Roger Lewis, WR, Bowling Green: 2016 NFL Draft Scouting Report

Player Summary

Despite only being a greyshirt sophomore in 2015, the road to the NFL has been a long one for Bowling Green’s Roger Lewis. Originally a 2012 four-star recruit, he was forced to attend Jireh Prep in North Carolina rather than an FBS program after being charged with rape as a high school senior. The charge was ultimately dismissed, but top-flight programs such as Ohio State, were no longer pursuing the talented receiver.

After two seasons at Jireh Prep, Lewis enrolled at Bowling Green prior to the 2014 season. In 28 starts over two seasons with the Falcons, he caught 158 passes for 2,637 yards and 23 touchdowns while being named a first-team All-MAC receiver in both 2014 and 2015.

He possesses a solid combination of height and weight with an athletic frame with good athletic ability.

Measureables

Height: 6’0” 3/8

Weight: 201 lbs

Arm Length: 32 inches

Hand Size: 9.75 inches

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Combine/Pro Day Results

40-Yard Dash: 4.57/4.45 seconds

10-Yard Split: 1.64/1.61 seconds

Bench Press: eight reps (Combine only)

Vertical Jump: 33.5/36 inches

Broad Jump: 9’8”/10’5”

Three Cone: 7.58 seconds (Pro Day only)

Short Shuttle: 4.45 seconds (Pro Day only)

Games Watched

2015: Georgia Southern, Maryland, Memphis, Tennessee

2014: Indiana

Strengths

When given a free release, Roger Lewis is well-known for his ability to blow by defenders and catch long touchdown passes like the one here:

This is the result of very good explosiveness and acceleration off the line of scrimmage. As defensive backs became more aware of this, they began to give Lewis a bigger cushion from off coverage, or bail at the snap from press.

However, Lewis isn’t just a deep threat as he displays very good body control and suddenness at the top of routes to change direction and create separation. As you see in the play below, the Memphis defensive back is very careful not to be beaten deep. Lewis uses this to his advantage by stopping his route just beyond the sticks and catching the pass for a first down.

His suddenness and reputation as a deep threat allow him to open up a six-yard cushion at the top of his route.

He tracks the ball well once it’s in the air and shows very good toughness and concentration skills to haul it in and hold on through contact. He also demonstrates very good body control by adjusting to off target passes around his frame. Once in possession of the ball, he turns upfield quickly and displays solid elusiveness and breakaway speed in the open field to maximize yards after the catch.

Another aspect of his game that translates well to the next level is his ability to step up in critical situations or when the play breaks down. This happened frequently when Bowling Green took on teams from the power five conferences. He utilizes his very good mental processing skills to look for the ball quickly on blitzes and alter his route when the QB is forced out of the pocket. When this happens, he does a good job of finding the hole in the defense and giving his QB a window to throw the ball.

Lewis has statistically been one of the most productive receivers in college football over the past two seasons, but he wasn’t just beating up on defenses from the Mid-American Conference. In five games against power five opponents, he averaged nine catches for 103 yards per game. This includes a 200-yard performance against Maryland.

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Weaknesses

Bowling Green’s offensive scheme allowed Lewis to get a free release by playing him off the line of scrimmage as a flanker or slot receiver. A big reason why Lewis won’t be one of the first receivers off the board in the 2016 NFL Draft is his inability to win physical matchups outside. It begins at the line of scrimmage where he struggles to free himself from press coverage as a result of poor play strength, throwing off the timing of his routes. Even downfield Lewis is easily forced off his line towards the sideline, which decreases the window for the QB to throw to. He possesses a marginal ability to come down with 50-50 passes as he does not time his leap well and struggles to high point the ball.

He displays only adequate hands, allowing too many passes into his chest, which leads to drops. Below is an example of this as he fails to catch a ball thrown right at him over the middle.

After the catch, he’s not a receiver who’s going to break tackles on his way to the endzone. Once a defender makes contact with him, the play is over.

In the running game, Lewis is a willing, but largely ineffective blocker.

Overall

Overall, Roger Lewis is a starting flanker or slot receiver who can play off the line of scrimmage and get a free release. He doesn’t possess the upper body strength to line up as a split end on the line of scrimmage and beat press coverage.

Lewis wasn’t asked to run a wide variety of routes at Bowling Green, but he did prove to be more than just a deep threat. It may take him some time to learn all the intricacies of the receiver position at the NFL level, but he should have a long career.

Lewis is a top-100 prospect in the 2016 NFL Draft and will be a steal if he’s still on the board on day three.