Finding Broncos: Combine Risers and Fallers Day Three
The quarterbacks took the field, and the Denver Broncos have been heavily linked with multiple guys. They are set to move on from Russell Wilson, but the question is, who will be their next quarterback? Some of the top guys at the position didn't partake in the on-field stuff, and some only did the drills.
They had to throw to someone, so the wide receivers also took the field. The Broncos are looking to rebuild their room, with the status of Courtland Sutton, Jerry Jeudy, and Tim Patrick currently unknown. Marvin Mims is also in the room, but he showed out as a returner as a rookie and needs to show more as a receiver.
The running backs also took the field, and the Broncos have been rumored to want to add more to the room. Overall, it was an impressive day for the running backs, and it was hard to find some fallers. So, let's get into the risers and fallers from the third day of the workouts, starting with the running backs who kicked off the day.
Running Backs:
Riser: Isaac Guerendo | Louisville
This is one of the players who has helped themselves the most at the combine. Word is his interviews have been great; he measured well, tested well athletically, and then killed in the drills.
Riser: MarShawn Lloyd | USC
Lloyd started answering questions at the Senior Bowl about his receiving ability and continued to answer those questions with great work in the receiving drills. His footwork was smooth and clean in the running drills.
Riser: Braelon Allen | Wisconsin
It was good to see Allen come in about 10 pounds under his listed weight at Wisconsin. He looked a little smoother in the drills than you see on tape, and he was working to correct some of the techniques.
Riser: Frank Fore Jr. | Southern Mississippi
It shouldn't be a surprise that Gore nailed the drills. He has been doing these for years and stood out with doing everything as you want it to be done.
Riser: Dylan Laube | New Hampshire
The receiving ability was made clear, as he was consistently the best with the receiving drills. His footwork in the running drills was sound, and he tested out well.
Faller: Audric Estime | Notre Dame
The footwork on tape is quite good, but it was clunky, and his feet looked heavy at the combine. It is almost like he pressed too hard and got inside his head. He also tested out a little worse than expected.
Faller: Trey Benson | Florida State
Benson tested out exceptionally well, but the drills were rough. He, like Estime, has sound footwork on tape, but that wasn't the case at the combine. There were a few drills he seemed to try and cheat a little with the footwork, creating some hiccups.
Faller: Daijun Edwards | Georgia
It was a rough day for Edwards, who didn't have much positives during the drills. He is a high-waisted runner, and he couldn't correct that. Add his clunky footwork and rough route running, and you get a poor showing.
Quarterbacks:
Riser: J.J. McCarthy | Michigan
While he didn't do the athletic testing, McCarthy did the drills. Some throws were off-target, but he was consistent enough to hit all the NFL-level throws. As he pushed to cement himself as QB4 or even rise to find himself as QB3, he left it all on the field. There was no other quarterback who even came close to having as good of a workout as McCarthy.
Riser: Spencer Rattler | South Carolina
Rattler's performance was very up and down. On some routes, he was much cleaner than others. It was clear that he didn't have the timing down with the receivers, but he did show he could make all the throws.
Riser: Joe Milton II | Tennessee
Milton could have easily been a faller, cheating the drills with his footwork. He would take a seven-step drop and turn it into a four-step drop. That is a big deal.
What landed him as a riser was the arm talent he could display. He can sling it, but even more than that, he showed he could ease up and vary the heat on his throws. The upper body mechanics looked cleaner, and while he wasn't doing the proper drops, the footwork was improved.
Riser: Devin Leary | Kentucky
Leary was one of the more consistent throwers. He didn't have the highs, but he didn't have the lows that the other quarterbacks did. Outside of McCarthy, he was probably the second-best thrower with the placement, and he ran the drills properly with the footwork and the placement. He had a solid showing for a guy who got no formal interviews.
Riser: Michael Penix Jr | Washington
It was an up-and-down workout, where he didn't do any athletic testing. You could see the chemistry when he got matched up with one of his Washington receivers. His throws were a bit more inconsistent when he wasn't throwing to one of them. There were more placement issues when throwing to the right. However, word is he came out clean with the medicals, which was the big concern.
Faller: Bo Nix | Oregon
Throughout the process, the amr of Nix has been questioned. The combine only confirmed those questions with multiple passes where the lack of velocity showed a dip in the nose of the ball. On one go-route, Nix seemed to put enough air under it, but it ended up taking a nose dive because of the lack of velocity on the throw.
Faller: Kedon Slovis | BYU
The placement from Slovis was all over the place. Throwing multiple times in the same drill, Slovis would throw an incredibly placed ball, followed by one far off target. His lack of arm talent was displayed with some of the other quarterbacks in his group.
Faller: Austin Reed | Western Kentucky
The question with Reed entering the combine was whether he could temper his passes. His placement was all over the place, and every throw was one speed. His receivers had a tough time catching his passes because of his issues.
Wide Receivers:
Riser: Rome Odunze | Washington
How much higher can Odunze go as a clear top-three receiver? He could be in the running to be the second guy after his exceptional workout and testing.
Riser: Ladd McConkey | Georgia
McConkey is a smooth receiver, and many were underrating his athletic ability. He tested better than expected, and outside of one drill, he was exceptional.
Riser: Ricky Pearsall | Florida
The biggest riser among the receivers, Pearsall had much better than anticipated athletic testing. When it came time for the drills, he got to show his exceptional route running.
Riser: Luke McCaffrey | Rice
After having better athletic testing than his brother, McCaffrey had a rough start to the positional drills. He rebounded in a big way, and after a drop or two in the gauntlet runs, he didn't drop another pass.
Riser: Devontez Walker | UNC
After a rough week catching the ball at the Senior Bowl, Walker needed to show off good hands. He didn't drop a pass throughout the drills, and his routes showed some solid growth from his tape.
Faller: Troy Franklin | Oregon
It was a rough set of drills for Franklin. He did a good job on some of the easier routes, but the more complex routes showed the lack of a route tree he is entering the NFL with.
Faller: Brian Thomas | LSU
Thomas has good speed, and he runs routes well. However, there were some serious issues adjusting to passes that weren't perfectly placed, and at times, his hands seemed like stone. That isn't ideal with 13 drops in three seasons.
Faller: Ainias Smith | Texas A&M
It is unfortunate for Smith, who was found to have a shin fracture during the combine medicals. As a result, he could not do the on-field stuff and will be seeing a specialist.
Honorable Mention: Xavier Worthy | Texas
Congratulations to Worthy for setting the new 40-yard dash record with a time of 4.21 seconds. However, he didn't do any drills, which kept him off the list.
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