Mike Evans Does His Best Michael Floyd Impression During 2014 Combine On-Field Drills
Alex Dunlap, RosterWatch

Texas A&M WR Mike Evans put on a show running on-field drills with the first group of Sunday’s NFL combine participants.

Evans caught every ball thrown his way in the gauntlet drill. He did not drop, body-catch, bobble or double-catch any pass through the two-drill test. Evans showed tracking and adjustment skills to always catch the ball with his hands. While his speed seemed somewhat lacking crossing the field, he stayed in his space and functioned in a straight line.

In the first series of 10-yard out drills, Evans caught both passes and appeared to improve on the second effort from a first that could be considered a little bit lumbering. Evans did not break out of his cut with the same acceleration as some of the group’s smaller, shiftier prospects, but broke down and then into his stem with less wasted motion than Odell Beckham, the group’s “other” high-profile, large-framed wideout.

In the dig-route drill, Evans continued to shine. It was perhaps the most impressive exhibition of route-running skills Evans put on display. He generated immense torque on both drills with his left leg when planting and telegraphed nothing. In the fade drill, Evans – expectedly – looked right at home as a downfield vertical threat and easily reeled in both balls.

In the second series of 10-yard out patterns to the opposite side, Evans’ effort was notable in the way he sunk his hips and generated power out of cuts in a way that was reminiscent of Michael Floyd in 2012. In the deep curl drill, Evans caught both balls, both times – again – wasting much less motion than most and sitting into the quarterbacks window before turning upfield.

The final on-field receiving drill was the post-corner-fade route which saw the only incompletion of the day for Evans. Evans had trouble coming out of his second (corner route) break and disrupted the timing and rhythm of the play’s design. This led to a wildly errant pass that was not catchable. Evans did better in the second drill, ending his day with a beautiful adjustment on the ball and hands-catch.