Pro Day season has come to an end, and it’s finally the week of the 2022 NFL Draft. Given the amazing opportunity to attend Pro Day at the University of Kentucky, I decided to recap the prospects I had the chance to watch. So let’s focus on the offensive side of the ball first.
Dare Rosenthal
Dare was a defensive tackle prospect coming out of high school and originally committed to LSU. However, he ended up in Lexington for his junior year. He was the starting left tackle for the Wildcats and a big piece of the “Big Blue Wall.” Standing 6 feet 7 inches tall and weighing in at 306 pounds at Pro Day, he is a mountain of a man. A 79.375-inch wingspan paired with 9-inch hands provides good length. But most impressively, Dare ran a 4.88 40-yard dash (fastest time by an OL) at the NFL combine. An athlete with length at left tackle is always a good problem to have, but Rosenthal is a day 3 pick at best. Dare will need to improve his frame and technique to become an impact player in the NFL. Dare’s most significant issues are a tendency to stand too tall when blocking and a lack of footwork to keep edge rushers out of the pocket. But he has a solid starting point, and teams will likely look at Dare in the 5th or 6th round.
Darian Kinnard
Kinnard was the prospect I was most looking forward to seeing. 6 feet 5 inches tall and 328 pounds measurements at Pro Day. Darian is often described as “nasty” in a good way. The right tackle of the “Big Blue Wall” was a consensus 1st team All-American. 5.31 40-yard dash, 25-inch vertical, and a 4.96 20-yard shuttle showed Kinnard’s athleticism. An 83.25-inch wingspan doesn’t hurt to have on the offensive line either. Kinnard won the 2021 Jacobs Blocking trophy and finished as a semifinalist for the Rotary Lombardi Award and Outland trophy. Darian will need to improve his sloppy feet and his tendency to hug when a defender rushes inside. But if right tackle is a need for your team, you would undoubtedly be happy with Kinnard being the selection. As for the Colts, right tackle is not much of a need. Look for the right tackle to be selected in the 3rd round, possibly even the 2nd round.
Wan’Dale Robinson
Now for the Wildcat that has been most connected to Indy (via the fanbase). The dynamic playmaker for Kentucky plays a position of need for the Colts. However, I cannot imagine that Ballard is as enamored with Robinson as Colts Twitter seems to be. The measurements are what they are, and they won’t change. Standing 5 feet 8 inches tall and weighing in at 179 pounds, Wan’Dale is undersized, to say the least. However, he does make up for that with a strong frame. Robinson is built like a running back (which he played at Nebraska) and showed that strength off at Pro Day with 19 reps on the bench press. Then you see the wingspan at 67.625 inches, and we are back with the questions. A limited catch radius isn’t sought after in the NFL, but Robinson showed he could adjust and make catches outside of his radius during the Pro Day drills.
Additionally, 9-inch hands and a 35-inch vertical will help Wan’Dale’s case also. As much as I would hate to disappoint Colts Twitter, I don’t see Robinson coming to Indianapolis. He’s likely going to make his living as a “gadget-play” guy that can make things happen with the ball in his hands. Wan’Dale will probably be selected somewhere in the 4th or 5th round.
Wan’Dale Robinson had a DAY at Kentucky’s Pro Day, folks.
35 inch vertical
6.79 3-Cone
19 reps on the bench 👀Made a couple fantastic catches on poorly thrown footballs. He stood out today in a big way.
— Derrick (@Steelers_DB) April 1, 2022
As far as Wildcats on the offensive side of the ball, I don’t see any ending up on Ballard’s board. It’d be a late-round flier or even a training camp deal for Dare Rosenthal if I had to choose one. However, there was an offensive prospect that stood out at Pro Day. Too bad he’s a 2023 guy, though. Will Levis, QB1 of Kentucky, walked in, and all eyes wandered away from the other prospects. But that’s a different article for another day (or year, for that matter). We’ll look at defensive prospects from the University of Kentucky Pro Day in the next one.
At Kentucky’s Pro Day today, rather than watching Will Levis casually roll left and throw 65 yards, I was fixated on how scouts reacted to said throws.
Smiles were exchanged. He’s got all the physical traits to go early in the 2023 NFL Draft.
— Josh Edwards (@EdwardsCBS) April 1, 2022
