Terry McLaurin – Ohio State – Wide Receiver: McLaurin is a favorite amongst the draftniks active on social media and for good reason. He’s tough, smart, competitive, reliable, has good hands and runs precise routes. In his combine performance he also showed how much of an athlete he is as well. His marks were 4.35/40, 18 reps on the bench press, 37.5 vertical jump, 10’4″ broad jump, 7.08 3-cone and a 4.15 short shuttle. All above average for a 6′ 205 lb. man. So, there is a good amount of projection for him which could mean you’ll be getting an even better pro than he was as a collegiate athlete.

He wasn’t very productive at Ohio State but didn’t have a whole lot of action come his way and he had a few seasons of subpar Quarterbacking holding him back. He did however make the most of his senior season with 35 catches for 701 yards averaging 20 yards a grab. He managed to score 11 times as well. He also has the physical profile to slot inside as the Y, or on the boundaries as an X or a Z. He would be an excellent addition to an already dynamic group of pass catchers.

This play is the summary of what McLaurin gives you as a quick twitch speedy explosive playmaker. After he catches a simple curl route two defenders appear to have a bead on him but he simply accelerates from both converging players and gains the sideline. From then on he shifts into another gear and shows off that 4.35 speed and takes it to the house keeping his balance after a last ditch tackle attempt showing his strength and balance.

Here, McLaurin shows what a good route runner he is executing a shake route. He fakes an in route and runs an out route after faking the shoes off the corner.

In this next GIF, you see McLaurin’s ability to track the ball even though he is sandwiched between two defenders and even has one of them contact him pretty significantly for the pass interference. Yet he still reels it in. His ability to be able to absorb contact and still make catches will be a valuable skill set in the NFL.

Here, you see his ability to separate as he takes a slant route to the house turning on the jets after the catch and leaving his man 3-4 yards behind him.

On this next play, McLaurin once again shows off his route running ability. He jabs his foot to the opposite direction he actually intends to go in with a nice little shoulder/head fake. After the defender commits to the fake McLaurin cuts sharply inside on a post and even beats inside leverage by the corner and blows past him. He than shows his ability to adjust mid air to a pass thats thrown short and behind him and making the grab for the Touchdown.

On this next play, McLaurin runs a post route out of the bunch formation and scores on the play in spite of tight off coverage. McLaurin consistently shows the ability to eat up cushion quickly as he does here once again running a nice route.

On this play, McLaurin shows the ability to make a tough grab while out-fighting the defender for the ball on an amazing diving catch.

In closing, McLaurin is a tough, smart explosive player who can take the top off, get the dirty yards underneath and doesn’t mind blocking in the run game. He reminds me a little of Bears current receiver Anthony Miller but with even more speed and explosion. He was underutilized at Ohio State because they don’t really use option routes so his football IQ didn’t shine as brightly as it will at the next level. Which is why I feel he has an excellent chance at being a better pro than he was as a college player. He can also contribute on special teams as he has that “Dawg” mentality. He would be quite the addition to an already capable and potentially dynamic receiving corp. here in Chicago.