Todd....
Carson Wentz, QB, North Dakota State
Wentz and
Jared Goff separated themselves from the pack even more this week. After entering Indianapolis with the best tape of the QB crew, they both put on a clinic during the on-field drills Saturday. Wentz, in particular, showed quick feet in his drops and excellent timing/placement on his throws. He's been consistent throughout the postseason process, and there have been very few surprises from his tape. I was told that Wentz could test similar to Andrew Luck, but that didn't really come to fruition. As the chart below shows, Luck had a much stronger workout session at the combine, despite the two QBs having very similar frames. With that said, Wentz's testing numbers were all around average for the position, so teams won't come away from the combine with concerns in that regard.
Combine Results: Luck Vs. Wentz
..............................LUCK...............WENTZ
Height.....................6-4......................6-5
Weight...................234.....................237
Hand size...............10".....................10"
40-yard dash.........4.67....................4.77
Vertical jump..........36"....................30.5"
Broad jump...........10-4....................9-10
Miracles...................0..................Numerous
Jared Goff, QB, Cal
On tape, Goff is a naturally accurate thrower who displays above-average anticipation. Not much changed during on-field passing drills Saturday. He showed off his smooth stroke and threw the ball with good touch and accuracy throughout. Goff isn't an elite athlete -- his measurables in the 40-yard dash, vertical jump and broad jump were all average or slightly below average for his position -- but we knew that coming in. While he will never be a legit running threat in the NFL, he shows the ability on tape to escape pressure and occasionally scramble for a first down. That's exactly what teams want to see. The only red flag for Goff this week?
His 9-inch hands.
Will Fuller, WR, Notre Dame
Fuller cemented himself as one of the fastest WRs in this class with a scorching 40 time of 4.32 seconds. To put that number into context, only one other receiver broke 4.4 (
Kolby Listenbee, 4.35) and the third-place guy came in at 4.42 (
Trevor Davis). That's exactly what scouts wanted to see from Fuller, who's a vertical burner on tape. My NFL comparison for Fuller right now is Jets WR Devon Smith, who was drafted out of Ohio State last season. They have similar frames (a shade over 6-foot and around 190 pounds). Fuller ran the 40 a full tenth of a second faster at the combine, but Smith showed more consistent ball skills on tape. Fuller had a lot of drops in college, and we got a possible explanation for why: His hands measured just 8¼ inches, smaller than Smith's (9 inches) and well below the five-year average for WRs (9¼ inches).
Paxton Lynch, QB, Memphis
Let's start with the positive: Lynch looks the part -- 6-foot-6½, 244 pounds, 10¼-inch hands. And the ball gets to his receivers in a hurry. Lynch has the strongest arm of the top-three quarterbacks, and he showed off a great deep ball on Saturday. But he comes from an offense that relied on a lot of screens and short routes, and when asked to throw a more diverse set of passes during on-field drills, he was inconsistent with his accuracy. He plays with loud feet, and is still working through his drops. Lynch is an intriguing prospect, but he's not nearly as polished as Goff or Wentz.
Sterling Shepard, WR, Oklahoma
Shepard needed to run well, and he did, posting a 4.48 40-yard dash. He also showed great explosiveness in his jumps -- 41 inches in the vertical (tied with
Josh Doctson for No. 1 among WRs) and 10 feet 2 inches in the broad. Shepard didn't do as well in the agility drills, but that's an area in which he excels when you're watching the tape. He's a highly instinctive slot WR with good route-running ability and a history of showing up in big moments. His performance in Indy might have solidified him as a Day 2 pick.
Braxton Miller, WR, Ohio State
Miller didn't raise any red flags with his 4.50 40-yard dash, but it was underwhelming considering he checked in at a shade over 6-foot-1, weighed 201 pounds and was expected to run in the low 4.4s. He'll need to run faster at Ohio State's pro day on March 11. On the bright side, Miller blew away the agility drills as expected, running the short shuttle in 4.07 seconds (tied for tops among WRs) and the three-cone in 6.65 seconds (third-best). Those quick feet are why many are intrigued by Miller, who has been playing wide receiver for less than a year. Much like at the Senior Bowl last month, Miller continues to look more natural as a pass-catcher.