The NFL Combine is the perfect opportunity for budding athletes to showcase their skills. Although stars like Shedeur Sanders and Travis Hunter—who already have high draft stock—often skip the pre-draft event to avoid any mistakes that could lower their value, National Championship winner Will Howard decided to give it a shot to boost his stock. However, things did not go as planned for him, to say the least.
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During his QB drill, Howard struggled with ball placement, missing his targets entirely. Some passes sailed over receivers’ heads, while others were off-target and out of reach. This led Howard to face the music with negative narratives around him.
The noise around him grew so loud that even Shedeur Sanders had to voice his support for the former Ohio State QB. “I don’t understand y’all hating on Will Howard, he just won a natty. It’s hard to throw to WR’s that you don’t know, everyone run routes different!” he tweeted.
Now, Cam Newton has also stepped up in support of Howard. On the latest episode of his 4th and 1 podcast, the former Panthers QB clarified that bombing in the combine rarely matters. “I think the thing about the combine is this: That’s not going to make or break you.”
Howard is projected as a mid-round pick despite coming off a National Championship season. This is because, at OSU, he was surrounded by an exceptional receiving corps, including talents like Jeremiah Smith.
And as Cam said, the Combine — an unfamiliar setting for participants — may have exposed some of his weaknesses. This is why throwing at the Combine is a risk that even top prospects often choose to avoid.
“Going to the combine, like bro, you’re in a situation where you don’t know the skill set, you don’t know the tempo, you don’t know who you’re going to throw to, you don’t know how they’re going to come out of their routes, you don’t know certain things and it’s like bro do you blame him,” Cam explained.
The Panthers legend then urged the media to drop the narratives surrounding Howard and argued that they don’t reflect who he truly is. Howard has shown he can win games, and that should matter most.
“Can he win you a game? Hell yeah. He won a fu*king National Championship. Damn right he could, that’s all coaches give a damn about. Let’s stop this narrative… I guarantee you if you ask any NFL scout could they do the draft today, and I guarantee they already know who they want.”
Although Howard may be a QB who requires significant development by NFL standards, one thing Tom Brady has taught the football world is to never judge a quarterback by his Combine performance.
