What are the big things that matter from Day 2 of the 2019 NFL Combine, the quarterback, wide receiver and tight end workouts?
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The 2019 NFL Combine continued with the quarterbacks, wide receivers and tight ends. It wasn’t a big day for the quarterbacks, but the receivers were interesting, and …
5. It’s Done … Three Tight Ends Will Go In The First Round
Overall, it was a terrific day for the position, but it mostly confirmed what we already knew.
TJ Hockenson and Noah Fant of Iowa, and Alabama’s Irv Smith, are going to go in the first round.
Fant was the workout star, leading the way with a 39.5″ vertical, finishing with a tight end-best 4.5 in the 40, and ending up third in the 20-yard shuttle. His ran a lumbering 4.7 in the 40, but that was expected considering all his other skills and tools.
Hockenson was thought to be a top ten pick before, and now that’s cemented. He was second in the 20-yard shuttle, was second behind Fant in the broad jump and vertical, and was solid through the other drills.
Smith measured like a fullback at 6-2 and 242 pounds. The 4.63 40 was solid – third overall – and he moved well in the other drills and was who he was expected to be. It might be late in the first round, but he’s still considered a top 32 pick.
San Jose State’s Josh Oliver had a good workout – he’s a receiver who tied Smith in the 40 and cranked up 22 reps on the bench.
On the flip side, Boston College’s Tommy Sweeney and Texas A&M’s Jace Sternberger didn’t stand out. They’re both top 50 overall picks, but they weren’t fast, both came up with just 17 reps on the bench, and didn’t do anything to stand out.
The scouting world loves Georgia’s Isaac Nauta among the top five tight ends, but he also confirmed what many didn’t want to believe – he’s not fast, he’s not athletic, and he’s undersized. The 4.91 40 was painful, and he had the worst vertical – 28″ – of those who did the drill.
NEXT: Dwayne Haskins Should Probably Be The First Quarterback Taken
4. Dwayne Haskins Should Probably Be the First Quarterback Taken
Kyler Murray won the Combine because he was 5-10 and not 5-9 1/2, and then he made it a blowout by not working out and letting everyone else show just how mediocre they were.
But here’s the problem – he didn’t throw and he didn’t workout. Dwayne Haskins did.
If you’ve got the arm, and you’ve got the tools, and you’ve got the talent, then why not show off? If wasn’t a perfect workout – and blow off the brutal 5.04 40 – but when he unleashed the flurry, he gave the scouts what they wanted.
He showed the New York Giants what the probably want.
The Ohio State star looked like a terrific potential NFL pocket passer, but he also showed off a few hitches that need to be corrected. Even with any and all concerns, as the saying goes in the NBA Draft and applies here, if you’re going to miss, miss big.
Haskins isn’t going to miss. However …
NEXT: The Other Quarterbacks Didn’t Really Show Up
3. The Quarterbacks Didn’t Really Show Up
Missouri’s Drew Lock was fine. He’s got the arm, and showed it a little bit, but he didn’t do anything to rise up and demand to be a sure-thing first rounder.
NC State’s Ryan Finley was good enough, and Duke’s Daniel Jones didn’t hurt himself, but overall, the group of quarterbacks was the opposite of the “don’t think, just throw” cliché.
None of them stood out from the pack as anything memorable enough to make a team think Super Bowl right away, but there were a few mid-to-late round fliers who helped their respective causes.
Penn State’s Trace McSorley led the way with a 4.57 40 and was accurate enough to look the part of a solid backup. But he also looked small, especially compared to Tyree Jackson of Buffalo.
The 6-7, 249-pound Jackson couldn’t quite find the range on his throws, but that’s also because he trusted his arm enough to fire in shots that most had to put air under. He also ran a fantastic 4.59 in the 40 – second to McSorley – and led the way in the vertical.
NEXT: The Wide Receivers Were HUMMING
2. The Wide Receivers Were HUMMING
LSU’s DJ Chark wowed the Combine last year with a 4.34 in the 40, and USF’s Marquez Valdez-Scantling tore off a 4.37. Those were the unit two to go sub 4.4.
Washington’s John Ross set the record in 2017 with his 4.22 – and now he’s parting ways with Cincinnati – and Ohio State’s Curtis Samuel ran a 4.31. Those were the only two to go under 4.4.
Two went under the 4.4 mark in 2016, and four did it in 2015 – but JJ Nelson, Phillip Dorsett, Kevin White and Chris Conley haven’t set the NFL on fire.
Seven receivers destroyed the 40 in this year’s Combine, with Ohio State’s Parris Campbell and Andy Isabella from UMass running 4.31s, Georgia’s Mecole Hardman and DK Metcalf of Ole Miss rapping off 433s, Ohio State’s Terry McLaurin running a 4.35, and Missouri’s Emanuel Hall and Auburn’s Darius Slayton running 4.39s.
11 other receivers were in the 4.4s, and that includes big targets who were expected to hang around the high 4.6s. AJ Brown of Ole Miss (4.49) and Iowa State’s Hakeem Butler (4.48) helped themselves in a big way.
Arizona State’s N’Keal Harry came up with a solid 4.53 – when some speculated a 4.7 was coming – and Oregon’s Dillon Mitchell showed off a 4.46 to help his cause. But Saturday was …
NEXT: The DK Metcalf Show
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1. DK Metcalf Made Himself A Whole Lot Of Money
Yeah, there were other fast receivers. Yeah, there were other really good-looking prospects. Yeah, it was a good day for the wideouts.
But there was only one DK Metcalf.
Already a legend for his rocked up physique like someone out of 300, he looked like a potential first round talent thanks to his 6-3, 228-pound size and physical upside. And then he did this …
The 4.33 for a guy his size was ridiculous, especially to go along with his 27 reps on the bench – more than any tight end – vertical over 40″, and broad jump that was fifth among all the Saturday prospects.
There are still medical concerns after suffering a neck injury last season, but now he’ll start to enter consideration for the top ten overall as a freak of nature’s freak of nature.
He needs to be a better wide receiver, and he still needs polish, but after this, he’s now the all-timer tools target.
