The 2019 NFL Combine is taking place in Indianapolis, as NFL draft prospects attempt to further convince teams to select them in April. The wide receivers invited to the event went through a series of drills to conclude the day, which was led by highly touted Ole Miss pass-catcher D.K. Metcalf.
Here are the winners and losers from Saturday:
WINNERS
D.K. Metcalf | Ole Miss
Metcalf was the talk of the combine on Saturday. After matching N’Keal Harry with a top mark of 27 reps on the bench press on Friday, Metcalf came out and blazed to a 4.33 40-yard dash, which stood as his official time.
The 6-foot-3 and 228 pound wideout then displayed smooth catching ability and adjusted nicely to the ball. Metcalf did post an disappointing 3-cone (7.38) and short shuttle drill (4.5), which was evident in the tightness of his cuts due to his muscle mass.
Nonetheless, he showed that he’ll be the first receiver off the board, and now the only question is how high does he go.
Parris Campbell | Ohio State
Campbell was among our favorites that we figured should blow up the combine, and the former Buckeye did just that on Saturday.
Campbell tore up the 40 as expected, putting up an outstanding time of 4.31-seconds. He was smooth running the deep route and made a nice catches there, then also looked picture perfect running the gauntlet.
With the arrow pointing up, Campbell made the point to all NFL teams watching that he can open up an offense and be a dynamic weapon for whoever selects him.
N’Keal Harry | Arizona State
Harry, who was not known for being a burner, surpassed most expectations on Saturday. Many were expecting him to run in the 4.7s with his 40-yard dash.
But he threw up two runs unofficially in the 4.5s before an official mark of 4.53 beat his unofficial time. Despite a couple drops, Harry then looked strong in the receiving drills.
A borderline first rounder, Harry may have helped his case to seek in towards the back end of it. If not, a team at the top of Day 2 will be getting a great vertical and red zone threat.
Emanuel Hall | Missouri
Hall was an absolute monster in athletic testing, posting an 11-foot-9 broad jump, which was the second-best in combine history for any position behind Cowboys’ cornerback Byron Jones.
He then proceeded to run a 4.39 40-yard dash, showcasing the speed to pair with what seen on film, as he was one of the best deep threats in the country.
Unfortunately, he decided not to participate in the receiving drills, leaving many with the desire to finish watching the show that he was putting on.
Miles Boykin | Notre Dame
Boykin may not have been a household name before Saturday’s testing, but fans should be well aware of him now.
After measuring in at an impressive 6-4 and 220 pounds, Boykin put on a show on the Lucas Oil Stadium turf, running a 4.42 40-yard dash, a 43.5-inch vertical jump and a 140-inch broad jump.
Even in a deep receiver class, Boykin made some serious waves with his performance Saturday, which could force NFL teams to go back to his film and move him up their draft boards.
LOSERS
Riley Ridley | Georgia
Riley, the brother of Falcons’ Calvin, didn’t have the day that he was expecting. Ridley didn’t post the most ideal 40-yard time with 4.58 seconds, nor did he prove much with his 30.5-inch vertical.
Despite the below-average athleticism, Ridley was fine catching the ball in the drills, but there are a lot of analytics that are fighting against what’s seen on the film, especially given his lack of production (43.8 YPG).
Lil’Jordan Humphrey | Texas
Humphrey was viewed as a potential sleeper entering the combine, Jordan didn’t help his case after posting the slowest 40 time (4.75 seconds) among wide receivers.
Humphrey didn’t help his case in the on-field drills, as he failed to do much to make up for his lack of speed in the gauntlet. These numbers will certainly draw concerns about his ability to win one-on-one matchups down the sideline.
