Baltimore Ravens: The Wide Receiver Fallout Post-Combine

There’s a lot of uncertainty surrounding the 2019 wide receiver draft class, but Saturday’s combine workouts really cleared things up a bit. Let’s take a look at which players draft stock rose and fell and where that puts the Ravens:

Stock Up:

D.K. Metcalf, Ole Miss: The buzz surrounding Metcalf skyrocketed when the shirtless picture of him surfaced on Twitter last week showing how jacked he really is. If you haven’t seen the picture yet, take a look for yourself right here and no, that’s not a linebacker. That buzz did everything but slow down after Metcalf put on a show during his workouts. Per the NFL Combine page on NFL.com, Metcalf’s numbers were as follows:

• 40-Yard Dash: 4.33 seconds (T-3rd)
• Bench Press: 27 reps (T-1st)
• Vertical Jump: 40 1/2” (T-2nd)
• Broad Jump: 11’2″ (5th)
• Weight: 228 lbs

Due to Metcalf’s weight and size, many analyst’s thought his 40-yard dash would be on the slower side but man were they wrong. The only real concern after Metcalf’s dominate Combine performance is where he tested in short area quickness. Metcalf’s 3-cone drill and 20-shuttle fell in the 3rd and 2nd percentile, not very good. Here’s a fun spider graph posted by The Draft Networks Trevor Sikkema illustrating Metcalf’s combine performance. As you can tell, Metcalf’s biggest weakness was his short area quickness.

Regardless, Metcalf shot himself into stardom with his outstanding workout and for that reason, he most likely placed himself out of the Ravens range if they were to stay at pick 22.

Parris Campbell, Ohio State: Parris Campbell is a speedy well-rounded receiver who’s quietly moving up draft boards, so quiet I left off my last article when I took a shot at predicting the Ravens first round targets in this upcoming Draft. Campbell opened a lot of eyes when he tied for the fastest 40-yard dash at the Combine with a blazing 4.31 seconds. Below are Campbell’s scores per the NFL Combine page on NFL.com: 

• 40-Yard Dash: 4.31 seconds (1st)
• Bench Press:  11 reps (N/A)
• Vertical Jump: 40.0″ (5th)
• Broad Jump: 11’3″ (T-3rd)
• Weight: 205 lbs

Campbell is a very intriguing possession slot receiver the Ravens could potentially target on Day 2 of the Draft. If the Ravens decided not to go receiver in round one, look out for Campbell as he could be a steal like fellow former Buckeye Michael Thomas.

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N’Keal Harry, Arizona State: Harry has been one of my favorite receivers in this year and has been since he announced he would be entering the NFL Draft. The thing that intrigues people the most about Harry is his catch radius as he measured in with a wingspan of 78 2/8 at the Combine according to Charles Robinson of Yahoo Sports. A catch radius like that coupled with Harry’s physical playing style would help Lamar Jackson enormously as he develops his accuracy in his second year. Below are Harry’s combine results via the NFL Combine page on NFL.com including his impressive 40 time:

• 40-Yard Dash: 4.53 seconds (N/A)
• Bench Press: 27 reps (T-1st)
• Vertical Jump: 38.5″ (T-7th)
• Broad Jump: 10’2″ (N/A)
• Weight: 228 lbs

Leading up to the Combine the consensus main concern with Harry was his speed. On film, Harry shows good speed but nothing to write home about. At 6’2 228 lbs, no one expected Harry to be among the 40-yard dash blazers, but he did run faster than many people expected. After his 40, NFL Network draft analyst Daniel Jeremiah called his time “great” and “he didn’t see that one coming” which is encouraging words for a prospects whose main concern was speed. If the Ravens do pick a receiver at 22, Harry would be my choice.

Stock Down:

Lil’Jordan Humphrey, Texas: Overall, the wide receiver class performed beyond expectations at the 2019 NFL Scouting Combine whereas the running backs can’t say the same. In result, Humphrey was the only noticeable receiver whose stock was shot down following his combine worse 40-yard dash among receivers running a 4.75. Here is his Combine workout results via the NFL Combine page on NFL.com:

• 40-Yard Dash: 4.75 seconds (Last)
• Bench Press: 13 reps (N/A)
• Vertical Jump: 33.5″ (T-7th)
• Broad Jump: 9’9″ (N/A)
• Weight: 210 lbs

Humphrey wasn’t one of the top receiver prospects coming into the draft, but his combine performance was noticeable and most likely nudged him off most teams draft boards.

Implications:

The odds that the Ravens pick a receiver in the first two days of the Draft are pretty high. If they stay pat at pick 22 the receivers I expect to be available for them are N’Keal Harry, A.J. Brown, and Parris Campbell. One of which I didn’t mention above. There are a few other receivers such as Marquise Brown (ankle) and Mecole Hardman who could be Day 2 picks if the Ravens were to go a different direction in the frist round. If they were to hit on a receiver this year it would be a bit ironic that in DeCosta’s first draft he would’ve done something Ozzie couldn’t during his long tenure.

Now that Combine is officially over with, the Ravens brass will now deep dive into their draft boards and re-evaluate the tape on the players they believe stuck out at the Combine. With Pro Days next up on the calendar, we’re that much closer to the 2019 NFL Draft and quite possibly “our guy” at receiver. Stay tuned into Ebony Bird for all things Baltimore Ravens.