Dennis, Anyone?

Most potential draft picks have multiple opportunities to impress. For Dixon , this was the Senior Bowl, the combine and pro day rolled into one—the first time he was throwing for an audience since that Arizona game. Fisher stood with the scouts, his Handycam rolling. The sideline was packed with people who'd hastened Dixon 's recovery—doctors, trainers, coaches, staffers and, of course, his father. No one spoke above a whisper.

Dixon threw every kind of pass, even the Hail Mary. He missed a few. He favored his knee a little. But at the end Jeff Horton, a St. Louis Rams offensive assistant, was shaking his head in admiration. "This guy had surgery three-and-a-half months ago, and you see him here today—his arm strength, his mobility," said Horton. "I think he helped himself a lot."

A few scouts playfully asked Oregon coaches not to send video of the workout to other teams. But Fisher was already hustling up to his office with his Handycam, ready to download and edit the new footage. By nightfall it was online.