Could Reggie McNeal play receiver?

[TJFord]

The guy is 6'1'' 209 and he runs a 4.28, could he play WR? I imagine that playing QB he is familiar with running routes and understands the game better than your average player. That size and speed would put him in an elite class physically and if he can catch the ball he might be a steal in later rounds.

[texasguy346]

I think he fits in better as a QB. If given time to develop he could be a real steal in this talent rich draft.

[Kaiser Toro]

Maybe.

[MorKnolle]

There is no way Reggie McNeal runs a 4.28, if he did then he would make a pretty good WR. He is small but pretty mobile for a QB and is relatively accurate passer, so he could be ok, but I see him like a better Seneca Wallace type that won't end up playing a whole lot.

[Youngstown Colt]

If McNeal runs a 4.28 and can throw like he can, he'd be the top pick in the draft. But he doesn't so he won't.

[MorKnolle]

Looking at games for both of them, I'd say McNeal and Young would both run a 4.45-4.52 or so. Young has faster top speed but McNeal is probably a little bit quicker since he's smaller.

[Youngstown Colt]

Originally Posted by MorKnolle

Looking at games for both of them, I'd say McNeal and Young would both run a 4.45-4.52 or so. Young has faster top speed but McNeal is probably a little bit quicker since he's smaller.

Yeah, a 4.5 is about what I figure Vince to run.

[Huge]

McNeal ran a 4.28 at A&M's pro day last year. More than a few NFL scouts had the same time.

His success at WR would depend on his committment to learn the position. He's not going to be an NFL QB.

[YoungTexanFan]

Originally Posted by Huge

McNeal ran a 4.28 at A&M's pro day last year. More than a few NFL scouts had the same time.

His success at WR would depend on his committment to learn the position. He's not going to be an NFL QB.

he is faster than young, but easier to take down.

I think he will not be able to make the transition to WR, and will be a very mobile, safe bet for backup QB.

[Huge]

WR or DB.

He won't be a QB (or at least he'll never play as one). He's fast but not elusive. His arm is strong but not accurate (not even as good as Vince).

Other than being hyped pretty well coming out of high school and beating Oklahoma his freshman year, what has he done that leads everybody to believe he can play QB in the NFL?

[Coach C.]

Like Seneca Wallace he will get a run at QB for some team, once proven that he cant play it he will likely switch to WR because he does not like to hit. Not sure, but is Brad Smith coming out this year, because he would be a nice addition at WR.

[Jack Bauer]

Originally Posted by Huge

McNeal ran a 4.28 at A&M's pro day last year. More than a few NFL scouts had the same time.

His success at WR would depend on his committment to learn the position. He's not going to be an NFL QB.

I disagree with the statement that he is not going to be an NFL QB. He has the talent to be an NFL QB. His only physical drawback is his height, but he can overcome that. The only other thing I question about him is his desire to play the game. He missed meetings before the A&M/UT game this year. He knew it would be his last game, so he ditched some meetings. Not indicative of a dedicated athlete. Not what an Aggie is expected to do.

[chjoak]

I graduated from Texas A&M and have watch (in person or on TV) every college game Reggie has ever played. I think I can provide a decent assessment as I like to play devil's advocate and tend to zone in on the weaknesses of players.

As mentioned above Reggie has been timed at 4.28 at last years TAMU pro day. That is one of the factors of his pre-season media hype along with the 2004 season performance. He can sprint that fast but he does not reach those speeds when playing. I would judge his open field top playing speed around a 4.4 or 4.45. Still very fast for a QB.

Reggie has a very strong and accurate arm. In that aspect I think he is better than Vince Young but right now Vince sees the field much better and makes better decisions. Reggie reads defences fairly well but tends to try and force plays. His biggest weakness overall is his field vision and decision making. He does not cycle through all options. He usually only looks at 2 receivers before making a decision which sometimes leads to throws into double coverage.

Reggie's biggest issue this past year was lack of true WR talent (no one could keep their hands on the ball) and his inability to throw soft touch passes. Reggie has touch. I have seen him throw the perfect little floaters to the open receiver but for some reason this year it tried to tatoo everyone he threw at and the receivers could not catch a ball to save their lives.

Reggie has all the physical tools to be great and has shown an excellent work ethic and desire to become a better QB and leader over the last few years. I personnally think Reggie would be an excellent (3rd or 4th round) QB project. With a good QB oriented coach (Kubiak) he could develop into a very solid NFL starter. He just needs someone to help him figure out how to put everything together and maintain consistancy.

[Kaiser Toro]

Very good detailed post chjoak. I just have not seen McNeil rise to the occasion other than an Oklahoma game where he made his name. It has been hype central ever since as he put up great numbers against the also rans. The market, new recruits, dictated who the better QB was to me in a landslide (Young/McNeil). Have some good receivers left A&M, yes. I have always felt McNeil was a run first type of QB. Moreover, not sold on his leadership as it looked like the A&M team was on cloud nine when a Freshman came in to take over the reins.

[BradK10]

Not sold on his leadership either, but this past season he was forced to run an offense at A&M that did not fit him.

[chjoak]

Originally Posted by Kaiser Toro

Very good detailed post chjoak. I just have not seen McNeil rise to the occasion other than an Oklahoma game where he made his name. It has been hype central ever since as he put up great numbers against the also rans. The market, new recruits, dictated who the better QB was to me in a landslide (Young/McNeil). Have some good receivers left A&M, yes. I have always felt McNeil was a run first type of QB. Moreover, not sold on his leadership as it looked like the A&M team was on cloud nine when a Freshman came in to take over the reins.

