The unknown Washington receiver made history at the 2017 NFL combine by breaking the 40 yard dash record with a stunning 4.22 seconds. Although he is the first man to beat Chris Johnson, does this help his draft projection?
Being fast is a skill needed for being a great football player but it is not the only skill needed. John Ross is fast which he proved by beating Chris Johnson’s record but he is also a good receiver. He posted amazing stats for the season but at the combine he found his weaknesses.
According to nfl.com, "In his return to the field in 2016, Ross became a star, garnering second-team All-American honors and first-team All-Pac-12 accolades with 81 catches for 1,150 yards and 17 touchdowns (tied for second in the nation)."
This is extremely important because for a guy returning from a leg injury posting these types of stats is an amazing performance on its own. His stats can benefit him and show that because of his speed he can do what has to be done at the receiver position.
According to nfl.com, ”Undersized with below-average play strength. Struggled to get into his routes cleanly and impact the game against the physical Cornerbacks at Alabama…Needs to do better job of working back to the throw. Has to learn to make contested catches. Will need to sharpen his short and intermediate routes to become a true three-level target.”
Scouters at the combine looked very carefully into both of Ross’s strengths and weaknesses based on his training and his performance at the combine. The strengths were obvious but the weaknesses were surprising.
For a fast receiver he should and needs to fix his mistakes in order to produce a good draft projection. Only time will tell if John Ross’s efforts payed off or not.