Coming off two separate knee injuries in 2015, John Ross III put up a monster year for the Washington Huskies. The redshirt junior out of California recorded career-highs in catches, yards, and touchdowns on his way to first-team All-Pac 12 honors.
At wide receiver, the 5-foot-11-inch speed demon caught 81 passes for almost 1,200 yard and 17 touchdowns — a mark that was tied for second most in the country.
A little background
Ross committed to Washington as an athlete — ready to contribute in any way possible — with no specific position in mind. In high school, he gained most of his recognition for his track and field abilities — running for the prestigious Long Beach Jordan track team.
Ross started gaining national attention after he posted an eye-popping 10.4 in the 100-meter dash time during his senior year of high school. To add further hype, Ross was clocked at 4.25 in the 40-yard dash by Washington coaches during his freshman season.
But after his knee injuries in 2015, Ross fell off the national radar, and entering his junior season needing to prove he still had ‘big play’ ability.
Breakdown
Ross is currently projected to go somewhere in the first round.
At 5'11" 196 pounds— he’s relatively average in height and weight — but what he lacks in size — he makes up in speed. At 14.2 yards per catch, Ross’ big play ability is unmatched in this draft class.
Ross’ straight line speed catches where he blows past his defender with ease and makes an uncontested catch are impressive. But what scouts are knocking him for — his ability to go up and get a ball, his route running ability and release — are actually some of his strengths.
Strengths
Obviously his overall speed. His straight line speed is unmatched in this draft, at any position. He’ll burn you, and make it look easy.
He also returns kicks, which is scary. In this clip — he takes the middle route, meets the kicker about half way, slows down, then just accelerates past everyone to the house. Ross eliminates pursuit angles on a regular basis.
Perceived weaknesses
Besides significant durability concerns following a torn ACL in his left knee and a torn meniscus in his right, Ross’ perceived weaknesses are tough criticisms.
For example, some scouts are saying he doesn’t have the best hands in the draft. There’s no tape in the world that can discredit that claim, but for god sake, this tape I’m about to show you definitely says otherwise.
Watch him blow past the defender up the seam, and catch this ball over his left shoulder, while falling out of bounds. That’s pretty impressive.
Here he re-adjusts mid-route giving his definitely a nice window for the ball, tip-toeing the sideline in the process.
Scouts doubt his release ability on certain fade routes — here he uses a quick stutter step to gain seperation, then makes a fine catch in the corner of the end zone.
Route running and release ability are always questioned when you’re talking about an undersized receiver, but Ross’ combination of pure speed and agility makes him a coveted item in this year’s draft.
