drills with high-top Jordans. I wonder what I would've got had I actually had legit shoes. I think they were around the right size, but I didn't care."
Hoag actually turned in the best three-cone time of any position at 6.72, but the 40-yard dash did not go as planned.
"I remember [former Vikings director of college scouting] Scott Studwell looks at me and is like, 'So what happens when you run a 4.5?' And I was like, 'That's not going to happen,'" Hoag recalled. "And he looks at me, he's like, 'So what happens when you run 4.5?' I was like, 'That's not even in my vocabulary.' And he looks at me again, he's like, 'So what happens when you run 4.5?' I was like, 'I'll do better next time' or something like that. And I ran 4.5."
The Oakland Raiders drafted Hoag with the last pick of the draft, but Mr. Irrelevant did not play in a regular-season game. He did earn some acclaim by being a member of the fourth season of "The Bachelorette," but he didn't make it past Week 2.
Brian Branch, Detroit Lions, safety
Combine: 2023
The Lions drafted the Pro Bowler with the 45th overall pick, but at least one of his combine results was so bad he wants to run it back even two years later.
"It was rough," he said. "I thought I was going to run at least a high 4.4 in the 40, and then I ended up running way higher than that (4.58).
"Sometimes I still feel like I want to run it again, but I know everything happened for a reason."
Derwin James Jr., Los Angeles Chargers, safety
Combine: 2018
The Chargers drafted the four-time Pro Bowler and former first-team All-Pro with the 17th pick.
James recalls how the line of questioning at combine interviews didn't always pertain to football.
"You've got to be mentally locked in, because it's a lot of different questions," he said. "They may ask you about football, they may ask you about life. I had one team asking me about an algebra equation. It's just part of the game, though. They're just trying to test your mental fatigue and test your mental strength."
Drake Maye, New England Patriots, quarterback
Combine: 2024
With Caleb Williams a lock to go No. 1 to the Bears last season, the debate was over who would be picked second: Jayden Daniels or Maye.
The Washington Commanders chose Daniels at No. 2, but one of Maye's most vivid combine memories was sitting in front of coaches like Washington's Dan Quinn.
"Walking into a room and feeling like everybody's looking at you, seeing how you act and just being really the elephant in the room," Maye said. "They're all watching you and looking at you and [you're] just answering questions.
"I was sitting in front of Sean Payton, Dan Quinn. I was sitting in front of head coaches all across the league. It's kind of surreal and it was kind of different and more intimidating."
DJ Moore, Bears, wide receiver
Combine: 2018
Moore had a solid combine, leading receivers in the broad jump (11-feet) and finishing with the second-best vertical jump (39 1/2 inches).
The Carolina Panthers drafted Moore, who would become one of the most prolific receivers in franchise history, with the 24th overall pick. Carolina later traded him to the Bears.
"It was pretty easy," Moore said. "The longest part is the formal interviews, and then the train station (where they do informal, speed-dating-type interactions with teams) is annoying, but it's worth it at the end of the day.
"And then the Wonderlic Test, that's annoying, too. Because you have to sit there and take a test. You just got out of college. Nobody wants to take another test, but I get what it's there for."
ESPN NFL reporters Courtney Cronin, Michael DiRocco, Stephen Holder contributed to this report.