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49ers Insider: Team mulls drafting LB despite heart issue
By Matthew Barrows - mbarrows@sacbee.com
Published 12:00 am PDT Saturday, April 12, 2008
Story appeared in SPORTS section, Page C2
SANTA CLARA – Quentin Groves, an Auburn linebacker the 49ers are eyeing in the upcoming NFL draft, had minor heart surgery last month, but the team says it is not concerned about it.
Groves set Auburn's career sack record, and the 49ers could take him with the 29th pick in the April 26-27 draft. General manager Scot McCloughan attended Groves' pro day at Auburn last month, and the team is scheduled to interview him again Friday in Santa Clara.
In February, Groves was diagnosed with Wolff-Parkinson-White syndrome, a condition in which the heart has an extra circuit that can cause it to beat faster than normal. Groves had that extra circuit removed March 27 and has been fine since, according to his agent, Sean Kiernan.
"An (electrocardiogram) taken seven days after surgery shows he is completely normal," Kiernan said. "He no longer has (the syndrome), and there are no long-term ramifications to this condition."
Groves stands 6-foot-3 and weighs about 255 pounds. Although he dropped out of the Senior Bowl in January at the last minute, he was a star at the NFL scouting combine a month later. He ran the 40-yard dash in 4.57 seconds – excellent for someone who played defensive end in college – and bench-pressed 225 pounds 30 times.
The 49ers likely would make him a weakside outside linebacker where his primary responsibility would be rushing the passer.
Other players who will visit the 49ers before the draft include Cal wide receiver DeSean Jackson, Florida defensive end Derrick Harvey, Clemson defensive end Phillip Merling and Oklahoma wide receiver Malcolm Kelly. All of those players likely will be taken in the first or second rounds, although Harvey and Merling are projected to be off the board when the 49ers pick.
The team also will host Western Washington linebacker Shane Simmons and Fresno State guard Ryan Wendell. Both are expected to be late-round picks or undrafted free agents.
The 49ers can invite up to 30 prospects before the draft. Because they like to coach the Senior Bowl, however, the 49ers usually are familiar with most of the top players and typically invite fewer than the allotted number. The team also will hold a so-called local pro day Friday for all draft prospects who either grew up in Northern California or went to school in the area.
About the writer:
- Read Matthew Barrows' 49ers blog at www.sacbee.com/blogs.
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