Written by Ryan Wilson at CBSSports.com
By just about any conventional measure, Navy’s Keenan Reynolds was a fantastic college player. He finished his career with 88 rushing touchdowns and 4,559 rushing yards — both records for an FBS quarterback. Add a strong showing at the 2016 Shrine Game — where he played running back — and it was perfectly reasonable to think that he’d get an invite to next week’s NFL combine.
Nope, didn’t happen. Apparently, Reynolds isn’t one of the 250 players deserving of a place in Indianapolis to show 32 NFL teams what he can do.
But there is a rational explanation for the oversight: Reynolds played in an option offense at Navy, and at 5-10, 200 pounds, he’ll have to switch positions in the NFL. Still, that Reynolds doesn’t fit neatly in one box or the other shouldn’t be reason enough to discount him altogether.
If you’re curious, here’s his scouting report, courtesy of NFLDraftScout.com’s Dane Brugler:
Reynolds showed the lower body athleticism to make quick cuts and fluidly redirect his momentum, stringing together his moves to pick through the defense. He reads the field well and has the speed to beat the linebacker to the edge. With only one career catch in college, Reynolds is unproven as a pass-catcher out of the backfield, but he didn’t drop a ball during the first practice and appeared natural looking the ball into his hands before bursting downfield.
With his limited build, Reynolds doesn’t have the body power to run through contact, which showed as an inside runner. And with 32 career fumbles at Navy, he also needs to improve his ball security, putting the ball on the ground once during practice on Monday [at the Shrine Game].
“The transition is definitely something new,” Reynolds told the Tampa Bay Tribune‘s Greg Auman in January of his move to running back. “I’m just trying to learn from the guys who have been playing the position, watching and observing. You don’t need talent to have good effort and attitude, so that’s what I’m coming out here with. I’m just trying to play.”
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