Carson Wentz passes first round of tests at Senior Bowl

North Dakota State quarterback Carson Wentz will be under the heat lamp this week at the Reese’s Senior Bowl. Through the week, his footwork and throwing mechanics will be checked for consistency. The NFL coaches are going to throw different looks at him to tests his ability to read defenses.

Then of course, the NFL people want to see if the FCS quarterback can adjust to a higher level of competition. He’ll also have his personal interviews to show the intangibles he has inside of him. Many are looking hat Wentz as a top-10 pick in the 2016 NFL Draft so this kind of scrutiny will continue.

The portion of his testing, physical measurements, was taken Tuesday morning and he passed with flying colors. Wentz measured in at 6″5″ and 1/4, 233 pounds, which is pretty close to his college listing of 6’6″, 235. He also measured with the all important 2nd-largest hands among quarterbacks at the Senior Bowl.

Wentz’ 10-inch measurement was second to only Stanford quarterback Kevin Hogan, who measured in at 10 1/8 inches. Anything from 10 inches up is a great measurement for NFL scouts, particularly those from cold-weather cities because larger hands are important for gripping the ball in inclement weather.

So with the first test passed, it’s on to the week of practice as everything this week is a competition. Then the big test comes on Saturday to see if he can adapt to the competition level and the nerve he has to do so. Passing the big test Saturday with flying colors could put him in front of the other quarterbacks taken in the 2016 NFL Draft.