It only looked like Boise State football coach Chris Petersen was running the passing drills Thursday for pro day at the Caven-Williams Sports Complex, where scouts and coaches representing 28 NFL teams evaluated last year?s seniors.
Petersen held a script that indicated the order in which quarterback Kellen Moore would make each throw, designed to give the one wide receiver, one tight end and one tailback available ample rest.
But Petersen was not the script?s author.
?Kellen got it just right,? Petersen said. ?As usual, he put together a great script.?
And Moore executed well, too.
He completed 52-of-53 passes to all parts of the field, showing impressive velocity, accuracy and timing. The drills are staged with no defenders.
Moore looked better than at the Senior Bowl or NFL Scouting Combine, where he worked with unfamiliar receivers.
?A couple scouts there who are very much anti-Kellen Moore guys, who don?t see any way his body type can last in the NFL, even those guys said, ?Wow, that was a good workout,? ? an NFL scout told the Idaho Statesman.
Moore was more impressive at his pro day than Arizona?s Nick Foles or San Diego State?s Ryan Lindley, the scout said. Those quarterbacks are competing with Moore for draft positioning and many analysts rate them higher because of their size.
?A lot of scouts felt Kellen?s individual workout was better than any quarterback workout out West this year,? the scout said, noting that the scouts in Boise didn?t get to see Stanford?s Andrew Luck throw Thursday.
Moore?s only miss was on the fourth throw of the workout, an out-and-up down the sideline to wide receiver Tyler Shoemaker. The ball was barely overthrown.
He frequently hit receivers in stride as they came out of breaks and drew cheers from his teammates as he hit several throws of 45 to 50 yards.
?The impressive thing about Kellen is he threw very well in drills, but that?s not where he shines. He shines when he plays,? Petersen said. ?To me, that just looked like him day in and day out. I thought he did well, but the best of Kellen is when he plays the game.?
Moore threw primarily to Shoemaker, tight end Kyle Efaw and tailback Doug Martin. Linebacker Aaron Tevis ran a few routes as a fullback. The receivers lined up downfield for some of the routes to limit their running.
?Our routine was really dialed in with Kellen,? Shoemaker said. ?Kellen was looking good. The ball was coming in nice and hot, so it was easy to catch.?
Said Moore: ?Just another chance to get out there and throw the ball around a little bit. Obviously this one you?re very comfortable with your guys, so it felt pretty easy.?
15 players work out
The group included six players who participated in the NFL Scouting Combine last month in Indianapolis and nine who didn?t. Offensive lineman Nate Potter, who went to the combine, didn?t participate in pro day because of a muscle strain. He said it was a precautionary move.
The full list of participants: defensive linemen Chase Baker, Billy Winn, Shea McClellin, Tyrone Crawford and Jarrell Root; linebackers Byron Hout and Aaron Tevis; safeties George Iloka, Cedric Febis and Travis Stanaway; offensive lineman Chuck Hayes; Moore; Martin; Shoemaker and Efaw.
Shoemaker climbs
Shoemaker didn't have any drops and posted strong numbers throughout the athletic testing. He ran the 40-yard dash in 4.44 seconds and jumped 37 inches in the vertical. Only 10 receivers ran faster 40s at the combine.
?He probably helped himself the most,? the scout said. ?He may have worked himself into a late draft pick, where most people thought he was a free agent before.?
Shoemaker, a former walk-on, played his way onto teams? radar last season with a school-record 16 touchdown catches.
?You have to kind of tack that pro day at the end (of a good senior year) to really prove yourself,? he said.
Winn improves
Winn ran the 40-yard dash in 4.85 seconds twice. Some scouts timed him as fast as 4.82. He ran the 40 in 5.00 seconds at the NFL Scouting Combine.
Winn also performed well in drills.
?Billy looked a lot better than he?s looked since the season ended,? the scout said. ?? I thought he struggled at the Senior Bowl and struggled at the combine. He looked like the explosive athlete you expected to see today.?
Crawford faster, too
Defensive end Tyrone Crawford also helped himself. He weighed in at 282 pounds, 7 pounds heavier than at the combine, and ran a 4.80 40. He ran 4.89 in Indianapolis ? his slowest ever.
?I had to come in here and try to hit the 4.7,? he said.
Baker, Febis show well
Baker and Febis likely will need opportunities as free agents.
Baker, a 292-pound tackle, posted a 30-inch vertical jump and 8-foot, 10-inch broad jump. He ran the 40 in 5.36 seconds.
?I liked my start on my 40,? he said. ?Unfortunately, I?ve got the short legs syndrome going on, so I don?t know how the end of that went. ? The jumping I was very excited about. Good day. I?m stoked.?
Febis, a one-year starter, ran the 40 in 4.70 seconds and was tops among those participating in the broad jump (10-4) and three-cone drill (6.79 seconds). He also had a 36-inch vertical. All three of those numbers would have ranked in the top six among safeties at the combine.
Growing Moore?
Moore measured at 6-foot and 1/8 inch. He was 5-11 7/8 at the Senior Bowl and 6-0 at the NFL Scouting Combine.
28 teams on hand
Twenty-eight NFL teams, three CFL teams and two Arena teams were represented at pro day. The Bengals sent head coach Marvin Lewis, offensive coordinator Jay Gruden and defensive line coach Jay Hayes to Boise. Lewis was the only head coach in town.
Bengals want closer look
Lewis said it?s important for the coaching staff to get an up-close look at draft prospects. He attends four or five pro days each year.
?We try to let our coaches go out and see the players and I try to go out where there are players on both sides of the football that we have an interest in,? he said. ?We want our coaches to see the guys work and sweat. That?s important to see them compete in these environments because we don?t get to see them practice in the fall. ? Just watch them, watch them interact with their teammates, watch them interact with their coaches, with the other people, see what kind of person he really is.?
He likes what he sees from the Broncos on video and is impressed with the way the coaches develop talent.
?The players are disciplined,? Lewis said. ?They?re great workers. You turn on the tape and it?s like, hmm. They run to the ball, they chase the ball hard and they play hard. They play great sound football. As coaches that?s what attracted us. That?s why it?s a good visit for me. I wanted to come and see the guys work out first hand.?
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