Every so often, a prospect seizes their opportunity in the draft process and forces scouts and evaluators back to the tape.
You can be excused for not knowing about Cincinnati wide receiver Jeff Caldwell when the 2025 season started. He had just transferred to the Bearcats after spending the first three years of his college career in the FCS at Lindenwood. Caldwell had a dominant 2024 season and took the opportunity to make the jump to the FBS and try to prove to the NFL that he belongs. He had a modest
season, and was Cincy’s second-leading receiver with 478 yards and 6 touchdowns in a season where the leading receiver had only had 674 yards.
It was still enough for Caldwell to earn an invitation to the 2026 NFL Scouting Combine, and that was where he forced scouts to go back to their tape. Caldwell put on an absolute show, with a workout that can only be compared to the likes of Christian Watson and Julio Jones.
Caldwell isn’t on Watson’s level, and certainly not Jones’, at least not yet. However a closer look at his tape reveals intriguing flashes if a team that can coach him up.
Could the New York Giants be the team to take a flier on Caldwell and try to polish the diamond in the rough?
Prospect: Jeff Caldwell (9)
Games Watched: vs. UCF (2025), vs. Arizona (2025), vs. TCU (2025)
Measurables
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Strengths
Best traits
- Size
- Length
- Speed
- Explosiveness
- Short-area quickness
- Strength
- Competitive Toughness
- Run after catch
Jeff Caldwell possesses an elite combination of size and athleticism for the wide receiver position.
He has a prototypical frame for a wide receiver at 6-foot 4 ¾ inches, 216 pounds, with 32 ⅝ inch arms and 9 ¾ inch hands. He combines that with rare speed and explosiveness, and not just for his size.
Caldwell’s absurd 42-inch vertical and 1.48-second 10-yard split show up on tape, as he’s able to accelerate hard and fast off the line of scrimmage against off-coverage. He rapidly eats up cushions against zone coverage and is easily able to run past cornerbacks who don’t respect his 4.31 speed. His size and raw speed make him a true vertical threat, as well as a dangerous ball carrier in the open field.
Caldwell flashes solid ball skills in the intermediate and deep areas of the field. He locates the ball quickly in the air and does a good job of tracking it over his shoulder on vertical routes. He typically makes good adjustments to the ball and is a hands catcher who extends to pluck the ball out of the air and away from his frame.
He also has a surprising amount of twitch and agility despite his big frame. Caldwell flashes impressive change of direction skills, either quickly turning to haul in back-shoulder passes or juking defenders in a phone booth on wide receiver screens.
Finally, Caldwell plays with good toughness. He runs his routes convincingly away from the ball, either serving as traffic to slow down defenders or eye-candy as a misdirection piece. Likewise, Caldwell is a competitive blocker for his teammates. He doesn’t yet have polished technique, but his size, strength, and explosiveness are enough to deal with most defensive backs on the perimeter. What’s more, Caldwell shows something of a mean streak, stepping up and getting after defenders when he’s asked to block on the play side.
Weaknesses
Worst traits
- Route running
- Release
- Technique
- Contested catch
Each of Caldwell’s weaknesses are easily traced back to poor technique. He has always been the biggest, strongest, fastest, and most explosive athlete on the field, and that has always been enough.
However, he will need to put in real work to hone his craft as a technician if he wants to reach his ceiling as a wide receiver.
As things stand now, Caldwell is sloppy in his execution. He trusts his size and explosiveness to beat tight or press-man coverage, which can lead to the timing of routes being disrupted early in the play. And even when he releases cleanly, there’s no hint of route savvy or misdirection in his route-running. He doesn’t (yet) show an understanding of how to tempo or manipulate his route stems to create opportunities for separation down the field.
And while Caldwell runs a relatively varied route tree, his routes are unrefined and imprecise. His breaks tend to be rounded, despite his surprising twitch and agility, which can make it easy for defenders to stay with him through his routes despite his elite athleticism.
All of that comes to a head at the catch point. Despite his obvious size and strength, Caldwell has a poor 8.6 percent drop rate and 38.5 percent contested catch rate. His inability to use his routes as weapons to generate separation or to position himself to maximize receiving windows and box out defensive backs. That, in turn, leads to too many plays on the ball in an area in which he should dominate.
Game Tape
(Caldwell is the Cincinnati wide receiver wearing number 9 and a black sleeve on his right arm.)
Projection
Jeff Caldwell projects as a developmental wide receiver and special teams player, at least to start his career.
Caldwell’s tape is at once incredibly frustrating and exciting. It’s frustrating due to the sloppiness in his execution, which leads to struggles in areas in which he should excel. However, the flashes of what he can become are incredibly exciting. He has all the traits and tools to be a very good wide receiver at the NFL level – if he can learn how to use those tools as a professional. He’ll need to land in a situation with a good offensive coaching staff and locker room to help him reach his potential, as well as actually be afforded the time to develop.
Right now, however, Caldwell is a big puppy of a receiver. He’s all long legs and big paws, letting you know what he can become, but he isn’t that yet. He needs to land in a good home to grow into the dog he can be.
Does he fit the Giants? Yes, as a developmental player
Final Word: A Day 3 pick