Reggie started as a run first QB but realized during his sophmore year that it would not translate to the pros given his size. He started work his butt off to become a pocket QB that can scoot if need be.

The receiver issue was a combination of injuries and lack of elite talent. Because A&M has had more of a reputation as a smash mouth offence the elite receivers (4 & 5 star recruits) have gone to other schools. We have landed a couple 4 star but most have been 3 star. Reggie has helped with this some but I am hoping next years QB (Stephen McGee) will finally buck the trend since he passed for 8500 yards in high school.

You may be on the mark about Reggie's leadership. There was a lot of locker room turmoil this year at A&M. When a situation like that cannot be dealt with and corrected it is usually an indication of a poor coach and/or poor team leadership. This could be the biggest obstical to Reggie being an effective starter in the NFL.

[TJFord]

I would be down with McNeal as a third string QB, but if wants to play soon then receiver is where he'll be. That being said, has A&M ever run trick plays where McNeal is passed the rock? If so can he catch it? At WR he can just let it all hang out in running routes, so his 4.28 should be bit more prominent. Also, at his size he woud be a dificult matchup for smaller (5'9''-5'10'') CBs.

[MorKnolle]

Originally Posted by Huge

WR or DB.

He won't be a QB (or at least he'll never play as one). He's fast but not elusive. His arm is strong but not accurate (not even as good as Vince).

Other than being hyped pretty well coming out of high school and beating Oklahoma his freshman year, what has he done that leads everybody to believe he can play QB in the NFL?

I still say there is no way Reggie runs a 4.28, that would put his as fast as Michael Vick and there is no way he is that fast. I think he is quicker than Vince Young but not as fast top speed. I think he could be a decent backup NFL QB although he is small, he doesn't have a really strong arm but it's serviceable, and he is pretty accurate (more accurate than Vince) and I agree with chjoak that Vince sees the field better and is obviously a more prototypical sized QB. I agree he probably has a better chance of getting playing time if he switches to WR, assuming he is fast enough to play that spot, but I think his true position is QB and he probably will want to stay there. I would take Reggie with a 5th round pick if no one better is available at a position we need, bring him in to battle Ragone as our 2nd string QB after releasing Tony Banks.

[bigcarlos]

Safety

[Huge]

Originally Posted by chjoak

I graduated from Texas A&M and have watch (in person or on TV) every college game Reggie has ever played. I think I can provide a decent assessment as I like to play devil's advocate and tend to zone in on the weaknesses of players.

As mentioned above Reggie has been timed at 4.28 at last years TAMU pro day. That is one of the factors of his pre-season media hype along with the 2004 season performance. He can sprint that fast but he does not reach those speeds when playing. I would judge his open field top playing speed around a 4.4 or 4.45. Still very fast for a QB.

Reggie has a very strong and accurate arm. In that aspect I think he is better than Vince Young but right now Vince sees the field much better and makes better decisions. Reggie reads defences fairly well but tends to try and force plays. His biggest weakness overall is his field vision and decision making. He does not cycle through all options. He usually only looks at 2 receivers before making a decision which sometimes leads to throws into double coverage.

Reggie's biggest issue this past year was lack of true WR talent (no one could keep their hands on the ball) and his inability to throw soft touch passes. Reggie has touch. I have seen him throw the perfect little floaters to the open receiver but for some reason this year it tried to tatoo everyone he threw at and the receivers could not catch a ball to save their lives.

Reggie has all the physical tools to be great and has shown an excellent work ethic and desire to become a better QB and leader over the last few years. I personnally think Reggie would be an excellent (3rd or 4th round) QB project. With a good QB oriented coach (Kubiak) he could develop into a very solid NFL starter. He just needs someone to help him figure out how to put everything together and maintain consistancy.

I'm usually not one to point towards completion percentage as an indicator of accuracy. But in a small way it is a measurable:

McNeal in '05 - 53.2%...not much talent at WR
McNeal in '04 - 58.1%...with Terrence Murphy (Green Bay Packer) at WR
McNeal in '03 - 51.1%...with Murphy and Jamaar Taylor (New York Giant) at WR
McNeal in '02 - 53.3%...with Murphy, Taylor and Bethel Johnson (New Englad Patriot) at WR

I'll cut him some slack for '05 because the Aggies had a rash of injuries at the WR position. But when that completion percentage is about what he averaged the other 3 years when he was throwing to 3 future NFL WRs, then one might tend to believe it wasn't just a lack of talent at WR.

I've seen him play enough. I do think he's got better arm strength than Young. But he is not a more accurate passer. His better throwing mechanics make people tend to believe this but it's false. I've see way too many throws hit 5 yards in front of or over his intended target to think otherwise. If you disagree, fine...we'll agree to disagree.

As for leadership, the Ags saw what a difference that can make when McGee started against Texas. I honestly feel that if Reggie started/played in that game, Texas would've mopped the floor with the Aggies. It's one of the immeasurables that doesn't show up on Combine stats sheets. I think McGee has it. I do not think Reggie does.

As for his 4.28...I think there's a real posibility that it's legit. I don't think it matters much but I have no reason to doubt what was timed at A&M's pro day.

I do think he'll be drafted as a QB. But if he stays in the league, it'll be because he switched positions.