Category: College Pro Days

Stunning upset loss to Kentucky cools the hype for Ole Miss QB Jaxson Dart

Stunning upset loss to Kentucky cools the draft hype a little for Ole Miss QB Jaxson Dart

We got a great example this weekend of why one-week reactions are but snapshots and not full pictures of players and draft prospects. Coming into the weekend, Ole Miss quarterback Jaxson Dart was surging with the unbeaten Rebels, looking a lot like a more aggressive version of Broncos’ first-rounder Bo Nix.

However, Dart’s wave crashed on the shoals in a stunning upset by Kentucky. It’s not that Dart played poorly in the game, a 20-17 Wildcats win on an offensive fumble recovery in the end zone with a little over two minutes to play. But Dart’s inability to get much going against the best defense he and the Rebels have seen all year puts a damper on the draft buzz.

Dart led just two touchdown drives against a Kentucky defense that flew around the field with aggressive discipline. He completed just 18 of his 27 passes, netting 261 yards and a touchdown. Dart had thrived on his consistency all season, but this performance was more uneven.

Take the final Ole Miss drive, which came after Kentucky took a 20-17 lead. Dart made a bad choice in trying an ill-advised keeper on first down, then was inaccurate under pressure on second and third downs. Fourth down saw Dart remind everyone why he’s still a very impressive prospect on the whole. A picture-perfect pass to Caden Prieskorn kept the drive, and unbeaten hopes, still very much alive.

Yet Dart couldn’t seal the deal. He just missed his running back on a wheel route that was there for the taking on the next play, then took a terrible sack on second down when he had chances to throw the ball away or tuck and run and gain more yards for his field goal kicker. He got let off the hook on a lost fumble on the next play with a twitchy offsides call. Those yards proved precious, as the 48-yarder that would have tied the game (very badly) missed.

A comeback win in a game like this would have provided another big feather in Dart’s draft hat. It’s certainly not all on Dart, but the fact he couldn’t avoid the upset will work against him with many evaluators. It was Dart’s weakest performance–by far–on the season, one that should cool the momentum a bit on the ballooning draft hype that saw Dart floating as a top-15 pick in many mock projections.

One game shouldn’t weigh on the full picture like that, but given how easy of a schedule Dart and the Rebels had faced, it was seen as a validation test going in. Dart’s still good–he’s firmly a top-40 overall prospect on my board, but the illusion of his near-perfect first four games took a hit.

Cooper DeJean shines at his private pro day

Iowa DB Cooper Dejean shines at his private pro day

Iowa defensive back Cooper DeJean held a private pro day for NFL evaluators on Monday. The likely first-round draft prospect did not disappoint.

DeJean missed Iowa’s pro day, as well as the NFL Scouting Combine and the Senior Bowl, with a broken leg. Based on his athletic testing on Monday, he has recovered quite nicely.

At just over six feet tall and 202 pounds, DeJean ran a 4.42 40-yard dash as timed by an NFL scout. He posted a 10-yard split of 1.55 seconds and vertical jump of 38.5 inches.

DeJean can play cornerback or safety, and different teams view him as one or the other, or even both a la Brian Branch a year ago. This workout should solidify DeJean as a top-25 overall pick in the upcoming draft.

J.J. McCarthy impressed as the prime attraction at Michigan’s pro day

MIchigan’s pro day brought in all sorts of coaches and GMs, and McCarthy was the featured attraction

Nearly 200 NFL personnel crowded into the University of Michigan’s pro day workout on Friday. While the Wolverines had 18 players who had previously worked out at the NFL Scouting Combine, there was one clear prime attraction: quarterback J.J. McCarthy.

Now widely considered to be a top-10 pick, and perhaps top-5 overall selection, McCarthy did what quarterbacks are supposed to do at pro days. He threw with clean mechanics and accuracy while successfully executing the tightly scripted series of passes to various Wolverine targets.

Per sources in Ann Arbor, the head coaches and GMs of the teams with the first three picks in the draft — Chicago, Washington and New England — were all in attendance. All three are expected to select quarterbacks in next month’s draft.

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Offensive line coaches flocked to Notre Dame’s pro day

The OTs were the headliners, but some other Fighting Irish prospects had very impressive performances at the pro day, too

One of the biggest stops on the pro day tour on Thursday was in South Bend for Notre Dame’s workout. All 32 NFL teams were represented in some capacity to check out 13 Fighting Irish prospects.

The primary attraction was the two offensive tackles, Joe Alt and Blake Fisher. Eight offensive line coaches attended the workout to catch Alt, likely the first offensive tackle to be selected, and Fisher, a likely Day 2 pick.

The OL coaches in attendance:

Bears

Broncos

Chargers

Eagles

Giants

Jaguars

Jets

Patriots

The duo did not disappoint:

Running back Audric Estime and safety Thomas Harper also tested very well. Harper in particular showed off incredible athleticism that could help get him drafted in April:

The GMs from the Cowboys, Commanders and Packers were also in attendance.

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2024 NFL draft: Caleb Williams’ pro day confirms his status as the No. 1 pick

Caleb Williams threw at the USC pro day and did all he needed to confirm he’ll be the No. 1 pick in the 2024 NFL draft by the Chicago Bears

Presumptive No. 1 overall pick Caleb Williams had his pro day at USC on Wednesday. After choosing to not do anything other than interview at the NFL Scouting Combine, the NFL world anxiously awaited the Trojans quarterback performing in front of hundreds of personnel gathered from all 32 teams.

The Chicago Bears, owners of the top pick and in desperate need of a new quarterback, sent nearly a plane full on their own. Also on hand was new Bears wideout Keenan Allen, who was traded to Chicago last week.

