Two Michigan Wolverines in top 50 NFL Draft rankings

Ahead of the NFL Draft Combine in Indianapolis, the Michigan Wolverines have been the talk of the event. With a record 18 invited participants, scouts and draft experts have found it impossible to avoid Michigan in their pre-draft processes.

“I feel like I’ve been watching Michigan for the last two weeks,” Daniel Jeremiah of NFL Network told reports in a recent call. “Just whatever position I go to, there’s more and more Michigan guys to watch.”

Jeremiah has recently updated his Top 50 NFL Draft Prospect Rankings, and two Wolverines who have been making headlines leading up to the combine have made the list.

McCarthy has been a polarizing prospect in the early weeks of the NFL Draft process. There is a disconnect of sorts between mock drafts, writers, and NFL scouts. As more and more people watch McCarthy's film and get beyond the stats, the more people believe McCarthy will be a top 15 pick.

Jeremiah was one of the analysts down on McCarthy early, but he is coming around to McCarthy being one of the first 4 QBs selected. Jeremiah lays out the difference between McCarthy's abilities and opportunities in his article.

"McCarthy is a lean, athletic quarterback with a live/loose arm. He is very consistent because of his ability to always throw from a firm base, with his feet and eyes connected. He is selectively aggressive as a passer. He has the combination of velocity and accuracy to fit balls into tight windows, but he is also very comfortable taking checkdowns and piling up completions. He is very efficient. He shows the touch to take speed off the ball underneath and provide optimal run-after-catch ball location. The only throws that gave him some trouble were over-the-top outside shots, as he let too many of those leak and end up out of bounds. He is a very explosive straight-line runner. Overall, other quarterbacks in this class have more volume in the passing game, but it’s hard to argue with McCarthy's results. I see some similarities to Alex Smith coming out of college."

Michigan WR Roman Wilson is one of the biggest risers early in the draft process. Wilson was the star of the first two days of the Reese's Senior Bowl before an injury cost him the last practice. Wilson flashed his speed, route running, and hands in Mobile.

Like McCarthy, as analysts look at the player beyond the stats, they like Wilson more and more. Jeremiah previously didn't feature Wilson in his top 50 but has added him to the rankings as his speed and catching ability become more apparent.

"Wilson is a compact, muscled-up wideout with elite burst and explosiveness. He didn’t see as many targets as others in this draft class because of Michigan’s dominant rushing attack. He is at his best when he’s on the move, especially on deep-over routes. He attacks the leverage of the cornerback before exploding across the field and running away from his opponent. He gets matched up with safeties at times and that leads to enormous separation and explosive plays. He showed more versatility as a route runner at the Senior Bowl. He can drop his weight at the top of routes and work back downhill. He has strong, reliable hands. After the catch, he relies on his speed to generate chunk plays. Overall, Wilson lacks ideal size, but he has rare speed and quickness. He reminds me of Packers WR Jayden Reed and I expect Wilson to make a similar impact at the next level."

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