Representatives from 26 NFL teams, including Dallas Cowboys quarterbacks coach Wade Wilson and Seattle Seahawks quarterbacks coach Carl Smith, were present for Baylor's pro day Wednesday.
Baylor's Bryce Petty (6-foot-2 7/8, 228 pounds) is in the conversation to be the third quarterback selected in the 2015 NFL Draft (behind projected first-rounders Jameis Winston and Marcus Mariota). Petty is the third-rated QB on NFL Media analyst **Mike Mayock**'s positional rankings and the fourth-rated QB on NFL Media analyst **Bucky Brooks**' rankings.
Baylor's pro day kept Petty in that conversation. He did everything that was asked of him. He threw the deep route, the deep comeback and the fade route all really well. Petty showed he can roll out. He also threw a ball 70 yards in the air.
Over a period of about 40 minutes, Petty -- who has 9 7/8-inch hands -- threw 77 passes. He had 69 completions, but five of the incompletions were drops by the receivers and two were deep passes that were overthrown. All the passes came from under center, which was a concern about Petty's transition to the NFL style of offense. He had 28 passes in the 10-yards-or-under range, 17 from 11-20 yards and 32 that were 21-plus yards. Petty had nine three-step drops from center, 32 five-step drops and 19 play-action passes.
Petty's workout was outstanding. What Petty's workout means is that for people who liked him prior to the workout, it was everything that was expected of the Baylor quarterback. Those who are without great expectations or have apprehensions about Petty will need to do further evaluating.
Following the pro day, Petty had a private meeting with the Cowboys' Wilson. Petty also has workouts set up with five teams.
Wide receiver Antwan Goodley (5-10 1/2, 221) had a 35-inch vertical jump and a 10-foot-9 broad jump. He did the 20-yard short shuttle in 4.38 seconds and the three-cone drill in 7.19 seconds. He also made a spectacular catch during the positional workout.
Inside linebacker Bryce Hager (6-0 7/8, 235) stood on his numbers from the NFL Scouting Combine and put out a good positional workout at the pro day. Baylor defensive coordinator Phil Bennett says that Hager is the smartest player that he's coached. Bennett relayed defensive calls into Hager during games. In Baylor's win over Oklahoma, Hager checked out of the defensive call that was sent in 85 percent of the time and just once was it the wrong call.
Punter Spencer Roth (6-4 3/8, 230) took his positional workout outdoors and punted the ball well.
Wide receiver/return specialist Levi Norwood (6-0 1/2, 197) ran the 40-yard dash in 4.57 and 4.63 seconds. He had a 34 1/2-inch vertical jump and 10-foot-3 broad jump. He did the 20-yard short shuttle in 4.19 seconds and the three-cone drill in 6.78 seconds. Norwood -- who has 9 5/8-inch hands -- is a very good kick returner. During his career at Baylor, Norwood averaged 20.2 yards per kick return and 8.7 yards per punt return (including two touchdowns). Norwood has a chance to be a late-round draft choice or priority free-agent pickup for a team following the draft.
Safety Collin Brence (5-11 3/8, 206) ran the 40 in 4.77 and 4.72 seconds. He had a 37 1/2-inch vertical jump and 9-foot-10 broad jump. He did the short shuttle in 4.2 seconds and the three-cone drill in 7.22 seconds. Brence performed 13 reps of 225 pounds on the bench press. Brence is a player who doesn't run particularly fast, but has great play recognition. He is a priority free-agent possibility following the draft.
The workout was held indoors and run on FieldTurf. Baylor is a great place to visit and really puts on a show for its pro day, with a large contingent of fans present and music blaring during the workout. Baylor coach Art Briles makes himself available to the scouts.
Follow Gil Brandt on Twitter _@GilBrandt_.
