Welcome back from Day 2 of the NFL Combine. Today rounded out the rest of the offense with the quarterbacks, wide receivers, and tight ends all working out. The highlights of each position.
Quarterback
– Memphis’ Paxton Lynch is a huge dude at 6’6/5 244 pounds but still managed to jump 9’10” in the broad and a crazy 36 inch vertical.
– Jared Goff had a nice day. As many others noted, he has a smooth, quick release that showed overall plus ball placement. His small hands were talked about way too much, not that it’s irrelevant but too made too much out of, and hopefully the showing he had today will quiet those concerns.
– Western Kentucky’s Brandon Doughty is on the smaller side of things but I liked his ball placement today, especially on the nine routes. Outside shoulder three times in a row.
– Another Brandon. Brandon Allen throws a catchable ball and wasn’t trying to fire every throw will all he had. Made it easier on his receivers.
– Trevone Boykin is viewed in some circles as a wide receiver but his 4.77 40 at 212 pounds isn’t going to get teams excited. Thought he was someone trying to throw heat on everything, hurting his ball placement. Probably not the day he was hoping to have.
– Christian Hackenberg, much like his college career at Penn State, was all over the place. He can spin a pretty ball but some of the intermediate timing throws were off. Ball coming out too high. From a workout perspective, I don’t think he did much to shed the concerns he had coming into Indy.
– Carson Wentz was solid. Quick and efficient in his drop, the ball really came out strong. All starts with the lower half and hips, creating that torque and power. Personally thought he was the best QB of the day, even ahead of Jared Goff.
– Kevin Hogan has worked on his release a little, the ball isn’t dropping down and away like it was, but he’s still pushing the ball. Didn’t look great but whenever you’re working on mechanics, there is going to be a rough patch. Hoping he looks a lot better at his Pro Day, as he should.
– You heard the NFL Network guys talking about it but I swear I was thinking the same thing before they said it. Nate Sudfield has an ugly drop, especially at the top, and isn’t transferring energy from his back to front foot to really be able to drive the ball. At 6’7, he’s a big, rigid thrower from Indiana.
– Joel Stave out of Wisconsin has a weird kick with his back foot. Usually see the back foot swing around but his foot doesn’t. I know many have wondered why he’s even here. Many think he’s an easy UDFA.
Wide Receiver
– Couple of natural hands catchers that don’t have top speed were as advertised. Josh Doctson and Tyler Boyd. Doctson killed it at the gauntlet. It was about as good as it gets, plucking away from his frame with soft hands that brings the ball in. You’ll probably see the highlights of him adjusting to the last ball of the gauntlet a ton on TV and online.
Ditto with Boyd and the pair both showed the same running the route tree.
– I know there’s a mini D.J. Foster fan club on here and I thought he caught the ball well today. Didn’t run fast, a 4.57 official, but is able to get his hands away from his frame.
– Notre Dame’s Will Fuller had the best 40 of the day, a 4.32, and one of only two players to test in the 4.3’s of the receivers. There were concern over his hands, in drops and size, but I don’t think he had one today. Most of the receivers showed good hands. Quiet your weakness and highlight your strength? That’s a good day.
– Up and down day for Ole Miss receiver Cody Core. In the gauntlet, he plucked the ball away from his body but in some of his route tree work, he was letting it into his body. I did like the work he put into selling his routes with a nice head fake on his go route. Also can say the same about Arizona’s Cayleb Jones do the same, and I appreciate the attention to detail running on air.
– Bowling Green’s Roger Lewis and Illinois’ Geronimo Allison were inconsistent. Lewis plucked the ball well but didn’t time well, running a 4.57. Allison has length and a wide catch radius but looked predictably stiff in his breaks and could struggle to seperate. And being a big, tall guy, isn’t really a special trait. There a ton of them. I do want to get into his tape though.
– Oregon’s Bralon Addison probably had the most trouble with the gauntlet with two drops. As a short guy, just over 5’9, he didn’t run well either with an official 4.66.
– I’m pretty mixed on Charone Peake but he had a strong workout today. In an overall slow class, for him at 6’2/3 209 to run a 4.47 is excellent. Caught the ball cleanly, too. If he can tighten up his routes, he can be something in the NFL.
– Tajae Sharpe caught 111 footballs this year and it showed at the Combine. A natural, he’s used to plucking the ball or making difficult catches. Ended the day on a high note for this group, diving for the ball on a post-corner, nearly grabbing it, only to see the ball pop up and make the catch while sitting on his butt. It wouldn’t have counted in the NFL but I love the adjustment and hand/eye coordination.
– I praised Malcolm Mitchell on the first day of Senior Bowl practice, noting that he creates separation well and received a lot of praise from the Jacksonville Jaguars’ coaching staff. Carried that over today with one of the few impressive 40 times, a 4.46, with a 36 inch vertical and 10’9″ broad. He made a sick one-handed grab on an out route thrown behind and showed explosion on his post-corner, a difficult route that asks you to change direction in a short amount of space.
– Consider me a fan of Chris Moore, I”ve praised him a ton and have mocked him to the Steelers in the late rounds in several mocks I play around with, but he struggled to catch the football today. Several drops. He tested reasonably well, though.
– De’Runnya Wilson put up offensive tackle numbers in his workout. 4.85 40, 28 inch vert, 9’5″ in the broad. For comparison, OT Jason Spriggs ran a 4.94, had a 31 inch vert, and 9’7″ in the broad. Wilson is a big dude at 224 pounds and caught the ball well but man, that’s downright ugly. According to NFL Combine Results, that 4.85 is the slowest 40 timed since it began tracking data back in 1999.
– Toledo WR Alonzo Russell is someone I’ve been critical of but he ran reasonably well (4.54) and caught the ball clean today. Still thought he was rounding off too many of his routes and you could see him strain when asked to run a post-corner.
– Hunter Sharp, the other Sharp out of Utah State, was more of a body catcher than I wanted to see and ran a 4.58, a less than impressive time.
– Ending on a positive. Cal WR Trevor Davis is a kid I knew nothing about but tested very well. On the lighter side at 6’1, 188 pounds, but ran a 4.42, jumped 38.5 inches, and a broad of 10’4″. He’s been a successful kick returner, too, and someone for Steelers’ fans to keep in mind in the 7th round.
Tight End
– Mike Mayock called UCLA’s Thomas Durate a “rocked up receiver” and it showed in his blocking. No leverage and didn’t get his feet under him, letting his hips unlock and generate power. All arms. Don’t ask him to block.
– Just disappointed Hunter Henry wouldn’t do any testing. He worked out in drills so there isn’t an injury. Just sounds like he didn’t want to. You come here to compete and you’re the general consensus best TE. Go show it man. Annoys me.
– I am not that well-versed in the group here but Virginia Tech’s Ryan Malleck is a good athlete who seems to gets to speed quickly. Showed a 34’5 vert and 10’1″ broad, above average numbers. He did drop four passes in the gauntlet, including three the firs time through.
– Nick Vannett, the tight end we’re all circling for Pittsburgh, choice not to work out (why?) but performed well in drills. Natural pass catcher who moved quickly down the gauntlet despite catching just 19 passes in 2015.
– Some were impressed by Beau Sandland’s workout but he looks too much like a body catcher and got exposed in the gauntlet. Good athlete but making a small school jump.
– I’ve been whispering about David Morgan for awhile and though he had the slowest 40 at 5.02, he’s an accomplished blocker who hit the bag hard in drills. Showed soft hands and some crispness underneath. If his tape can match up, give me him in the 7th and I’m a happy Alex.
