Under the Microscope - 2018 NFL Combine Wide Receiver Testing

Turn on the Bright Lights

Last week we looked at the NFL Player Combine results of the lunch pail guys on the Offensive Line, the unsung heroes who make it all happen. This week, we look at the guys who make the highlight reels with high flying catches, spins away from defenders and that extra gear to take it to the house:  Wide Receivers.  

For all their glitz, receivers have arguably the least interesting Combine trials -  the raw data shows a lot of guys near the middle of the pack.  The table below only highlights those qualified performers who posted above average aggregate measures.

The Metrics

Each athlete was ranked based on their overall performance in the 40 meter dash, short shuttle, broad jump, vertical jump and the bench press. For every event except the bench press and vertical jump, each player was ranked based on their actual or raw  measure and an adjusted measure which considers body mass.  Bench press was graded on the actual work generated with consideration to the athlete's mass.  Vertical jump was graded 3 ways:  actual, adjusted for body mass and the jump as a percentage of the athlete's height. 

Each player was ranked based on their finish for each event and the distribution of scores for each event. Each performance was assigned a grade which correspond to the colors and fonts used in the table:

• Superior - Greater than 2 standard deviations above the mean.  This is designated by Bold font with a Green background. (Our top 3 finishers each claimed superior grades in two categories).
• Outstanding - Greater than 1 SD above the mean.  Designated by plain font with a Green background.
• Above Average - Within 1 SD above the mean.  Designated by bold font with Yellow background.
• Below Average - Within 1 SD below the mean. Designated by plain font with Yellow background.
• Poor - Greater than 1 SD below the mean.  Designated by plain font with Red background.
• Dang, Son - Greater than 2 SD below the mean.  Designated by bold font with Red background.  (There was only one, "Dang, Son" awarded and that was in the bench press to a dude who is about 170 lbs so I guess I can forgive it.)

 The Top 13

 Of all the wide receivers at the Combine, based on the grading described above, 13 separated from the pack with 8 qualifying as Above Average and 5 as Outstanding. 

And the Winner Is...

Your daddy never warned you about Texas Tech alum Dylan Cantrell, former high school first team all-state in Texas.  Last I checked, they tend to take their football very seriously in the Lone Star state.  Dude was a top 3 finisher in each of the broad jump, short shuttle and vertical jump.  Out of the 10 categories used for grading, he scored #1 four times and was lower than 4th only twice.  His average ranking was 4.00 making him the "winner" of the NFL player combine for receivers.  As one of my sleeper QB's is Nic Shimonek, I have a lot of opportunity to watch Cantrell this past season.  Given can now be, arguably, called the most athletic receiver in this year's NFL Player Draft, I will have to do more homework on him as a prospect. 

The Other Outstanding Prospects

• The two DJ's, Moore and Chark finished #2 and #3, respectively.  Both had less than ideal circumstances to create a resume at their respective schools, Moore behind a Terps team that was still putting together their identity during his tenure and Chark who played behind 2 NFL calibre WRs most of his career having just one season as "the Man" with a signal caller who was not quite a household name.  Despite their challenges, each DJ is getting a lot of media attention to help their draft stock.
• He Ain't No Joke - Jester Weah was picked up off the Return on Investment radar last year and has continued his solid work in terms of efficiency for his senior year.  Not a household name, Weah finished top 5 in 6 different categories which had to help improve his visibility as a possible draftee.
• J'Mon Moore formerly of Mizzou cleared up any doubt about that may have existed regarding his athleticism by having the best raw bench and raw broad jump results of the entire WR Combine group.  His Achilles' Heel was his 40 time but if scouts look at his explosiveness metrics (broad and vertical jumps), he could  erase any doubts and cash in on improved draft position. 

Above Average Group Comments

The receivers finishing 6-10 above are all well known commodities in the NFL draft game, so one would expect to see them above.  However, numbers 11, 12 and 13 are receivers who I have not seen the same level of media coverage.  Each one could make a strong push between now and the draft to improve his status:

• Jaleel Scott former JUCO transfer to New Mexico State has been gaining attention over the last few months.  He's a big bodied receiver who is a smooth runner with nice hands.  He's a guy who is easy to root for as we approach the draft.
• Korey Robertson formerly of Southern Mississippi is someone on which I have a lot of work  to complete but I'm looking forward to it.  The former 2x All-State (MS) athlete was responsible for 50% of the Golden Eagles TD receptions last year so he will definitely require a solid look. 
• Davon Grayson formerly of ECU has had to fight back from several injuries over his college career that may impact his overall draft position.  Despite it all, he had one heck of a combine, showing out in the broad jump and the bench press, the latter very impressive as he was listed at about 175 lbs on various pre-Combine sources.  A high ROI efficiency player, watching his ridiculously fast feet on video has been a real treat.  If he can show he has beaten the injury bug, this man could be the steal of the draft. 

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Post Combine Ballot

Once the Combine wraps up, we will start accepting ballots for the final DraftTwitter Top 100 aggregation through the week before the NFL player draft.  Please reach out to have a ballot (which is on an Excel online based spreadsheet that is quick and easy to use) by leaving a comment or emailing me at boombearfootballmail@gmail to have a ballot link forwarded to you.