The Honey Badger Tyrann Mathieu -- I Was the BEST PLAYER at the NFL Combine

Honey Badger ain't modest ... not even a little bit ... 'cause the former LSU superstar football player tells TMZ he believes he was the BEST player at the NFL combine, period.

Tyrann Mathieu arrived in L.A. yesterday ... where he's all set to participate in a segment for ESPN's "Sports Science" ... but while he waited for his bags at LAX, the 20-year-old talked all about his upcoming career as an NFL pro.

Among the topics -- Mathieu told us which NFL team he wants to play for ... why he excelled at the combine ... and how he's focused on returning to greatness after his recent drug issues.

Tyrann had a rough year in 2012 ... getting kicked off the LSU football team for violating team rules. A few months later, he was arrested for drug possession.

But Honey Badger put together an impressive NFL combine last month -- running a 4.50 in the 40-yard dash ... and excelling in position drills.

He's projected to be drafted somewhere close to the 4th round -- but it's possible someone takes a chance on him early when the NFL Draft goes down in April.