While much of this past week’s attention went to the physical specimen of a man known as D.K. Metcalf, there was another receiver who all but cemented his name as a first round pick come the end of April.
Unless you’ve been living under a rock, and it appears a lot of experts are, Arizona State wide receiver N’Keal Harry has done more than enough on the football field to make an argument that he is the best wide receiver in the draft class of 2019.
As a sophomore Harry hauled in 82 receptions for 1,142 yards and eight touchdowns. He’d follow that up in 2018 with 73 receptions for 1,088 yards and nine touchdowns – while also adding a rushing touchdown and a punt return for a touchdown.
Players can certainly help their draft stock at the combine but let’s be honest, scouts and general managers are there to look for flaws. Once a “flaw” is uncovered, media won’t hesitate to pile on. Whether it’s a player’s height, their injury history, or their 40-time, suddenly a guy with great game film is a mid-to-late round pick. On Thursday, Harry measured in at just over 6’2”, nearly two full inches shorter than the 6’4” ASU had him listed at in their program. Gasp!!! So short.
The nail in the coffin would be Harry’s speed. Some “experts” even went as far to project a 40-time in the 4.7 range. Never mind the OBJ-like one-handed grabs. Never mind the 92-yard punt returns. Never mind his ability to high-point the football in 50-50 balls or his ability to gain yards after the catch. It would be was his ability to run in a straight line for 40 yards that would determine if he was a first-round pick or just another guy buried on a depth chart.
Turns out N’Keal isn’t slow after all. On Saturday he clocked a 4.53 in the dash. Sure, it’s no 4.33, but the other 228 pound wide out is ready to make an immediate impact on Sundays. He won’t just be a first round pick, he’ll be a week one starter.
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