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2023 All-Combine Team, Offense: QB C.J. Stroud, TE Darnell Washington impress in Indianapolis
Which 2023 NFL Draft prospects turned heads at Lucas Oil Stadium? Nick Shook unveils his annual All-Combine Team, spotlighting the top performers at each position in Indianapolis.
www.nfl.com
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WIDE RECEIVERS
Jaxon Smith-NjigbaOhio State
Best team fits: Atlanta Falcons, Indianapolis Colts, Tennessee Titans, Baltimore Ravens.
Smith-Njigba's excellent combine performance won't come as a surprise to anyone who followed his career at Ohio State: He was clean, controlled and smooth throughout all of the drills at Lucas Oil Stadium, running crisp routes and making many of his catches look routine. When he was paired with his former Buckeye teammate, C.J. Stroud, on a rep, the duo made things look elementary. More impressive, though: When the other quarterbacks threw to him, nothing changed. Smith-Njigba is quicker than fast -- he posted the best 20-yard shuttle time of any receiver since 2014 -- which will get him open plenty at the next level. He leaves Indianapolis just as he arrived -- as one of the top talents at the position.
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Any prediction on where a Buckeye player ends up that doesn't include the Saints is a bad one.
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Feldman: Ten takeaways from the NFL combine to keep in mind as the draft nears
Their numbers didn't disappoint. How will those stats translate into opinions of NFL evaluators who will be drafting in April?
theathletic.com
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I’ll be stunned if Jaxon Smith-Njigba doesn’t have a bunch of 100-catch seasons in the NFL, and I think he’ll go higher than I’ve seen him on some early mock drafts. Of all the wonderful Ohio State receivers that have come out of Brian Hartline’s room in the past few years, rival coaches I spoke to thought he was the best prospect to this point. (Marvin Harrison Jr. will surpass them all next year, but he’s not draft eligible yet.)
At 6-1, 196, Smith-Njigba is the closest thing to a sure thing in this year’s receiver crop. Last year, the Buckeyes produced two first-round wideouts in Garrett Wilson and Chris Olave, and both were 1,000-plus-yard receivers as NFL rookies. According to the coaches we’ve spoken to who faced all three of them, Smith-Njigba is much more physical and has better change of direction than Wilson and Olave.
There has been some skepticism about Smith-Njigba’s speed, but his quickness is elite, and he displayed that in Indy. His 20-yard shuttle time of 3.93 seconds was the fastest by a receiver at the combine since 2013, and his 3-cone drill time of 6.57 seconds was better than anyone at this year’s combine.
Hartline, a former NFL receiver himself, wasn’t surprised at all. “Jax has a great feel of the game within the game, start there,” Hartline told The Athletic on Monday. “He knows how to use his body and how to win at the end of the play with whatever the job description is. There’s kind of a knack for that. Some guys just get it. As coaches we can try to enhance that, but from Day One, he always had that knack. There’s just something a little different for what Jax does.
“His change of direction is definitely the best that I’ve had. Garrett was pretty explosive. They all have their own niches, but when he changes direction out of a break, he doesn’t slow down. This game is really all about change of direction, and his is different, and I think it’ll be really hard for anybody to keep up with him when he changes direction because he is that elite at it, and that literally is the common denominator for creating separation in football.
“He’s kind of unguardable. He’ll be über-productive in the NFL. I think he will be a guy that leads the league in receptions and receiving yards. No one’s gonna be shocked. That’s just who he is, and he’s only gotten better, Like C.J. (Stroud) said, he’s the quarterback’s best friend.”
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OregonBuckeye
Semper Fi Buckeyes
You short changed him by 0.06-0.1 seconds. I wouldn't brag about that
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GovTressel
Heisman
I actually gave him more credit than I should have. There’s a reason they hand time 40s at pro days. Hand times typically take off .075-.19 vs laser. That translates to a 4.57-4.7 combine time.
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He's fast. Faster than any of us fatasses.
He's also an elite route runner, which is his forte.
His 40 time is literally irrelevant.
He's also an elite route runner, which is his forte.
His 40 time is literally irrelevant.
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I ran a 4.47 laser timed forty, so speak for yourself. Just don't ask me what year that was or who was president.
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well...I once ran a 6.8 flat 60 yard dash for a baseball camp....but Clinton was President and that was 180lbs, a destroyed hip and two bad knees ago
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Those 60 yards dashes are deceiving, especially under the Clinton administration. But considering the injury situation, I respect that timewell...I once ran a 6.8 flat 60 yard dash for a baseball camp....but Clinton was President and that was 180lbs, a destroyed hip and two bad knees ago
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