NCAA Scouting - Player Profile:
Jimmy Graham - Tight End - Miami (FL)
by Jody Jamieson
15/3/2010
 
Jimmy Graham
Tight End
Miami (FL)
6-7, 259
Senior
 
Strengths: Natural weight and height for the position, physically gifted and showed at the combine his pure speed (4.56 in the 40) and he reaches that top end speed quickly. He will be a nightmare for linebackers to keep up with in the open field. He has big hands and he should be able to improve as a pass catcher but has already shown the ability to compete and win jump balls. He is a powerful runner with the ball in his hands and has flashed the ability to feel when he is in the seam of the zone and open for his quarterback. He has a powerful upper body and shows willingness as a blocker.
 
Weaknesses: A very raw prospect with only one true season as a college football player after starting out as a basketball player at “The U”. His footwork as a blocker requires a lot of work, he doesn't explode out of his stance and his technique requires a good deal of pro coaching help. As a receiver he will struggle to escape from contact close to the line of scrimmage and his route running needs sharpening up. With the ball in his hands he is not all that good at making would-be-tacklers miss and he still catches too much with the use of his body to trap the ball.
 
Where I think he'll be drafted: I believe his physical gifts are going to prove attractive to many teams and he'll be picked in low end of round 2 based on potential.
 
Where I think he should be drafted: His potential does seem excellent but his limited experience and boom or bust factor means he probably deserves to go in round 4.
 
Summary: Graham is one of this year's most intriguing prospects as he has had only one year of college football experience after playing basketball. He was a starter on the college's basketball team but after he finished with the program he had one year to take up football and make an impression (whilst playing basketball the college would not allow him to play both sports). He had not played football since he was a freshman in high school when at 15 he switched high schools and his new school didn't have a football program hence his switch to basketball. He showed enough in his one season playing football to get a combine invite as he hauled in 17 catches for 213 yards and 5TD's. After a rough childhood Graham is an example of someone who has been able to use sports to escape from the rough end of life. As a basketball player he was very successful but football was always his dream and he is now chasing that with equal success it seems. Comparisons will be made to Antonio Gates who travelled a similar path to the NFL and Graham's potential is going to have every team considering him higher than his experience deserves but the NFL draft is a pool of potential so a situation like this is no surprise. Graham is a player I believe can show some standout skills early on in his career but he was also struggle in other areas and it may take 2-3 years for him to fully develop. He could be a nice fit for a team like Atlanta who have a former basketball player in Tony Gonzalez coming into the final furlong of his career and his experience could be passed on to Graham.