Niner Noise
FanSided

NFL Scouting Combine: 5 players who need to improve 2019 draft stock

By Peter Panacy

INDIANAPOLIS, IN - MARCH 02: LSU running back Derrius Guice runs the 40-yard dash during the 2018 NFL Combine at Lucas Oil Stadium on March 2, 2018 in Indianapolis, Indiana. (Photo by Joe Robbins/Getty Images)
INDIANAPOLIS, IN - MARCH 02: LSU running back Derrius Guice runs the 40-yard dash during the 2018 NFL Combine at Lucas Oil Stadium on March 2, 2018 in Indianapolis, Indiana. (Photo by Joe Robbins/Getty Images) /
facebooktwitterreddit
Prev
5 of 6
Next
MIAMI, FL – DECEMBER 29: Kyler Murray #1 of the Oklahoma Sooners looks on prior to the game against the Alabama Crimson Tide during the College Football Playoff Semifinal at the Capital One Orange Bowl at Hard Rock Stadium on December 29, 2018 in Miami, Florida. (Photo by Michael Reaves/Getty Images)
MIAMI, FL – DECEMBER 29: Kyler Murray #1 of the Oklahoma Sooners looks on prior to the game against the Alabama Crimson Tide during the College Football Playoff Semifinal at the Capital One Orange Bowl at Hard Rock Stadium on December 29, 2018 in Miami, Florida. (Photo by Michael Reaves/Getty Images) /

The 49ers don’t need a quarterback in this year’s NFL Draft, but they may very well be affected by signal-callers’ stock rises between now and April.

Perhaps no other collegiate quarterback has caused more buzz leading up to draft day than Oklahoma’s Kyler Murray, who has all but foregone his MLB commitment to the Oakland Athletics to focus on his football career.

The 2019 Heisman Trophy recipient is, for the most part, considered the No. 2 quarterbacking prospect behind Ohio State’s Dwayne Haskins. Murray can make all the big throws. He’s also mobile and has pro-level touch on his passes. Yet a major reason why he’s not being viewed as the top quarterback in this year’s draft is his size — 5-foot-10 and 195 pounds.

Sure, there are quarterbacks at the pro level who have overcome question marks about stature. The Seattle Seahawks’ Russell Wilson is one such example. So is the New Orleans Saints’ future Hall of Famer, Drew Brees.

Ideally, though, quarterbacks are bigger than Murray.

So, Murray will have to convince scouts his positives are far too great when measured against his size, perhaps showcasing enough at the NFL Scouting Combine to emerge as the top quarterbacking prospect this April.