Williams threw in the outdoor session, and by all accounts threw pretty well.

He even threw one left-handed, just because:

Not everything was ideal. Williams measured in shorter than expected at just over 6 feet. He’s a little smaller than Baker Mayfield, one of the players he’s sometimes compared to and a former No. 1 overall pick coming from the same collegiate offense (at Oklahoma, where Williams began his college career). Mayfield faced considerable scrutiny for his height–or lack thereof– but that hasn’t been brought up much in Williams’ case.

Williams did everything he needed to do to confirm he will be the No. 1 overall pick by the Bears next month.

The Bears show loads of interest in offensive prospects at Oregon’s pro day

All 32 NFL teams were at Oregon’s pro day workouts, but nobody sent more coaches than the Chicago Bears

Tuesday’s top collegiate pro day was in Eugene for the Oregon Ducks workouts. All 32 NFL teams were in attendance, though some were represented more heavily than others.

No team sent more resources and high-level personnel to the Ducks pro day than the Chicago Bears. Specifically, the Bears had six members of their staff in Eugene to check out the plethora of prospects.

Per Jim Nagy of the Senior Bowl, the Bears dispatched head coach Matt Eberflus and offensive coordinator Shane Waldron were there for the festivities. Other sources on the ground indicate new Chicago WR coach Chris Beatty was in attendance. Offensive line coach Chris Morgan was also there, a day after he witnessed Oregon State standout Taliese Fuaga at the Beavers’ pro day.

Among the Ducks prospects they got to watch, listed in expected order of draft selection:

IOL Jackson Powers-Johnson

QB Bo Nix

WR Troy Franklin

RB Bucky Irving

CB Khyree Jackson

DT Popo Aumavae

Marshawn Kneeland attracts a big crowd for Western Michigan’s pro day

Rising 2024 NFL draft prospect Marshawn Kneeland attracts a big crowd for Western Michigan’s pro day

One of only two pro days on the workout circuit attracted quite a crowd to Kalamazoo on Monday. Nearly everyone was there to watch one player: Western Michigan defensive end Marshawn Kneeland.

Kneeland, from nearby Wyoming Godwin Heights High School in Grand Rapids, was one of seven WMU Broncos players participating in the pro day. Let’s just say that over 50 scouts and coaches from 23 NFL teams didn’t make the trip to watch WR Leroy Thomas or TE Austin Hence.

After opting to stand on his outstanding NFL Scouting Combine athletic testing numbers, scouts eagerly watched the 6-foot-3. 267-pound Kneeland go through positional drills.

Kneeland’s workout was run by New York Jets defensive line coach Aaron Whitecotton. At least four other NFL defensive line coaches were at the workout inside the Seelye Center on WMU’s campus.

Kneeland has definitely risen in the draft process, beginning with an excellent showing at the Senior Bowl. He’s had to answer questions about a relative lack of productivity — just 4.5 sacks and 7.5 TFLs in 10 games in 2023 — for several NFL teams already. Among them are the Chiefs, Seahawks, Bills, Eagles, Lions, Falcons and Texans.

Illinois CB Devon Witherspoon passes the speed test at his pro day

Illinois CB Devon Witherspoon held a private workout after missing the combine and pro day with a hamstring injury

Illinois cornerback Devon Witherspoon did not work out at the NFL Scouting Combine or the regularly scheduled Fighting Illini pro day in March due to a hamstring injury. The likely top-25 pick in the 2023 NFL draft was well enough to participate in a scheduled private pro day workout on April 5th.

Witherspoon showed no ill impact from the injury. He clocked in the low 4.4 range in the 40-yard dash at his workout. Several teams had defensive back coaches in attendance for Witherspoon’s impressive athletic display.

Clemson EDGE Myles Murphy impresses in his private pro day

Myles Murphy held his own private workout after missing Clemson’s pro day and the combine with a hamstring injury

Clemson EDGE Myles Murphy held his much-anticipated private workout on Tuesday. The potential top-20 pick did not disappoint after staging his private session.

Murphy didn’t work out at Clemson’s pro day last month or at the NFL Scouting Combine due to a minor hamstring injury. Everything looked fine in his workout athletically.

The pass rusher checked in at 268 pounds and just under 6-foot-5. Murphy’s unofficial testing numbers from various sources at the event:

40-yard dash: 4.52 seconds
10-yard split: 1.61 seconds
3-cone drill: 7.22 seconds
Vertical jump: 31 inches
25 reps on the bench press

For a man of his size, those are very impressive workout figures.

Those numbers closely compare to Green Bay Packers EDGE Rashan Gary, the 12th overall pick in the 2019 NFL draft. Murphy bagged 6.5 sacks and recorded 11 TFLs in 13 games as a junior in 2022.

 

Florida QB Anthony Richardson shows just how high his ceiling is at the Gators pro day

Richardson showed off his outstanding arm strength with one particular throw

Anyone who follows college football or the NFL draft even a little knows the prodigious physical talents of Florida Gators QB Anthony Richardson already. The 6-foot-4, 244-pounder rewrote the Scouting Combine athletic record books earlier this month.

Richardson got another chance to show NFL talent evaluators from all 32 teams just how high his ceiling can be. Literally. At Florida’s pro day on Thursday, the 20-year-old launched a rocket of a deep ball that hit the ceiling of the Gators’ indoor training facility.

After his workout, Richardson was asked by former Gators wideout Chris Doering of the SEC Network if it was intentional. Richardson admitted that he saw Kentucky QB Will Levis do the game thing earlier this week at UK’s pro day. Richardson smilingly added that he was trying to throw it through the ceiling to one-up Levis.