2019 NFL Draft Combine: Top 10 Players to Watch

Surely you weren’t expecting someone else to be No. 1 on this list. Oklahoma’s Kyler Murray is the most polarizing prospect in this year’s draft class, and all eyes will be on him as he goes through the various drills at Lucas Oil Stadium.

The Heisman Trophy winner shocked many by reaffirming his commitment to playing professional football, spurning a multi-million-dollar signing bonus with the Oakland A’s of Major League Baseball.

Everyone knows that Murray is a dynamic football player, and he’s likely to test very well with his 40-yard-dash and various agility drills. He’ll likely throw the ball very well if he chooses to uncork it at the combine, but the attention will be squarely on one part of the combine when it comes to Murray: the measurables.

Quarterbacks are scheduled to go through measurements and medical exams on Thursday of this week, with the question of Murray’s height finally getting answered once and for all. At Oklahoma, Murray was listed at 5-foot-10, which would already make him the NFL’s shortest starting quarterback if he garners that position.

Since the AFL-NFL merger in 1970, no quarterback who measured under 6-feet tall has ever been selected in the first round. None of those players have been nearly as dynamic as the Oklahoma product, though, which makes him such an intriguing player.

If Murray comes in under 5-foot-10, which is widely expected to be the case, some teams will likely drop him from their draft boards completely regardless of how the rest of his week goes. He’s fortunate to be coming into the NFL at the right time, however, with coaches more-and-more willing to adopt schematic changes to mold their offenses around talent like his.

I do expect Murray’s height to cause him to slip down draft boards; I don’t think he’ll end up being a Top 10 selection as some have suggested. He’s far too talented, however, to fall completely out of the first round regardless of his height, meaning he’s set to make history in April.