Biggest Winners From Pitt's 2024 Pro Day

PITTSBURGH -- The Pitt Panthers have wrapped up their 2024 Pro Day with a handful of players offering standout performances.

Three Panthers in particular stood out above all others and did themselves many favors as they try to pursue a professional football career in the NFL.

AJ Woods, Cornerback
Woods wasn't invited to the NFL Combine and at his Pro Day, he peroformed like someone who took that personally.

Woods recorded a 4.35-second 40-yard dash that would have been the fifth-fastest time from a cornerback at the NFL Combine and his 6.56-second three-cone drill time would have been the best among his position at the Combine. He also put up 16 reps on the bench press. Woods tested well and showed what kind of athlete he is but Pitt head coach Pat Narduzzi believes NFL teams will see more than an athlete when they turn on the film.

“Everybody knows about Bub and everybody knows about the guys who were at the Combine, obviously Matt and M.J. - everybody knows those three. But I’d say the one guy that really turned some heads was A.J. Woods," Narduzzi said. "And again, some guys are Pro Day guys, they can come out here and run around the cones really good, but if you look at what he did today and then you come back and put the film on, A.J. Woods is a good football player.”

Matt Goncalves, Offensive Tackle
Goncavles' final season at Pitt was cut miles short of expectations by a preseason toe injury but after a months-long of recovery that meant he missed workouts at the NFL Combine, he finally felt good enough to run through drills at his Pro Day. He doesn't feel 100% healthy just yet but, facing his last chance to workout in front of a host of scouts, Goncalves wasn't going to let the opportunity pass.

“I had to show what I got," he said. "A lot of people were probably looking forward to me going to the combine but I told myself Pro Day was probably the right time and it never really crossed my mind that I wasn’t going to perform. I was going to come out here and show something, whether that was just position drills or bench or whatever it is.”

Goncalves was able to muster a 5.06 40-yard dash and 30.5-inch vertical jump. His bench press and three-cone drills were less impressive, relative to his peers at the NFL Combine, but by simply stepping onto the field, he proved that he is well on his way to a full recovery and.

Shayne Simon, Linebacker
Simon was productive during his two-year stint as a starting linebacker for the Panthers from 2022 to 2023, amassing 94 total tackles, 13 tackles for a loss, seven sacks and eight passes defended in 25 games while moving around from outside to inside and flashing some versatility.

“Being versatile and do a lot of different things is my calling card,” Simon said. “Hopefully I continue that, and today was something that allows me to [look good}.”

Simon showed explosiveness on the field at the UPMC Rooney Sports Complex, posting a three-cone drill time and bench press rep number that both would have ranked the best among NFL Combine linebackers. On film, Simon will show good instincts and pass converage skills that will be notable for a player that stands 6'2 and weighs 229 pounds. He might not get drafted, but Simon almost certainly put himself on the radar of NFL teams with his performance at Pro Day.

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