Published Mar 15, 2017
Post NFL-Combine stock report: WR
Adam Gorney, Mike Farrell
Rivals.com

The NFL Scouting Combine is finished and it’s time again to look at each position for the upcoming NFL Draft. Today, we move to wide receivers with the top five and then two others to watch.

RELATED: Post-combine QBs | RBs | Farrell Mock Draft 2.0 | Gorney Mock Draft 2.0

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TOP FIVE

Recruiting: Ross visited Washington in December and he was serious about other programs including Oregon, Cal, Oregon State and UCLA. He picked the Huskies in January at the Semper Fi Bowl.

Stats: Ross had 81 catches for 1,150 yards and 17 scores last season. He broke the NFL Scouting Combine record in the 40-yard dash with a time of 4.22 seconds.

Stock report: Up

Farrell’s take: Ross’ record-setting 4.22-second 40-yard dash pushed him to the top of this list and to the top of many boards out there. He still lacks great size, but his speed and potential as a special teams guy could land him higher than the bigger receivers behind him. We held off on a fourth star out of high school because of that lack of size, but he’s much thicker and stronger now.

Recruiting: Williams committed to Clemson over South Carolina weeks prior to his senior season. Alabama, Georgia, Notre Dame and Tennessee were others involved.

Stats: Williams had 98 catches for 1,361 yards and 11 touchdowns this past season. He finished with eight receptions for 94 yards and one score in Clemson’s win over Alabama in the national championship.

Stock report: Steady

Farrell’s take: Williams flashed his ball skills and ability to track the football despite not running the 40-yard dash. He’s the best big receiver in this draft, although it is close between Williams and Corey Davis. It should be interesting to see which goes first. He was a raw, skinny wideout with amazing upside out of high school in 2013.

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Recruiting: Davis committed in January, a few weeks before National Signing Day, to Western Michigan over Illinois State, his only other offer. Numerous Big Ten schools had been showing interest but none offered.

Stats: Davis had 97 catches for 1,500 yards and 19 touchdowns last season. In the Cotton Bowl loss to Wisconsin, Davis finished with six receptions for 73 yards and a score, all team-highs.

Stock report: Steady

Farrell’s take: Davis hurt himself a bit by not working out or doing anything at the combine, but many teams still covet him. His body of work speaks for itself. Western Michigan and Illinois State were the only ones who wanted Davis, as many in the Big Ten failed to pull the trigger. He was a tall, rangy and raw prospect out of high school who might have been more heavily recruited had all his academics been in order.

Recruiting: Godwin committed to the Nittany Lions in April before his senior season over Rutgers, Stanford, Virginia Tech, West Virginia and many others. He is one of six four-star prospects from the state of Delaware in the Rivals.com era.

Stats: Godwin led the Nittany Lions this season with 59 catches for 982 yards and 11 touchdowns. In the Rose Bowl loss to USC, Godwin finished with nine catches for a game-high 187 receiving yards and two scores.

Stock report: Up

Farrell’s take: The best hands in the draft and a guy who used those hands to snatch the ball away from defenders, the only question about Godwin was his speed entering the combine. Now that he’s answered that, he looks like a first-round receiver. We had him ranked as a top-150 prospect while asking the same questions about speed out of high school, but we always liked the way he caught the ball.

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Recruiting: A three-star out of high school, Westbrook was a junior college transfer, where he earned his fourth star. Shortly after a visit to Oklahoma in November, Westbrook picked the Sooners over Texas Tech, West Virginia, Kansas State and others.

Stats: Westbrook had 80 catches for 1,524 yards and 17 scores last season. To close out the regular season, Westbrook had two receiving touchdowns against Baylor and then 100-plus receiving yards in wins over West Virginia and Oklahoma State.

Stock report: Steady

Farrell’s take: Westbrook also didn’t participate at the combine, which led to some questions, but he did have a good pro day and his production this past season can’t be ignored. He was a four-star coming out of Blinn, where he put up big numbers and showed he could play outside or inside. He was a perfect fit for a spread offense, and with the Big 12 being so wide open, it’s no surprise he had a good first year. But what he did this past season was off the charts and should get him off the board on day two.

TWO TO WATCH

Recruiting: A two-star prospect out of Austin, Texas, Jones committed to East Carolina in the summer prior to his senior season. Arkansas State was his only other offer at the time. His father, Robert Jones, played for the Pirates.

Stats: Jones led East Carolina by 100 catches with 158 receptions for 1,746 yards and eight touchdowns this past season. For his college career, Jones had 399 catches for 4,279 yards and 23 TDs.

Stock report: Up

Farrell’s take: Known as Isaiah Jones in our database, Zay is now a guy who should land in the top or middle of round two. He measured well, ran very well and his explosion and change of direction were on display. He was overshadowed a bit by his brother, one-time five-star wide receiver Cayleb Jones, and split some time between receiver and quarterback. He wasn’t considered a burner in high school but he is now.

Recruiting: Oregon, Notre Dame and UCLA were serious contenders in Smith’s recruitment, but there was always a sense USC would be tough to beat, especially as it got closer to National Signing Day.

Stats: Smith-Schuster had 70 catches for 914 yards and 10 scores last season. In the previous campaign, the former five-star finished with 89 receptions for 1,454 yards and 10 touchdowns.

Stock report: Down

Farrell’s take: Known simply as John Smith in our high school database, JuJu emerged as a potential first-rounder early in his career and his chemistry with Sam Darnold this past season kept him in the conversation. His testing results were solid but not spectacular and allowed a few others to slide up. We had him as a safety out of high school but knew he could be a star on offense as well.

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