Scouting Report: Arrelious Benn, WR, Illinois

Ht: 6'1 Wt: 219 40: 4.48

Strengths: Nice size. Has pretty good upper body strength (20 reps on the bench at the combine), he can beat jams off the line of scrimmage. Tough, physical, and uses his hands very well when battling corners off the line. Tough to bring down. Good ball carrier vision, able to make defenders miss. Has a great stiff arm, and can break tackles. This is one of his biggest strengths. Shows good, not great speed. Very good route runner. Looks very comfortable and makes clean, sharp cuts. Shows really good awareness, especially when it comes to making sideline catches. He is able to get to soft spots of the defense. Great jumping ability, he is able to get the jump ball. I love his ability to get the deep balls. Shows strong hands and uses hands to catch the football, but he is inconsistent. Is able to adjust to the football. Very athletic. Not afraid to go across the middle.

Weaknesses: Inconsistent hands when it comes to very easy passes; which shows a lack of focus. He can make big catches, but he could use some improvement in this area. The only thing I see wrong with his route running is that I don't see he coming back to the quarterback when the quarterback is in trouble. Questions about work ethic.

Summary: Arrelious Benn was not as productive as a junior; however he possesses skills that make him a great overall prospect coming out of Illinois. He is an extremely physical receiver. He has a tough mentality and his physical style of play makes him very hard to tackle. He is able to break tackles by spinning, using his stiff arm or by simply running the defender over. This is clearly his biggest strength. Benn also has tremendous ball carrier vision. He is able to do damage after the catch, as well as return kicks. Benn's main weakness is his consistency. Some blame the fact that he was constantly double-teamed, some say it was because of Illinois' poor quarterback play. Whatever the reason is, it raises the question why Benn wasn't as productive as expected. Despite these concerns, Arrelious Benn's strengths are too much to pass up on, and he will likely be drafted no later than mid-second round.

Draft Projection: Late 1st / Early 2nd