Insider notes from Michigan Pro Day: J.J. McCarthy draft stock soars as NFL suitors line up for QB
It was a virtual who’s who at Michigan pro day, and anyone who is anybody in the league showed up. As someone mentioned to me, there were more NFL decision-makers on hand than scouts in general - a rare occurrence for a pro-day workout. Among the attendees was former Wolverines coach Jim Harbaugh, who had to be proud of the way his players performed.
For the most part, the feedback I’m getting on J.J. McCarthy is very positive. While I’m told there is still some concern about his deep arm, the majority of people I spoke with said the junior signal caller looked great. The belief in Ann Arbor is that the Chargers could trade out of the fifth spot to a team that wants to jump in front of the Giants and grab McCarthy. And if McCarthy does make it past the Giants at No. 6, the Falcons at No. 8 or the Jets at No. 10 could be trade destinations for a team looking to land the quarterback.
Michigan Pro Day in review
One of McCarthy’s favorite targets, Roman Wilson, had a terrific day. His shuttle times were incredible, as Wilson timed as fast as 3.99 seconds in the short shuttle and 6.75 seconds in the three-cone. Wilson translated that speed and quickness into drills and caught everything thrown his way. He also caught punts and looked good. On Thursday, Wilson met with the Los Angeles Rams, New England Patriots, Washington Commanders and Pittsburgh Steelers. He has two official-30 visits, the New York Jets and Tennessee Titans.
Speaking of returning punts, it was one-third of the workout performed by Mike Sainristil, who had a phenomenal day. One of my favorite defensive backs in the draft, Sainristil timed as fast as 3.91 in the short shuttle and 6.84 in the three-cone. He put on a clinic during defensive back drills, then voluntarily participated in receiver drills, a position he initially played at Michigan, and looked phenomenal. He caught everything thrown his way, including about 15 passes and a 50-yard bomb from McCarthy, before they told him to shut it down.
Besides his field work, Sainristil has come across well in interviews. His one-on-one meetings with teams have been described to me as “elite”. His football intellect has been characterized as “genius”. He’s being looked at as a nickel back who can return punts and occasionally line up as a receiver. Over the past two days, Sainristil has met with the Pittsburgh Steelers, Los Angeles Rams and Chargers, Cincinnati Bengals and Las Vegas Raiders.
Edge-rushing linebacker Jaylen Harrell timed 4.68 seconds in the 40, a good mark for him, as well as 4.33 seconds in the short shuttle. He looked terrific in pass-rushing drills and more than held his own in coverage drills. Michigan coaches have spoken highly of Harrell to NFL teams for his leadership and character. He met extensively with the Los Angeles Rams, Chicago Bears and Las Vegas Raiders.
Harrell’s linebacker teammate Michael Barrett, who is still recovering from a hamstring issue, ran the 40 in a time of 4.62 seconds with a short-shuttle mark of 4.43 seconds. The off-ball linebacker met with the Miami Dolphins, Indianapolis Colts, Cincinnati Bengals and New York Jets on Thursday.
Junior Colson, my highest-rated Wolverines linebacker, sat on the sidelines and did not participate in pro day. Colson was a medical exclusion from the combine due to a right hamstring issue.
Information is still pouring in on Michigan pro day, and people tell me Kris Jenkins and Blake Corum also had good workouts.