Commanders Draft: Biggest winners from Day 1 of NFL Combine

We’ll start by saying we are extremely jealous of anyone attending the 2022 NFL Combine, because Day 1 was a treat. That includes Washington Commanders head coach Ron Rivera, who had to have liked what he saw on Thursday.

With quarterbacks and pass-catchers taking center stage, the Combine got off to a roaring start. If there was an underlying theme from opening night, we’d have to go with “speed,” because the incoming wide receiver class almost sent the stopwatches that were on hand into malfunction mode.

Baylor receiver Tyquan Thornton stole the show with a searing 4.28 40-yard dash, the fastest at the position by a healthy margin, which says a lot given nine other WRs broke 4.4 seconds, the most we’ve seen since 2006.

In a vacuum, a bevy of prospects boosted their stock on Thursday. Like always, there were some disappointments, mostly at the receiver position, but let’s focus on the positives and review some of Day 1’s biggest winners.

Commanders Draft: Biggest winners from NFL Combine

Malik Willis, QB, Liberty

Already regarded as a potential first-round pick, Willis’ stock might’ve skyrocketed into the top 10 after Thursday. That could be bad news for the Commanders, who own the No. 11 overall pick, but that’s a topic for another day.

A former Auburn transfer, Willis was the clear standout at the quarterback position. Between completing slant routes over the middle with elite velocity and showing off his gripping arm strength on go routes down the sideline, the Liberty star proved the moment wasn’t too big for him.

Willis even showed leadership by encouraging his fellow QB participants to dominate their own reps. Teams will love that. Luckily for Washington, he opted against running the 40-yard dash, but there’s already plenty of tape that shows how dynamic he is as a runner in the open field.

Christian Watson, WR, North Dakota State

It was an absolutely phenomenal day for the 2022 receiver class, so it was tough to pick the biggest standout. After much deliberation, it goes to North Dakota State wideout Christian Watson, who measured in at 6-foot-4 and 208 pounds. That alone was enough to get scouts’ attention, but he followed that up by measuring 10 1/8-inch hands and running a blistering 4.36 40-yard dash.

Watson’s 11-foot, 4-inch broad jump was also tops amongst receivers and he added a 38.5-inch vertical to top it all off. Between his showing at the Senior Bowl and electrifying Combine, it’s fair to argue that no player has boosted their stock more during the pre-draft process than the former FCS receiver.

After Thursday’s performance, we’d be shocked if Watson was still on the board after the first 40 picks in April.