Robiskie might be the draft's most "polished" receiver.
It's time to finish up with our draft scouting reports. And to close things out, we're going to turn our attention to one of those players who seem to be flying under the radar - Ohio State's Brian Robiskie.
To help us with Robiskie, I turned to Jonathan Franz, one of the guys who runs The Rivalry, Esq - SBN's Big Ten football blog. He also happens to be a current law student at Ohio State. His thoughts can be found below right after some of Brian's Combine numbers.
Brian Robiskie
Height: 6'2 7/8"" / Weight: 209
40: 4.51 / Arm: 31 1/2"" / Vertical: 37.5"
In general, Robiskie is a special teams doll turned all-around go-to. His size, and under utilization his senior season make him somewhat of an enigma as far as expectations are concerned. A careful review of his combine numbers, as well as his film, shows that what Brian lacks in dynamics, he makes up for in steady-handed consistency.
It can't hurt that Brian grew up under the same roof as an NFL veteran and wide receivers coach (Terry Robiskie). Sound fundamentals are his pedigree -- his comfort with his body allows him to contour his play to a number of skill sets. Brian can line up in the slot, or outside -- although he is best in short goal-line situations -- knifed across the middle. His resume is littered with 7-12 yard touchdown completions.
To that end, Brian is strong in traffic -- benefiting from a balanced vertical, and generous reach (31 1/2'' arm span, 9 5/8'' hand span). He's usually good for a handful of yards after the catch, although he sometimes over complicates simple evasions -- juking in place, and moving laterally, rather than forcing himself downfield. Similarly, Brian often fails to push into blocks, conceeding valuable leverage to defenders.
Although Brian might not have the native speed necessary to go tit for tat with corners on the deep ball -- he's dangerous across the middle on skinny post routes -- and especially tactful scooping and diving for under or over-thrown passes.
Robiskie is not a razzle and dazzle wideout by any stretch of the imagination, but he'd be a solid addition to any team who needs a number two receiver that can shuffle between lineups.
A big thanks to Jonathan for putting this together. Personally, I really like Robiskie. But I just wonder if is upside is limited because of his lack of speed and explosion. He's such a great route runner, though, that he makes up for his lack of top-end speed. He's one of my favorite players in this draft, but the question is if he'd fit in down in Miami.