Combine Report: QB/WR Group 1

I decided to do this installment of the Combine Report a little differently because of how the players worked out on Sunday. Because of the endless hours of tape I have to go over, this is the most efficient way to get things done. Here is my take on the first group of quarterbacks/wide receivers that were on the field on Sunday.

Guys Who Impressed: QB – Robert Griffin III, Kirk Cousins, Jordan Jefferson, Aaron Corp. WR – Justin Blackmon, Michael Floyd, Stephen Hill, Danny Coale, Junior Hemingway.

Let’s start with the QB’s. RG3 absolutely stole the show with his 4.4 40, and although he didn’t throw, I think it’s safe to say he’s going second overall to the highest bidder. Cousins didn’t shine in the measurables, but I thought he showed the best in the throwing drills. He was really spot on all day with his throws, and I think he really helped his cause with this workout. Jefferson is a pretty interesting case. He wasn’t a regular starter at LSU, but he ran a 4.65 40 and he showed an absolute cannon in the drills. He has some off-field issues, but I really liked what I saw. Corp is a guy who was pretty highly regarded coming out of high school, and I think he could be a sleeper in this draft. He looked solid throwing the ball, and his 4.72 40 was far better than I thought he would run.

Now, onto the WR’s. Blackmon didn’t run the 40, but he did do the drills and I thought he looked absolutely excellent. His route-running was more crisp than I expected, and his hands looked as good as advertised. I’m not hugely concerned about his 40 time, but as long as he doesn’t put up a terrible number he should hold steady at the top-5 pick. Floyd really helped his cause with his workout, starting with his 4.47 40. He has good size, and he showed nice hands and routes as well in the drills. Hill stole the show in this WR group in my opinion. He is 6-foot-4, and he posted a 4.36 40, which was the fastest time of anyone at his position. His hands looked outstanding, and although his route-running will need polish, he might have just launched himself up draft boards. Coale and Hemingway are both lower-ranked guys who I thought helped their respective causes. Coale is a great athlete and he did a good job in drills, and Hemingway ran faster than I expected and looked great in the gauntlet drill.

Guys Who Disappointed: QB – Case Keenum, Nick Foles. WR – Greg Childs, Darius Hanks, Juron Criner

I think the two QB’s listed here could both be NFL QB’s in the future, but they didn’t show it at the combine. Keenum really struggled throwing the ball, and I really thought he had a chance to open some eyes. It got to a point where if there was a low throw in the drills, I didn’t even have to look to know it was Keenum. I like the guy a lot, but he was not impressive. Foles is a guy that was pretty highly ranked coming into the season, but he struggled some during the year and looked pretty stiff in the drills. I thought he might be another guy who could take advantage in this workout, but he didn’t.

As far as Childs goes, he just really didn’t do it for me. He had some drops early, and although he got better as the day went on, he looked slow. Hanks and Criner weren’t bad, but they didn’t do anything to distinguish themselves in the group. They both ran slow 40s, and they didn’t look outstanding catching the ball. After running slow, these guys needed to step up in the drills and they didn’t.

Stay tuned for group 2 of QB/WR tomorrow, which includes Andrew Luck.