Texas Tech held their pro-day this morning at 9:00 am and 10 players participated: Patrick Mahomes, Paul Banks, Reginald Davis, Malik Jenkins, Devin Lauderdale, Thierry Nguema, Ondre Pipkins, Tyler Scalzi and kris Williams. The official site detailed some of the results:
The Red Raiders began Pro Day in the weight room with testing in the vertical jump, broad jump and bench press. Scalzi stood out early with a 32.5-inch vertical jump, a 10-foot 6-inch broad jump and an impressive 37 reps on the bench press.
Stice finished second in the bench press with 28 reps followed by Pipkins and Jenkins with 22 each. On the field, Davis led all players with a 4.41 time in the 40-yard dash while Nguema posted the day’s best performance in the 20-yard shuttle with a 4.25 mark.
Mahomes, who previously tested in front of scouts at the NFL Combine in February, followed the testing portion of Pro Day with roughly 80 passes to the likes of Lauderdale, Scalzi, Stice and Davis. Mahomes worked under center for the majority of his throwing session, showing off his arm strength in front of several NFL head coaches and general managers in attendance.
There were 28 teams in attendance, including a head coach, the Giants’ head coach Ben McAdoo as well as at least two general managers, the 49ers John Lynch and the Seahawks John Schneider.
Mahomes NFL.com’s Mike Mayock about his pro-day and I don’t know that it’s anything that you haven’t heard, but it’s not every day that Mayock is in Lubbock, Texas, interviewing Patrick Mahomes.
And make sure and check out Stack, which is the trainers that Mahomes is working out with in California and it’s his quest to change the perception of the spread quarterback:
The biggest part of that transition is getting Mahomes comfortable in taking drops, or the crossover steps he’ll need to take before he loads up to throw a pass. There are many variations of the drop, from a quick, three-step to the long, seven-step variety, depending on the type of routes the receivers are running.
“There are some drops in the NFL that are in rhythm,” Sheppard said. “You drop, you step and then the ball comes out if your first choice is open. If not, then there is a rhythm for your second or third choice. But not all patterns are like that. I say most of them are non-rhythmic, where you drop, then get comfortable and throw. So we separate the drop from the throw.”
Mahomes’s footwork on this all-important skill is a work in progress. On this particular day, Mahomes goes from executing a perfect five-step drop into a gorgeous throw to stumbling over his feet and spiking the ball into the ground.
“I definitely was a little uncomfortable at first,” Mahomes said. “The first two weeks, I would say I felt a little uncomfortable. But then one day I went out there and it started clicking for me. It’s gotten a lot better since then. It’s something that I’ve really tried to drill myself on—do all the drops, be ready to throw, and then your natural throw and everything that you’ve done your whole life will be there.”
This is an interesting read, definitely one where it paints Mahomes is the absolute best light, but it’s still an interesting read and definitely worth your time.
I don’t know how each player did, but apparently Tyler Scalzi impressed with his strength and athleticism.
Tyler Scalzi murdering this pro day so far. 37 reps!!!! 36″ vertical! 10’6″ broad! 👀👀👀
— RosterWatch (@RosterWatch) March 31, 2017
Oh, and Mahomes unleashed a 78 or 80 yard pass down the field
A bit wobbly but Mahomes just ripped a hail mary 80 yards. Admittedly, always windy in Lubbock pic.twitter.com/d3TakSOvmA
— RosterWatch (@RosterWatch) March 31, 2017